Create Fabulous Fall Wreaths

Fashion a fall wreath using mini pumpkins, gourds and faux leaves. Start with a straw wreath form. Tap a nail into each pumpkin and gourd to create a small hole. Remove the nail and insert a toothpick into each hole; coat other end of the toothpick with hot glue and insert it into the wreath form. Fill empty spaces with hot-glued silk leaves.

So simple, but cheerful! Transform a grapevine wreath into a bright fall display by trimming the stems of your flowers so they are just short enough to weave into the vines of the wreath. We used marigolds, but you could experiment with mums or other fall blooms. (Real flowers look lovely but will only last a few days; use faux flowers for a long-lasting wreath.) Accent with pumpkins.

This pretty wreath will brighten your Halloween decorating for years. Make or buy yarn pom-poms in a variety of colors and shapes and attach to a foam wreath with U-shape floral greening pins. 

Colorful embroidery thread cocoons the branches of these rattan wreaths, a modern update on basic grapevine. Buy them bare at a crafts or home decor store, and choose wraps that complement your decor. For the season, swap out a few picture frames on a wall with your DIY wreaths.

Press mum flower stems into a foam florist's wreath form that has been saturated with water. Add an exclamation point by hanging the wreath with a bold flannel scarf.

A wall gains harvest style from this wreath that resembles a sunburst.

Soak corn husks in water until they are pliable, then tear into 1- to 2-inch-wide strips. Starting from the outer edge of a 14-inch straw wreath form, secure rows of strips with dressmaker pins. Overlap each row to hide pins. For the last row, pin strips to the back and bend to cover the inside edge. Strips hold their shape when dry. (Tip: Buy packs of dried corn husks (used to make tamales) in the international foods section of a grocery store or at Walmart.)

Create this beautiful fall wreath with a variety of materials that reflect autumn's hues: gold, red, orange and brown.

Both your yard and a crafts store should provide a bounty of choices. A mix of fresh and dried materials looks lovely, but a wreath of all dried materials lasts longer.

Lightly soak a 10- or 12-inch ring of Oasis floral foam in water. Group your materials by color to plan each section of the wreath, then insert materials by the stems. We used tree leaves and fresh mums for red and orange bands of color, tree leaves and dried yarrow for gold, and dried oak leaves and pinecones for brown. Hot glue or T-pins help hold materials in place.

String apples and pinecones on a circle of heavy-gauge wire and top with a country bow and bouquet of white pine boughs. The juxtaposition between the shiny apples and spiky pinecones is both eye-catching and festive.

Embroidery hoops, fun striped fabric and faux succulents form the basis of this stylish, modern-looking wreath.

Use decoupage to adhere striped fabric to a sheet of cork. Then, on top of the cork, center the inner ring of a 12-inch-diameter embroidery hoop inside the inner ring of a 14-inch-diameter hoop. Trace around the outsides of both hoops and cut out ring. Reassemble hoops, hot-glue both hoops to the cork ring, then hot-glue faux succulents as your wreath accent. 

Seedpods collected from your yard or roadside plants (or for more exotic pods, a crafts store) add interesting shapes, textures and colors to fall arrangements.

Purchase a grapevine wreath and then tuck in seedpod stems or hot-glue them into the vines. This wreath uses milkweed, leaves and red winged seedpods from a Japanese maple, tallow berries from a crafts store, scarlet oak foliage, a lotus pod, evening primrose stalks, jimsonweed (Datura stramonium), and seedpods from a honey locust tree.

Beforehand, get a straw wreath form and dye your husks. (We used Rit dye in Charcoal.) A 1-pound pack of husks does the job.

Make shapes Use our instructions to create flowers. Then cut out leafy shapes to cover the wreath.

Plan the design Try an asymmetrical composition for visual interest. Make more flowers or leaves if needed. 

Cover the base Add overlapping layers of leaf shapes, attaching with floral pins until the wreath is covered.

Finish it up Use hot glue to attach flowers. Let dry completely, then seal all sides with polyurethane spray.

Surround a head of kale with faux apples, seedpods and leaves on a foam base. Use glue, pins or floral wire to secure decorations to the base.

Turn a crafts-store wood frame into a harvest wreath. Hot-glue Brazil nuts, hazelnuts and acorns to the frame. Hang with a chocolate-hue ribbon.

For a wreath that lasts from fall through Christmas, try this brown and gold arrangement.

Wire dried artichokes, lotus pods and pinecones to the bottom of a grapevine wreath. Tuck brown- and gold-tinted magnolia leaves (from a crafts store) between twigs. If needed, secure leaves with hot glue. A glittery bird ornament perched on a pinecone (and secured with wire) adds shimmer.

Mimic a blazing sunburst with this fall wreath. Fold out the husks on ears of Indian corn so they point straight out from the tops. Hot-glue the ears to a straw wreath, and "fluff" the husks to complete the look.

An old rake head becomes a clever door decoration when you add bittersweet, tips of juniper or any other fall foliage you may have in your yard. (Purchased bittersweet, leaves and flowers work great, too.) Tuck stems of vines, leaves or flowers into the hollow end of the rake head and secure with tightly wrapped jute.

This playful wreath combines a little DIY with crafts store finds. First, wrap a 14-inch foam wreath form with black and white yarn. Then, embellish the center with crafts store Halloween decorations.

Embellish a square, store-bought magnolia wreath with color-coordinated real and faux materials, including twigs, seedpods and nuts.

What says "Halloween" more than candy corn? This wreath is made with painted foam cones. We used nine 2-7/8-inch x 5-7/8-inch Styrofoam cones, cut in half from top to bottom to make 18 halves. With craft paint, we first painted each cone white, then painted the bottom third yellow and the middle part orange. Make sure the cones dry inbetween each paint coat. Glue to a sturdy cardboard circle to form a wreath. (For a smoother finish, cover the front of each cone with lightweight spackling compound, let dry and sand before painting.)

A wheat wreath reflects your Midwest heritage. Insert dried sheaves into a foam wreath form, then dress up your wreath by slipping the stems of golden maple leaves into the spaces between wheat heads. Use leaves sparingly for the best effect.

Your inner Edgar Allen Poe takes flight with this easy wreath.

Spray-paint an oval or round frame orange and let it dry. Hot-glue a forked branch to the frame for a perch, then glue a faux raven to two branches of the perch (you may need to clip the legs from the faux bird for better support). 

Personalize a purchased twig-and-bittersweet wreath with a couple of simple touches. Wrap the wreath with satin ribbon (an easy look to change out!) and add a twine-wrapped monogram letter inside if you like.

An easy DIY leaf swag adds glam to your front door (or an interior spot, if your front door is exposed to a lot of wind and rain).

Use a foam brush to cover leaves with crafts glue, coat with glitter and shake off excess. Let dry. Cut wire-edge ribbon into 20-inch pieces and hot-glue a glittery leaf to each end. Gather ribbon ends and knot at the top.

Bittersweet vines and hydrangeas add pretty curves and colors to a grapevine wreath.