DIY Tropical Christmas Wreath

A DIY Tropical Wreath for Christmas - gorgeous faux leaves and succulents with orchids

Feeling festive doesn’t always come that naturally in a tropical climate. You don’t get the drop in temperatures, the Starbucks PSLs, the snow falling, the Christmas jumpers and the roaring fires. But it’s still fun to get into the spirit and I’m lucky that I have some good girlfriends that I can call upon for Christmas movies (Love Actually, obvs), decorating and mulled wine as soon as we get into December. 

 

Every year I have a little tree that I decorate and I like to incorporate both traditional baubles etc, along with a nod to our tropical setting with a few that are a bit more beach-y. This year I decided to really push the boat out and I wanted to make a Christmas wreath. However, the usual pine cones and fir don’t really suit our decor or the island climate. I wanted to make a tropical Christmas wreath! There’s something about Christmas that brings out the crafty side of me (you can find one of my previous Christmas projects here.)

 

Read on to discover how I did it! 

 

I really wanted a wreath that I could update every year and re-use (or maybe just use all year round…), so I went with faux flowers and faux succulents. You could also use real flowers and foliage – but you will need to spritz with water daily to keep it fresh for as long as possible. 

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Make your own DIY Tropical Wreath

 

Here are the items that I bought (makes 2-3 tropical wreaths depending on desired fullness)

 

 

Optional Extras for your wreath  

DIY Tropical Christmas Wreath - gorgeous faux succulents, palm leaves and orchids make up this stylish modern wreath. FAUX SUCCULENTS | FAUX PALM LEAVES | FAUX MONSTERA LEAVES | FAUX ORCHIDS | FAUX EUCALYPTUS GARLAND

 

DIY Tropical Christmas Wreath - gorgeous faux succulents, palm leaves and orchids make up this stylish modern wreath.

BRASS MACRAME RINGS | JOY SCRIPT WOODEN SIGN | GOLD SPRAY PAINT | CRAFT GLUE | FLORAL TAPE | RIBBON | WIRE CLIPPERS 

A DIY Tropical Wreath for Christmas - gathering all the equipment together


Keep in mind that my DIY efforts are usually pretty basic. So I’m thinking that if I can do this – anyone can! This was literally my first attempt.

YOU MAY ALSO ENJOY READING: Island Interior Inspo: How to incorporate tropical decor all year round

DIY Tropical Wreath

 

Step 1 – 

Start with your largest pieces of greenery – for me this was my palm fronds and monstera leaves. I started at the outermost edges that I wanted to cover and worked my way in. I secured the wire stems with floral tape and with each stem that I added I covered up the tape from the one before it.

A DIY Tropical Wreath for Christmas - gorgeous faux leaves and succulents with orchids

Step 2 – 

Once I had my basic background foliage it was time to add in the smaller items, the eucalyptus and the succulents. I wanted my wreaths to be asymmetrical. Using yet more floral tape, I secured the succulents to the foliage and the ring. 

 A DIY Tropical Wreath for Christmas - gorgeous faux leaves and succulents with orchids


Step 3 – 

Now time to add the flowers. I went for white orchids (since the green and white suited my decor) but hibiscus flowers, protea and birds of paradise would all lend themselves well to a tropical wreath and inject a bit of colour at the same time. It’s probably worth mentioning that the orchids that I used also came in purple, orange and purple/white.

A DIY Tropical Wreath for Christmas - gorgeous faux leaves and succulents with orchids

A DIY Tropical Wreath for Christmas - gorgeous faux leaves and succulents with orchids

Step 4 – 

Finally I glued the ribbon to hang the wreath. I knotted the ribbon at the top of the wreath and secured it with some glue (since the weight of the wreath does not sit at the bottom and I didn’t want the brass hoop to slide round). I used a black and white striped ribbon as I love the combination of black, white, gold and green. (Note: the joy sign will be painted gold just as soon as my gold spray paint arrives… damn shipping!)

DIY Tropical Wreath for Christmas - gorgeous faux leaves, succulents and orchids make up this simple modern wreath

I made one big and detailed wreath using two rings and my joy sign. This was for our house. Then I made another slightly smaller wreath using the 12” brass ring as a gift for a friend. 

YOU MAY ALSO ENJOY READING: ‘Press For Champagne’ A DIY Tutorial

A DIY Tropical Wreath for Christmas - gorgeous faux leaves and succulents with orchids

A DIY Tropical Wreath for Christmas - gorgeous faux leaves and succulents with orchids

DIY Tropical Wreath


I easily could have made three wreaths of different sizes with all of the foliage I had. I might make a couple more as gifts with some additional rings, this would also help decrease the cost per wreath to make. 

 

Read more about my Island decor style here – and learn how to incorporate it into your home, no matter where you live. 

 

What do you think? Would you give wreath-making a try? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below! 

Shop This Post

Wire Clippers
Wire Clippers
Ribbon
Ribbon
Floral Tape
Floral Tape
Craft Glue
Craft Glue
Gold Spray Paint
Gold Spray Paint
Joy Script Sign
Joy Script Sign
Brass Macrame Rings
Brass Macrame Rings
Faux Eucalyptus Garland
Faux Eucalyptus Garland
Faux Orchids
Faux Orchids
Faux Monstera Leaves
Faux Monstera Leaves
Faux Palm Leaves
Faux Palm Leaves
Faux Succulents
Faux Succulents

 

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19 Comments

  1. November 26, 2018 / 2:29 pm

    Wow! I love this idea! My husband would love it too! He wishes we lived in a more tropical area so this would be perfect!

    • thebarefootangel
      Author
      November 26, 2018 / 3:10 pm

      Yes, it’s a great way to bring a little bit of a tropical feel into your home!

  2. November 26, 2018 / 3:04 pm

    How unique! Love this idea.

  3. November 26, 2018 / 3:08 pm

    Charlie, this is such a great idea. this not your typical wreath. I wonder if my local Joann and Michaels will have the supplies to make it. On it now!

    • thebarefootangel
      Author
      November 26, 2018 / 3:10 pm

      Almost certainly Polina – and the best part is that it is so customizable, so whatever takes your fancy when you get to the store will work! Would love to see how it turns out!

  4. Zarah
    November 26, 2018 / 10:00 pm

    These are adorable! I love your pictures of them hanging up.

  5. November 27, 2018 / 9:52 am

    WOW this is beautiful! I like how it doesn’t look like a traditional wreath. It’s really, really pretty! And thank you for including detailed pictures. I’m terrible at DIY but I think I’m going to give this a go, wish me luck haha!

  6. November 30, 2018 / 4:27 pm

    This is stunning Charlie. Strangely, I would actually have this ALL YEAR ROUND. Much prefer the tropical vibe to the classic Christmas wreath. xx

    • thebarefootangel
      Author
      November 30, 2018 / 4:28 pm

      Thank you!! I don’t think that I’m going to want to take it down! xx

  7. mindfulpoints
    December 4, 2018 / 12:13 am

    I love the design! especially the letters “Joy” in the middle… Too bad it will not match the snowy weather we have outside 🙂

    • thebarefootangel
      Author
      December 4, 2018 / 12:50 am

      Thank you! I know it doesn’t suit everyone’s decor but luckily not everyone has a cold Christmas! The steps are great for making any kind of wreath 🙂

  8. December 4, 2018 / 10:34 am

    this is brill Charlie well done – It will look excellent on your door anytime of year. I’m making my Christmas wreath at the moment – mines got felt holly and a christmas pudding 🙂
    I’m like you I think wreaths are for any time of year. Love Bec in a very soggy Manchester.

  9. December 4, 2018 / 2:04 pm

    Excellent idea. It would be also a great wreath for spring or summer. The word joy in the wreath is very inspiring.

  10. December 4, 2018 / 11:49 pm

    Gorgeous! And you could really follow the same framework to get any sort of style to match lots of different decors. I recently saw rings like these at the Dollar Tree so I may have to pick some up and give this is a go. Side note: I love your post layout for this tutorial, especially how you show the supplies!

  11. December 5, 2018 / 5:59 am

    This is one of the most beautiful wreath I have ever seen! So creative and brilliant. The tropical elements are gorgeous!

  12. December 5, 2018 / 6:40 am

    It looks so much fun to create a new decor. This wreath is a modern touch to the traditional one. Loved the idea.

  13. December 5, 2018 / 2:21 pm

    This is so pretty and I love the minimal and colours…. super creative and definitely doable. Welldont

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