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.
Here are the items that I bought (makes 2-3 wreaths depending on desired fullness)
- Brass Rings (set of three, 14”, 12”, 8”)
- Floral tape
- Set of 6 assorted faux succulents
- Set of 4 pieces white faux orchid stem (approx. 6-7 flowers on each)
- Set of 3 faux palm fronds
- Set of 18 faux monstera leaves (2 bunches with 9 leaves on each, which I broke up)
- Faux Eucalyptus Garland
- E6000 Craft Glue
- Ribbon for hanging
Optional Extras
FAUX SUCCULENTS | FAUX PALM LEAVES | FAUX MONSTERA LEAVES | FAUX ORCHIDS | FAUX EUCALYPTUS GARLAND
BRASS MACRAME RINGS | JOY SCRIPT WOODEN SIGN | GOLD SPRAY PAINT | CRAFT GLUE | FLORAL TAPE | RIBBON | WIRE CLIPPERS
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.
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.
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.
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.
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!)
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.
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!
