A big welcome to Jeanne from WildWoods Art who brings us a lovely tutorial on making a recycled wreath for Halloween! Jeanne is a big Halloween inspiration!

Who doesn’t like to hang a pretty wreath on their door or fence in celebration of a Holiday or Season?  We’ll make such a wreath and it will even be out of recycled plastic bags!

Hi! I’m Jeanne Gripp of WildWoods Art. I am a self-taught Folk Artist who delights in making items of whimsy. I try to incorporate cast off items in as many of my creations as possible.
This wreath is made from a metal coat hanger and plastic bags. I used the plastic sleeves that a newspaper would come in to protect it from the weather. Regular (clean) plastic trash bags or shopping bags can also be used.

Supplies needed:
metal coat hanger
pliers
scissors
plastic bags – I used orange and black for Halloween

Step 1. Bend coat hanger to form a circle. Use the pliers to help form the curves. Using the pliers, bend the hook of the coat hanger to form a closed circle. This will be the loop from which the wreath will hang.

Step 2. Cut plastic sleeves or plastic bags into 2 1/2″ x 5 1/2″  strips. Because a wreath always looks best when very full, A LOT of strips will be needed !

Step 3. Tie plastic strips onto wire form. Over and over again! I make my wreaths while watching TV – it’s a very mindless activity. (Both watching TV and tying on the strips!) I like to use a double strip when tying onto the form. Push the strips together as they are tied on and alternate the ends. This will add to the wreath’s fullness. Do not pull the strips too snug or you might stretch out the plastic and cause it to snap.

Step 4. When the wreath is full, a bow will need to be made. Cut a 8″ wide strip of plastic approx. 54″ long. Double over the strip so it is 4″ wide. Doubling over the strip will  help your bow to ‘stand out’ and not flop over. Take this strip and tie a large bow around the ‘neck’ of the wreath (just below the loop you made for hanging).

VOILA` ! You now have an all-weather wreath. The color of plastic used for the wreath can be changed to suit the Holiday – green wreath with red bow for Christmas or even pastel colors for Spring or Easter.

Hope you’ve enjoyed this! Stay tuned for more Halloween fun, all month long: Halloween at Dabbled