How To Make Fresh Garland

I have always admired the beauty of fresh garland adorning doorways and store fronts. It's so simple yet so festive! I wanted to hang some this year and after pricing garland at a few places I knew I had to be creative and make my own because there was no way I was shelling out that much money for something that I would have up only for a few weeks. 

After doing some research, I felt confident to get going so I'm going to share with you how I did it.
            
What you'll need:   

1. Fresh greenery. This can be any greenery you can gather from your yard or ask a neighbor if you can cut some from their property if you don't have access to greenery. I personally like to use cedar.
2. Garden Snips
3. Floral wire.

​After you've cut your greenery, I recommend soaking it in a bathtub full of water overnight. It definitely helps to keep it fresh a little bit longer! The following day, measure the area from top to bottom and side to side where you will be hanging your garland. I just take my floral wire and unwind it to measure the length I need. I go about 6 inches longer so I have extra wire on each end which I'll use to secure my garland to the doorway.  I recommend doing 3 separate garlands so it's easier to handle. So, once I have my wire at the desired length I use 2 chairs and wrap my wire between the chairs to hold it taut. This will be your base wire, what I will be laying and fastening my garland to.

I then grab a bundle of greenery...lay it on top of my base wire...and start to wrap my wire around the greenery to secure it. Continue doing that until you have covered the entire length of your base wire. 

Now that you're all done its time to hang it! I just use nails. I find they hold the garland in place better since they can be quite heavy. I hammer my nails in each end of my doorway and wrap the excess wire around the nail till its nice and secure. For an elegant touch you can add a pretty bow in each corner! 

Honestly, It's such a fun, quick and easy project. And the best part is,  it's free!

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!

xo Rene'