Peppermint Wreath

I have done it.

I have FINALLY made a wreath.  My very first one… and I am in LOVE!

It was super duper simple. Anyone can make this wreath, even the kids (with supervision, of course)!

Isn’t is Sweet?  (pun intended)

Don’t you want to make one too?

Well then, here is how I made it…

So, when we were blessed with a huge amount of peppermints from a friend I knew just what I wanted to do with them.

I did not have a wreath form, but I did find this random wood thingy.  Not even sure what it was, but hey, it was free and I thought it might come in handy one day….

Today is that day!  (I am so glad I collect other peoples junk) If you don’t have your own random wood screen hanging thing….just buy a wreath foam from the craft store or dollar store, one with the flat back would be perfect.

I ripped out the random screen thing, and sanded it down.  Of course this would be a simple thing to cut out of plywood.  Just draw a double circle on your 3/4 plywood, about the thickness of your mints (about 3/4), and cut it out with a jigsaw.  Easy!

I painted it red with a couple coats of craft paint and an almost dead foam brush.  Then my little helper and I started un-wrapping the mints!

With the magic of my hot glue gun in no time at all it was coming together!  All you do is add a small dab of hot glue and press on the mint, right next to the other, so easy!

Once I got all the peppermints glued on it needed a bow.  I raided my ribbon and found just enough of this cute polka dot pattern.

You probably know how to make a bow, but just in case here are a couple picture tutorials to show how I made mine.  (My friend in Arizona used to make hair bows and she taught me how, years ago)

When you make the center it may come out weird the first few times, just practice until you get it the way you like it, or for super simple just wrap the ribbon around the center of the bow without the knot.

I love the simple bow look and it is so easy to make if you follow these simple directions.  The nice thing about using the hair tie (or small rubber band) is that you can tweak the bow until it is just the way you want it.  Then add the wire, because if you don’t the hot glue, when you add the middle section, will melt the rubber band….trust me…

And…everyone has twist ties lying around in a kitchen drawer somewhere right?

I also used what was left of my ribbon to wrap around the top of the wreath, to look like a ribbon hanger.  I hot glued it in place, but it is just for decoration…

Because my random wood wreath had a hanger on it already…bonus!  (I may be weird, but I even think it looks cute from the back)

At this point you can be done!  It looks super cute hanging on the wall just like this!

I wanted something to hang it on however…I was thinking some boards put together with a whitewash effect.  You know, to tie in the red and white theme.

Then I remembered the wood I used for my Chippy Decor Box.  It was white and had a cool texture to it…Perfect!

I sanded it down and glued and screwed the boards together.

Here is what it looks like from the back, I used pocket holes.  If you don’t have a pocket hole jig, you could easily put two smaller boards across the width of the top and bottom, and glue and screw them into the four boards to join them together.

Then I needed to put in a nail so I could hang my wreath on the boards….I can’t remember where I saw this trick, pinterest probably….

It was so fast and easy….I did it in my pajamas this morning!  They even look Christmasy to match my project, ha ha ha…..ok, movin’ on.

And here is quick look at the back, I added my own picture hanger and just stuffed the ribbon inside.  You could tape or hot glue or nail it down, I just wanted the flexibility of being able to hang my wreath with or without the boards.
All done!

It just makes me happy!

Something about the peppermint swirls and the red and white makes me feel like a kid at Christmas!

Here are a few more shots…

So…do you have any peppermints on hand?

I would love it if you pinned this to share with others!  Let’s make it a really “sweet” Holiday season.  And I can do the happy dance, because I have now made my first ever wreath!

Hugs,
Mindi

I will be linking to these parties.