Sunday, June 30, 2013

C'mon Knock on my Door...


...I've been waiting for you...

As the first post on the blog, the front door seemed like a fitting place to start.  I have to admit, I have a slight obsession with wreaths.  I LOVE them!  A wreath is such a fun, festive way to welcome people into your home, and the front door is such a fun decorating opportunity!  I also like to think that frequent wreath changes give the mailman something to look forward to when coming to our house (although I might be stretching a bit with that one)! Hey, whatever works, right?

Wreaths can be super-expensive, so I prefer to make my own whenever possible, typically with some sort of inspiration from Pinterest or one of the many home décor blogs that I follow.  Here are a few of the most recent wreaths we've had on our door.

 I almost always incorporate the first letter of our last name into our wreath, so this letter M wreath seemed perfect for us!  It was incredibly easy to make!  All I did was buy a wooden letter from a craft store (approx. $2.50) and wrap it in twine using hot glue. I finished it off with some flowers that I had on hand in my craft bin. Getting the twine to wrap in straight lines along the planes of the letter took some practice, but I was able to complete the whole project while watching the drama unfold in one episode of Real Housewives.



A wreath that cost only $2.50 (since I  had almost everything I needed on hand) and took about an hour to make? I'll take it! I would guess that someone who needed to buy all of the materials could create this
 for under $10.

I love the natural look of the twine on the red of the door, and think it is a nice summer look.



 


 
Another recent look that I loved was this spring wreath made from a simple grapevine wreath and some hydrangeas. I love grapevine wreaths for the natural feel that they offer, and because you can so easily create a new look by changing out the materials you tuck into them. With all of the nooks and crannies grapevine offers, I generally don't even need to tie or pin my materials into the wreath, I just tuck them in! I painted the wooden letter M using some leftover paint from our kitchen and attached it with some twine. 
 
 I'm not wild about the fact that you can see the twine wrapped around the letter M. I think the next time I use this wreath I will hot glue the twine to the back of the letter, so that it can be tied on without being visible.

The total cost for this wreath was around $12.  I already had the grapevine wreath, but had paid $3 for it when I bought it, a roll of twine was $1.50, the wooden letter $1, and the hydrangea stems were a little more then $3 each. Each hydrangea came with several bunches, and you can see that I cut two bunches from the green stem and one bunch from the purple. 

 
 This past fall, I made my first foray into making burlap wreaths, inspired by this pin on Pinterest.  Following this tutorial to make the wreath was SO easy, and I loved the results.  Just like a grapevine wreath, the burlap wreath is very easy to pair with interchangeable items, so it's easy to switch up your wreath often.  And you know how much I love to do that!   Thanks Pinterest, for keeping me (and maybe the mailman!) inspired by our front door!
 


 
How do you dress up your front door?  I'm always looking for new ideas, and would love to hear yours!
 
Like my wreaths?  Follow me on Pinterest for other looks that I love!
 
 
 
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