I can’t quite believe it, but this DIY felt holly wreath is just about the only craft project I’ve been able to make this year. I usually churn out the craft projects from early November, getting way too into the festive season! (It’s one of the requirements of being a craft blogger :P). But this year, I’ve been a little preoccupied with writing my book – so I’ve not had as much time to spend on my own craft projects as I usually do…
But one project I was absolutely determined to make was a DIY felt holly wreath. Nothing was getting between me and this project!
I was inspired to make it when I spotted a similar felt wreath in Liberty last year. I often find wreaths can be quite classic, almost formal and stuffy. But the use of felt gave that wreath a fun, contemporary feel. Way more my kinda style! I knew I had to DIY my own version.
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Make a DIY felt holly wreath
Tools and supplies
- Chunky green felt, ideally 3-5mm thick
- Lightweight green felt
- Mini red pompoms
- Wreath frame (I used an embroidery hoop)
- Strong double sided tape
- Pencil and paper
- Paper scissors
- Fabric scissors
- Needle with a wide eye
- String or twine
- Hot glue gun and glue sticks
- Superglue
- Optional: sewing machine and green thread
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Tutorial
1. Start by drawing several holly leaf outlines onto some scrap paper. You can either sketch them freehand, or find templates online. I’d recommend drawing at least 3, so that your finished felt holly wreath has some variety in the leaves.
2. Once you’ve drawn your holly templates, cut them out.
3. Use the paper templates to cut out lots of holly shapes from your chunky green felt. You’re going to need lots of them, so you may want to grab a cup of tea and put Netflix on! For reference, I used 57 leaves for mine.
4. OPTIONAL: Use a sewing machine to run a straight stitch down the centre of every leaf. This adds a subtle texture to the holly and introduces a different shade of green, for variety. I used a 3.5mm straight stitch, with a backstitch at the start and end to tie it off.
5. Cut the lightweight green felt into long strips, 1-2cm wide.
6. Stick some double sided tape to your wreath frame, then wrap the felt strips around it. Be sure to wrap it tightly, and firmly press in place so the tape adheres well. Keep wrapping until you’ve gone all the way round.
5. Thread your wide-eyed needle with some twine or string. Pierce the needle through the bottom of one of your holly leaves, then pull the twine through. Use this to tie the holly firmly onto the felt-covered wreath frame. (I found that tying them, rather than using glue, was much quicker and less messy – and it allows you to reposition them easily).
6. Repeat step 5 until the entire wreath is covered in leaves (make sure to overlap each subsequent one, so it covers the twine used to tie the previous leaf in place).
TIP: I actually ended up piercing my needle through three leaves at a time, and tying them to the wreath in trios. This gave it a more organic, layered look – and allowed me to spread the leaves outwards to make the wreath chunkier. Experiment and see which effect you prefer.
7. Turn the wreath over, so the front is facing down. Using a hot glue gun, add a dab of glue to any overlapping leaves. This helps them stay firmly in place, so they won’t flop out of position!
8. Check if there are any gaps or holes in the leaves. If there are, use hot glue to stick another one in the space. Keep going until the wreath looks full.
9. Use superglue to apply some mini red pompoms as berries (hot glue is too messy for this!). Only a small drop should be needed for each pompom. I’d recommend applying them in groups of 2-4 berries, so it looks more realistic.
10. Once all of the glue has fully dried, tie a loop of twine to the top and hang it up.
Felt has such unique, interesting characteristics – and I love the playful feel that it gives this holly wreath! There are endless other ways felt can be used in crafts. Here’s a few other projects you might like to try:
Happy Christmas crafting! 🙂 – Mike.
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