Look, I Made This: DIY Burlap Wreath

Last year my mom gave me this really cute hanging sign that said "Welcome Friends" and had some vines and things around it; it was perfect for hanging on our front door in the fall (because we live in an apartment and our front door is actually inside; I don't think it would last long out in the elements). Then, around December I got out our Christmas decorations and found a classic evergreen wreath to put up. Well, since taking our holiday decorations down I've felt that our entry is a little bland, so off to Pinterest I went.

I found a few wreath ideas, but this one from Rooms For Rent is what made up my mind.  I have to admit, I did not follow the tutorial because I couldn't figure out exactly what she was doing. But I did use her advice and bought a metal wreath frame instead of a foam one. It was seriously a fraction of the price; why?!? I got a 12" wreath for $1.99. They also had tiny ones and larger 16" ones. I chose the 12" because I didn't want it to look too obnoxious in our apartment's small entry. Then I bought some burlap on a spool and some silk flowers that were on sale 40% off and hurried home to experiment!

Materials (all bought at Michael's):
12" metal wreath frame
1 roll of burlap (20ft, 6.6 yards(ish))
Embellishments: flowers, ribbon, small decorative birds (they sell them...)

The only supplies you need!

Disclaimer: this isn't really a tutorial, because I'm not 100% sure what I did, but rather just kind of trial and errored it until it looked nice, so that would be my advice to you.

The wreath is divided into sections, mine had 6. I found it easiest to cut a piece of burlap and only work with that little bit at a time. It took roughly 3 feet of burlap ribbon to do one section of the wreath, thus approximately 18 feet of ribbon used total (a little more, because I only had like 10" left).

About a 3' piece of burlap. 

So, I cut a piece of burlap about 3 feet long and just started weaving in and out between the metal pieces. It was easiest for me to weave it around trying to cover all the metal in front and then when I was done doing that I pulled and stretched it around until it was puffed out as much as I liked.

This is one section done. 

I tucked in the edges and moved on to the next section with a new piece of burlap.

Halfway there! 

All done & covered!

When I was finished wrapping and tucking and pulling, I took a piece of burlap and cut a short ribbon, ran it through the metal at the "top" (it all looked the same at this point...) and sewed it closed. You could very easily handstitch this, but I used my machine since it was already threaded up with coordinating thread (how convenient!). I just stitched and backstitched over it a few times (read: three times) and then switched it around so the stitched part was hidden inside the wreath.

Then I got out the flowers I had bought and tucked them in! I pushed them all the way through the metal frame and then bent the stems in the back to form a little hook so they were more secure. I bought a small bouquet of red carnations to put on it for Valentine's Day (and it is Alpha Chi's flower, sorority shout-out!) and then I also got some yellow and pink flowers to switch out for spring!

I'm super happy with the results! 

Alternative flowers for spring!

It is super versatile: green ribbon & bow for St. Patrick's Day, small American flag(s) for Independence Day, orange flowers or small pumpkins for fall, you get the idea. OR you could even leave it just plain, rustic burlap! I love it.

I'd love to know what you guys use to embellish your wreaths for the seasons!