Written and Photographed By
Madeline Cooper
Fraiche Flower Farm
@fraicheflowerfarm
Tulliby Lake, Alberta, Canada
fraicheflowerfarm.com

From the 2022 Trailblazher Holiday Gift Guide

What you’ll need:

Assorted evergreens, paddle wire 22 gauge, garden snips, gloves as the greenery can be sharp, and a wire base in the size of your choice.

You can use many different evergreens, either things you have foraged or purchased from a local store. In this tutorial I used blue spruce and pine. There are many varieties of greens you can use such as cedar, hemlock, pine, fir, spruce, boxwood, and even eucalyptus! The possibilities are endless!

Step 1: Unroll some of your wire placing it behind the wreath base. Bring both sides of the wire up and then twist those pieces together until snug. You will keep the wire on the paddle. Do not cut the wire.

Step 2: Take 3-5 pieces of your evergreens, stacking them together. Place them on your wire base and tightly wrap them around with your paddle wire a few times. You’ll want to make sure you pull snugly with each wrap of the wire because as the greens start to dry out they will shrink. 

Step 3: Assemble another bunch and place it below the first bunch you attached. I like to alternate the way the bundles are placed on the base. The first bundle tipped in one direction, the next tipped the other direction. This creates more fullness to your wreath.

Step 4: Repeat step three all the way around the base. Once you get to where the first bunch started you will need to lift up that bundle up so you can tuck the last bundle in and secure it with wire.

Step 5: Flip your completed wreath over. Unroll approximately 12 inches of wire and cut it from the paddle. Take the wire and pass it in between the base and the attached greenery, create a loop on one side, then twist both sides together to tie off your wreath.

Step 6: At this stage you can add pinecones or ribbon to give your wreath some extra pizazz! To attach pine cones, you can either hot glue them in or use wire. Run wire around the base of the pine cone hiding the wire in between the petals (as I call them). Make sure there is equal wire on both sides of the base.Twist around the base leaving two pieces of wire so you can then attach the cone to the wreath. 

With proper care your wreath will last months. On warmer days make sure to give your wreath a mist of water every few days while temperatures are on the warm side. 

If you make your own wreath this season, I’d love it if you tagged me so I can see your creations!

-Madeline

Madeline Cooper runs Fraiche Flower Farm in Tulliby Lake, Alberta. December is her favourite time of year and she loves teaching people how to make wreaths in her home during the holiday season. In other seasons she hosts u-pick evenings and flower crown classes on her farm. She is also launching a line of seeds in 2023.