I’ve been building an Advent wreath every year for longer than I can remember. My mother was the daughter of a German Lutheran minister, and while she was not an observant Christian, she made a wreath every year when we were children. Each Sunday in Advent we would gather in the afternoon to have coffee and cake, light the appropriate number of candles, listen to Christmas music, and enjoy each other’s company.
My wreath starts with a straw base. This base is probably 30 or 40 years old.
I only use a few doo-dads to make my wreath. I have a bag of florist pins, several types of candle holders, green florist wire (not pictured), and four 12″ red tapers. Traditionally, Lutherans use red candles. I’ve also used white, and occasionally I will stray into Catholic symbolism with pink and purple. The wreath will sit on this large round tray. Keep in mind that your finished wreath will be quite a bit bigger in diameter than the base.
I wrap the straw base with dark green plastic (a cut up lawn and leaf bag, probably 30 years old, too) to protect the straw and to camouflage any base spots in the finished wreath. The plastic strips are secured with florist pins.
I insert the candle holders, regularly spaced around the wreath. You can get creative with different spacings for a less traditional look. These are my favorite candle holders; the “petals” that make up the cup can be squeezed tight against the candle to hold it more securely.
I rarely buy anything for the wreath. I gather a variety of evergreens from my yard (cedar, spruce, long needle pine). I’ve used two different methods for keeping the wreath from drying out and turning into tinder during the long Advent season indoors. Neither of them work very well, but both are better than nothing. The first is to soak the greens in a laundry sink in a solution of glycerin and water. If you’re going to do that you should probably gather and treat your greens a day ahead of time, or your wreath making will be a delightfully wet experience. The second is to spray the finished wreath with an anti-dessicant like Wilt-Pruf, in which case you’re good to go on Sunday morning.
Pin small sprays of greens to cover the inner edge of the wreath form. Orient them all in the same direction. Use as many pins as you need to get them to lay in the right direction, but if they’re really recalcitrant, they’re probably too long and stiff. Cut them into smaller sections. Pin each new spray over the stems (and pins) of the previous spray.
Once the inside is done, do the same on the outside. Same direction. I have a lot of cedar (juniper) bushes in my yard, so cedar is my base material for the inside and outside edges.
Now start covering the top. I go for a little more variety in greens here. Once you’re done, take a good look around the whole thing and check for bare spots and add more as needed.
Spray the whole thing with anti-dessicant, top, bottom and sides, until it’s dripping, and let it dry outside for an hour or two.
Add any non-living ornamentation. This year I’ve added one artifical spray of red and yellow berries, and wired together 3 small pine cones. Some years I’ll add some dried eucalyptus, or ribbons or little ornaments I’ve scrounged off Christmas presents. I don’t usually fancy it up much, though.
Add the candles, adjusting the candle holders as needed so that the candles are nice and straight.
