After the holidays are over, and the ornaments and lights have been packed away, your house may need more nonseasonal decorations to freshen up your decor. If your front door or fireplace mantle looks bare, a DIY wreath is one quick and easy way to add a personal and welcoming touch to your home. Follow these three steps to design to craft a wreath guaranteed to dress up your home year round.

Step 1: Choose Your Base

Wreath-making begins with a base to give proper form and shape to your decoration. Most wreaths are round, but square wire wreaths or heart-shaped foam also works well. Foam bases can be wrapped with colorful fabric or ribbon. Grapevine coils are a standard found preformed into a circular base in most craft stores. Grapevines work especially well as a base for a floral wreath or one using greenery to create a natural look.

Image Source: Flickr/Selena N. B. H.

Step 2: Choose Your Decorations

Once you’ve decided on a base, select the color scheme and style of the wreath that fits best in your home. If you’d like to add a colorful focal point to neutral walls, choose bright fabrics or felt. To personalize a wreath for your front door, add wooden monogrammed initials that can be purchased at a local craft store. Other fun decorations include sea shells, felt flowers, and curled paper or ribbon. And, of course, in Philadelphia, sports related themes incorporating Eagles’ green or the Phillies’ red and white are popular. If you’re looking for a DIY wreath to create with your kids, consider using something edible, such as gumdrops or marshmallows attached to a foam base using toothpicks.

Step 3: Assembly

Depending on your chosen wreath materials, you may need to employ a few assembly techniques to complete your craft project. A hot glue gun works well for foam or grapevine bases. Wreath ties or floral wire will allow you to attach flowers or other ornaments to wire wreaths and can be easily disguised. If you’re using foam, spray-on adhesive is also worth a try for a fast way to attach a number of items.

A DIY Wreaths is a quick and inexpensive way to personalize your home decor after taking down the holiday decorations. In addition to creating a wreath for yourself, they also make a great personalized gift for your favorite new homeowners to hang on the front door of their Philadelphia home.

Main Image Source: Flickr/Karen Cox

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