Eucalyptus Wreath

Have you ever had a summer that you felt like you lost? Here we are, with Fall around the corner, and I realized that I did precious few of my summer activities. It was an extraordinary summer. Memorial Day weekend my mother decided it was time to move into a condo… something I’ve been suggesting for 5 years. Before she had a change of heart, I jumped right in. The summer was grueling with buying, selling and moving BUT last weekend we were all done. The last of the boxes unpacked and on Friday we closed on their old home. They are now just 4 miles from me… 2 from Michelle… so spending time with them will be so much easier… definitely making up for the lost summer.

You may be wondering where I’m going with this since this is a tutorial. Well… one of the last things we put on my parent’s wall was a eucalyptus wreath I made for them over 20 years ago. It was the year I made everyone I knew a eucalyptus wreath for Christmas. I’m sure most people have gotten rid of theirs many years ago, but Mom still has hers. And I was shocked that it still smelled like eucalyptus. Sure, the smell wasn’t as strong as it use to be, but if I gave it a very hot shower, I’m sure it would stimulate the oils and much of it’s old smell would return. You gotta love eucalyptus!

Anyway… I realized that I missed my old wreath. Somewhere over the years, in one of our many moves, I probably decided it was time to get rid of it. But looking at my mom’s the other day, I realized that I needed to find time in my “catch up” existence, to make a new one. And I’m so glad I did! The house smells wonderful, and it takes me back years and years ago, when I made them as gifts. They are very easy to make, although I remember now that it was hard on my hands. If you have very good, thin leather gardening gloves, you could probably use them. It is a little pricey, too. It took 3 bunches of eucalyptus that I bought from Joann’s, each costing $9.00 a piece. But I suppose when you consider my mom has had hers for 20 years, it’s a pretty good investment!

Materials:
3 bunches eucalyptus (I bought one red, one brown and one green)
3 packages (300) 3″ floral picks
14″ straw wreath
optional: I like to add bows and dried flowers seasonally
Pruning shears or kitchen shears
 

1] Begin by cutting the eucalyptus into 5″ – 6″ pieces.

2] When cutting the pieces, cut one piece off just above a set of leaves. This will make the next piece look more like the tip of a eucalyptus stem.

3] If necessary, pull off a couple of leaves at the bottom of a piece so approximately 1″ of the stem is leafless.

4] Place a floral pick against a piece so they overlap about an inch and attach the stem and floral pick together.

5] Beginning on the front of the wreath, add pieces of the stem to the wreath on an angle, pushing the floral pick into the wreath about every 1 1/2″. Make a complete circle.

6] Stagger your next row so the stems are between the stems in the previous row. Continue adding pieces until the front and sides of the wreath are covered. Do not cover the back.

7] When you are done, check for “bald spots” and fill in with additional pieces. Also, look for wild and crazy pieces and give them a little snip. If you would like, you can tuck dried flowers directly between the eucalyptus stems without using florist picks. You can also add a bow or tuck ribbon in the wreath.

8] To hang it on the wall, use a wire from one of the floral picks and make a loop around one of the strings, on the back, holding the straw wreath together. Hang the wreath on a nail.

9] Now sit back and enjoy the beauty and aroma of your new wreath. Over time you can give your wreath a very hot shower to remove dust and to rejuvenate the scent. 

10] BTW… don’t throw away the eucalyptus scraps. Break them up and use them as potpourri.