Christmas Wreaths With Lights
7 Materials
$30
1 Hour
Medium
Take a generic store-bought wreath and transform it with lights!
The start of the first decorating project was a plain evergreen wreath on a wire frame that I purchased at the grocery store.
To illuminate it, I used two strings of indoor LED lights from the dollar store. Here's how I put it together:
Step 1: I turned the wreath over to the back. I passed the string of lights through an opening in the greenery to the front of the wreath and left the them hanging loosely at the front of the wreath. Then attached the first battery pack to the wire frame on the back of the wreath with some green florist's wire.
Step 2: Now we are going to add a second string of lights. It is critical to balance out the back of any wreath so it will sit flat to your door.
Again, I passed the string of lights through an opening in the greenery to the front of the wreath and left it hanging loosely at the front of the wreath. With a fresh piece of wire, I attached the second battery pack on the opposite side of the wreath.
Step 3: I turned the wreath over to the front and arranged my two strings of LED lights in amongst the greenery. I ran the first string of lights clockwise around the wreath and the second string of lights counter-clockwise.
Once I was happy with the placement of my lights, I used some florists wire to hold them in place. To do this, I used loops of florist's wire that I twisted closed on the back of the wreath.
Step 4: If your wreath was as basic as mine, you may want to augment it with more greenery, berries, pinecones and a bow. That's just what I did next.
Here's the first finished wreath. You can't see the glow of the lights really well in the daytime, but at night the they shine really nicely.
For the wreath I made for my back door, I used three strings of lights. There are two LED sets ($2.50 each from Walmart) and a string of larger stars ($5 from the Real Canadian Superstore).
This time the 3 battery pacs were placed in thirds by dividing the wreath circumference into three equal parts. Again, it is critical to balance out the back of the wreath so it will sit flush to the door.
Step 1: The first step is to attach the two strings of mini-lights. (The third string of lights will go on later after the greenery is attached. If you try this, make sure you space the battery pacs so you leave room for the third battery that you will add later).
Step 2: Next add your greenery to the front of the wreath, some berries and a bow. (Tuck the greenery right into the vines. Loops of florist's wire can then be added to hold it securely in place.)
For the wreath I made for my back door, I used three strings of lights on a grapevine wreath. There are two LED sets ($2.50 each from Walmart) and a string of larger stars ($5 from the Real Canadian Superstore).
Step 3: Turn your wreath over and attach the battery pack for the larger string of star-shaped LED lights with two loops of wire. Turn the wreath over once more so the front is facing you and roughly place the lights using the greenery to conceal the wire. Using more loops of wire twisted closed on the back, secure the lights to the greenery of the wreath.
If you are having trouble disguising some of the wires, add a few more pieces of greener to conceal them.
To work my lights through the maze of grapevines, I used a pencil and poked it into the the vines to create a gap. Then I worked each of the lights through those gaps. Once the pencil is removed, the gaps disappear.
Step 3: Turn your wreath over and attach the battery pac for the larger string of lights with two loops of wire. Turn the wreath over once more so the front is facing you and roughly place the lights using the greenery to conceal the wire. Using more loops of wire twisted closed on the back, secure the lights to the wreath.
If you are having trouble disguising some of the wires, add a few more pieces of greener to conceal them.
I am especially happy with the way this one turned out.
One important thing to note: These inexpensive LED light strings are for indoor use only. I have a covered porch and a screen door with a glass front, so I was able to get away with using indoor lights.
As an experiment I hung the wreath out in the rain and snow for a month or more and found that the indoor light string held up really well in the winter weather.
Resources for this project:
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Comments
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2 of 4 comments
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Out of all the wreaths that have popped up, this one caught my attention. It is just gorgeous!! I would display it on my FRONT door. It is Classy!!
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Nicely done! Inspiring, and I like your style!
Frequently asked questions
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what kind of lights run off batteries and what voltage do the lights run on and where do you get the battery packs how do you attach battery pack to lights thank you for the information