Heart Shaped Magnolia Wreath

 

This heart shaped magnolia wreath did not cost anything to put together.

I had everything on hand and you probably will too!

I used:

scrap cardboard boxes

magnolia leaves

hot glue

duck tape

scissors and yard clippers

ribbon I had on hand (this might be the only thing you would need to purchase)

This wreath is just meant to last through Valentine's Day so it is put together quickly and easily using found items. 

Here's what I did:

I cut a heart shape from cardboard boxes. I wanted mine to be fairly large so I had to cut two half hearts and duct tape together. 

Because my heart was taped down the center I used some scrap strips of cardboard to brace it across the back. This made it a little sturdier but I'm not sure it's necessary.

I took my gorgeous glossy magnolia leaves and broke them off so they were individual leaves.

When I started to experiment with how I wanted to place my leaves I realized they would work better with the short stems clipped off. I clipped all of the stems off so that I could place them more quickly once I started gluing. There are a lot of different ways you could lay out your leaves. 

I just kept gluing leaves around the heart shape moving toward the center.

Then I filled in the center. The leaves are not perfectly flat and I like that about the wreath. Even with the wavy leaves none of the cardboard shows form underneath because of the way I overlapped the leaves. 

It's so glossy and pretty. 

I wanted to put a bow on my heart wreath so I poked a small hole near the v at the top. I'm going to use wire threaded through the hole to hold my bow in place and it will also create a loop on the back to use to hang the wreath on the door.

Risky Business!

 Sometimes you just have to take a risk, a leap of faith if you will, at Goodwill. 

Case in point- I found this champagne bucket at GW this week and it was completely black with tarnish. It was in good shape otherwise, without dings or scrapes. And it was $2.99. At that price I felt like I could be a "risk taker!" And it has been "slim picking" at GW for quite a while and I don't go often right now so it was exciting to find a little $3 treasure.

(The before...)

You never know... but a little silver polish and less than 20 minutes and I had a beautiful champagne bucket in perfect condition.

I have a small collection of champagne buckets (all thrifted for under $10) that I keep on top of my refrigerator. I love to use them when we entertain and they always make an appearance at our 'Get Merry with Mimosas" Ladies Brunch each December.

Here's a quick morning light pic from IG - you can see my little collection on the fridge.

We didn't have our ladies brunch this year and there isn't any entertaining in our near future so I put my pretty, new-to-me find to good use.

A little magnolia and cedar from the yard.

I'm a displaced Low Country gal so I added in some oyster shells.

I washed them well and then hot glued a bamboo skewer on the back. 

I had a short strand of tiny little battery operated lights so I added those in for a little extra sparkle!

So, $2.99 well spent!

Do You Do Waterlogue?

I'm not the most technically savvy gal out there but I do love the Waterlogue app! 

 (A favorite image from 2018!)

If you've never "played around with it" you are missing out on some fun. Just download it from the "app store" on your phone and start creating beautiful pictures.

Some photos from your phone library work better than others but figuring that out is part of the fun.

I often forget about it until Christmas rolls around. That's my favorite time to use the app.

And let's face it - there's time to enjoy it this year! It's a great distraction.

Just for fun I'm going to post a few of my favorite "waterlogue" pics along with the original photos I used.

 

This set up for afternoon treats was part of a fundraiser :)

  

All about my favorite new wreath and velvet ribbon here and here.

  

You can see a lot more of our Library decorated for Christmas on Instagram.

 

Isn't this fun? It's interesting to see which images 'turn out' better!

OK, I seriously need to get back to work and do a little cleaning around the house as well!! 

I'm sure you'll see more Waterlogue pics on my IG before the season is over!! 

Give it a try!