How to Make Advent Wreath? Easy Christmas Wreath DIY Ideas
Advent is a unique time to prepare before Christmas. It's also a moment when many people decide to make an Advent wreath that symbolized the following weeks. When each begins - you lit up the next candle in the wreath. Although the decoration has one function, it can take many forms. Don't you want to buy a Christmas wreath in a flower shop and would rather make your own? Check how to make an Advent wreath. It's very simple - take a look at our ideas!
Where did the tradition of the Advent wreath come from?
The Advent wreath is a typical Christian tradition originating in Germany. The decoration appeared for the first time in 1839 in an orphanage run by a pastor named Wichern. Someone came up with an idea to make waiting for Christmas more pleasant for the children. An extremely simple Christmas wreath was made. It was a wooden wheel with candles. It differed from the Advent wreaths we know today. The main difference is the fact that only the large candles symbolized the consecutive Advent Sundays. There were also smaller candles in between - they marked the number of days until Christmas.
What an Advent wreath should look like?
Whoever came up with the idea of the Advent wreath, changed its looks over the years. Small candles indicating days were removed, leaving only the large ones - they still symbolized Advent Sundays, and lighting them would begin the next week of waiting for Christmas.
Current Advent wreaths are significantly smaller than the original ones, and much more decorative. Instead of a wooden base, various coniferous branches are used, as they look beautiful. In fact, a DIY Christmas wreath can use various designs, depending on the creator. The four candles are the most important elements, in this case.
A store-bought Christmas wreath or a hand-made Advent crown?
Whether you buy a Christmas wreath or make it yourself depends entirely on you and whether you like such hand-made decorations. If it sounds like your idea for spending free time, there’s no point in buying such an item in a flower shop. Especially that they are not the cheapest. But if you have absolutely no time to make the ornament, you will only stress out when creating it, which is equally pointless.
Buying a base and decorations separately is a good solution if you want a nice Advent wreath for your table. This way, you save a lot of time on preparing the main element, and have fun when decorating the Christmas wreath.
A DIY Christmas wreath - what elements do you need?
The items you need for an Advent wreath depend on how you want it to look like. But there is a list of basic accessories you’ll need in any case:
- a circle made of straw or wicker (alternatively - styrofoam),
- a thin wire, preferably green,
- a hot glue gun with glue sticks,
- scissors,
- pads for candles,
- four candles,
- coniferous plant branches,
- ornaments and decorations.
Having such a set, you can make a Christmas wreath in less than an hour - depending on how ornamental it is supposed to be.
How to make a simple Advent wreath?
Preparing branches is the basic issue when making a traditional Christmas wreath. They should be in the right size - not too short, as in such a case it might be difficult to attach them to the base. On the other hand, they cannot be too long either, because they won’t look as good. When attaching the branches, use the following tips:
- place them evenly - it will make them look more beautiful,
- use a green wire so that it’s practically invisible,
- bend the sharp endings of the wire to the middle of the wreath - this way, you won’t get injured while transporting it.
Attaching the pads for the candles is the next step. How to stick them firmly? You need hot glue for this very purpose.
What about the decorations? Some of them can stick to the branches without any adhesive. It concerns dried fruits like oranges and lemons. Various bows have strings you can tie to the Advent wreath. What about the rest of the ornaments? You can use hot glue and wire to attach them. Place a drop of glue on the wire’s ending and stick it to the ornament you want to use. Hold it for a minute. Then just pin it to the Christmas wreath.
Interesting Advent wreath ideas
Although a Christmas wreath is typically based on a circle and such decorations are the most popular, there are other forms you can use. You can design your Christmas wreath in the shape of a square, with the candles placed next to each other and mixed with ornaments.
Interestingly enough, both minimalist and richly decorated Christmas wreaths are popular. Some use typical Christmas ornaments in such wreaths - small baubles, miniature gifts and snowflakes.
Advent wreath with golden elements
A golden Christmas wreath is an absolute classic, which always looks good. In this case, you can use basic decorations like dried flowers, bells, stars, and candles in this color. You can also enrich your Advent wreath with pine cones or walnuts colored with golden paint. If you’re aiming for a more neutral look, use dried oranges or star anise. Not only they look good, but also make your home smell nice.
Advent wreath with red candles and decorations
Red decorations in an Advent wreath look very elegant and are great eye-catchers. Something as simple as red candles placed among live green branches, e.g. spruce - looks very impressive. Apart from this, you can use additional decorations such as:
- ribbons,
- tiny baubles,
- artificial poinsettia flowers,
- artificial rowan berries.
Red looks very good with gold. If you don’t mind the extravagant splendor, mix those two colors together.
Blue and silver Advent wreath
Do you prefer calmer colors? Instead of red, go for blue or a mixture of blue and silver. An Advent wreath like this looks perfect in minimalist interiors and matches, e.g., Scandinavian or Boho styles. You can pick exactly the same type of decorations as in other Christmas wreaths - a different color will make your wreath look distinct.
Advent wreath different from others - an original project
Do you have your own concept for a Christmas wreath, and it doesn’t really look like a wreath - therefore, you are wondering if you can use this idea? Absolutely. Remember that as long as it’s not an Advent wreath for church - you can seek for solutions you simply like the most. It means that you can, for instance, put candles in a large jar and decorate them. It’s a form of Christmas wreath - the symbolism you keep is the most important, in this case.
📍 What is an Advent wreath?
Advent wreath is a form of Christmas wreath with candles which symbolizes waiting for Christmas. This decoration is closely related to the Christian tradition, and it's based on a circle, which symbolizes infinity. You can pick the wreath's decor style to match your own expectations.
📍 What does the Advent wreath mean?
The Advent wreath as a whole is a symbol of waiting for Christmas, while its parts have additional meanings. The circular shape means infinity, and each of the candles symbolizes one Sunday and the beginning of a week. The branches represent life.
📍 How to make an Advent wreath?
It's quite easy to make a Christmas wreath - you just need some basic products and tools, and a step-by-step instruction - you can find it on the Web. To make a simple Advent crown, you need a circular base made of hay or wicker, green branches and decorations. Elements like a green wire and hot glue are also essential to assemble everything.
📍 How to make a Christmas wreath from pine cones?
To make an Advent wreath from pine cones, you need a very thin base made from straws. How glue is very important here - you will use it to attach the cones and other decorations. Although a pine cone Advent wreath is very impressive, creating it is very time-consuming.
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