How to make a homemade wreath frame

If you have a suitable plant in your garden you can easily make wreath frames for free. Summer is the perfect time to have a go at this activity - wreaths aren't just for Christmas, a beautiful wreath is a delight at any time of the year.

Suitable plants

I have used Akebia Quinata (cutting off the suckers to use) for my wreath frames as I have found they are extremely pliable and aren't prone to breakage. Other twining plants can also be used such as clematis, honeysuckle or wisteria. I have tried with both honeysuckle and clematis from my garden and I have found these more prone to breakage than Akebia Quintana. If you are going to use clematis or honeysuckle make sure to choose the slimmest, most pliable stems.

Process

First, cut the slender, pliable stems from your plant then remove any leaves or flowers. The picture below shows a honeysuckle vine (top) and a couple of Akebia Quinata vines plus my gorgeous dog Ted who was helping me :)

Vines for wreath making and Ted the dog

Then, starting with the thick end of your vine, wind the vine into a circle (whatever size you would like your wreath frame to be, I'm making small ones), then repeat the circle so you end up with a circle with two layers. At this stage you don't need to weave anything in, just two plain circles of the same size, like below.

Akebia Quinata used for wreath making

I have found that two circles gives a much better base than just one. If you don't have any vine left, weave the ends into the circles then skip the next step. If you have some vine left then start wrapping the vine around the circles, tucking in any ends as you go.

Wrapping vine around circles

You want to wrap the entire circumference of the circle at least twice. Once you come to the end of your vine tuck the end in and begin again with another vine. At the end you may have some bits sticking out - that's fine, you can cut them off later on.

A finished mini wreath frame

Leave the finished frame out in the sun or, if rain's likely then bring it indoors but put it somewhere it will be in direct sunlight) and wait for it to dry out and become rigid.