Tutorial: Ruffle Wreath DIY

I have to tell you - there are a few bloggers that I just adore. One of them is a personal friend, Kelly Hicks, amazing designer blogger extraordinaire. She even was the Second Shooter at Trevor and I's wedding, where I got to know her a little better, and she got amazing shots like this one.

Check her blog out here. Anyways, I get a lot of inspiration and ideas from her tutorials and today's DIY come from a post she did a while ago, but I have been dying (literally) to make it. I have a new found obsession with wreaths since I've been in my own house and actually can make and store large amounts of them. Here's today's project:

LOVE, RIGHT?!
This wreath is actually super simple, and after doing some research on ruffle wreath DIYs out there, my definite favorite. I chose the colors and mix of fabrics because I wanted something to hang up for valentine's day, and the ruffles on this wreath just scream soft and romantic - the perfect wreath design! Red and white are the obvious color choices, and the white lace softens it and adds even a little more romance. Love, love, love it!! Here's what you'll need:

1) 1 yard total of fabric*
2) Straight Pins**
3) Scissors
4) Foam Wreath of preferred size - mine is a foot diameter

Approximate time: 1 hour

*As you can see, I have two types of fabric in the wreath and the picture. I also used some scraps that I had around the house to save some money. If you purchase the fabric and want multiple types of fabric, just make sure that you have a plan for how much of each you want to use, and that it equals a yard (unless you use a bigger wreath).
**For the straight pins, I used small dress maker's pins that I have laying around my craft room, well, because I really hate them and never use them while actually sewing. So, I saw this as a chance to use them up and they worked great!! Unfortunately I still have some left. :/

So the first thing that you'll want to do is cut a long strip about 2"-3" wide to wrap around the wreath. I epically failed and did not take pictures of the strip or me wrapping it. But I secured the ends at both the start and finish with pins. You can also use a hot glue gun for this but I thought the pins would be easier than busting out the gun and waiting for it to heat up. It looks like this finished.

And this is the ends how I pinned them. I did have to use two strips to cover my wreath because the fabric wasn't long enough, but you can't tell. So please, don' fret if this happens to you!

Next, you'll want to cut strips of fabric out. My strips ranged anywhere from 1 1/2"-3" wide, and were about 8" long (I would try to be a better strip cutter than I was and make them more unified). Depending on how many ruffles you want on the wreath you can make them wider for less or thinner for more. But, I like the amount that I did. You can also make the strips longer and gather them more for more volume. 8" worked well for me. For a gauge, I used 28 red strips and 7 white strips on my 12" wreath - 35 total.

Then you start to gather. Fold them into a fan shape like so.

And then you pin them on the wreath. The red is a little hard to see on, but you place the pin down the center of the folds. I did have to use two pins on some of the strips to secure them more, but that meant that I used up more of my yucky pins, so I did not mind one bit! 

The next strip you will want to pin down overlapping the first one, and so on. Again, you can separate them more for a simpler look, or pin them closer for a fuller look than mine. As you can see from the picture below, I also alternated the colors: 4 red, one white, etc. and it worked perfectly.

Finish pinning all the way around and them you're done! I took a small piece of fabric and pinned it to the back of the wreath like a picture hook so that the hook is hidden and the wreath doesn't hang as low, but you can use a strip or anything you like.

And that's it! It's pretty easy and looks great. Now, mine does have a few strings hanging off here and there, but I kind of like that look. I am all for the chic yet unpolished thing that's popular right now. So I didn't bother finishing the edges or anything. You can change the fabric however you want, even make a collage of all different fabrics to use up scraps. Any type of soft fabrics will work for this! I would love to see your wreaths! Please post below or email them to me! ariydesigns@gmail.com

I really hope you like today's tutorial, and that it gives you more of a sense of what kinds of things this blog will be featuring. I am really excited about this journey!! Tata for now...