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Making a Pine Cone Wreath

A pinecone wreath is as versitile as a white shirt. It can be dressed up or left plain and you still can have a stunning piece to show off. The size and adornment is up to you. See our suggested guidelines for making a wreath to help get you started.

Materials

• For best results use a two or three D wire base - size of your choosing
• Roll of light gauge florist wire
• Pinecones of varying sizes and types - See Notes (1)
• Nuts, ornaments, ribbon, items from Mother Nature are only some of the optional decorations.
• Wire cutters and pliers
• Gloves - if cones are prickly gloves can make handling easier

Wash pine cones. For ease of handling, fill the bathtub with two to three inches of warm water. Place cones in tub and swoosh back and forth to remove any dirt and bugs. Drain the tub and rinse by turning the shower on the cones letting the water drain away. Do not leave in water, remove from tub and let drip dry on some old towels. Place on tin foil lined cookie sheets and bake at 200 degrees for half an hour. This removes the resin and at the same time, leaves a wonderful aroma in your home. You do not need to use the cones right away.

Finishing this wreath may take you several evenings or days. If you need to put it away for another day, you can put all your dried/baked cones in a box along with the project at hand and leave it until you have time to continue. Note (2).

Wiring the cones is the first step. Using a folded eight to ten inch length of heavy guage pliable florist wire, slip the looped end around the cone's lower scales. Using pliers, twist wire together to ensure snuggly in place, leave wire tails in tact. Continue this process on all cones. Note (3) (4).

Take a selection of each wired size cone and place in a container of water. Leave in the water until they close up completely. This may take several hours depending on the size of the cones and how old they are. Cones that are older may not close. Snip the wire from them and leave them for use as filler. Once all cones are close, remove from the water and lay on an old towel.

Starting with a large cone, attach wire to bottom wire of base. Wire other cones snugly up to the first cone and so on. Wiring cones in different directions always remember to snug them up to the next one. Fit the cones onto the base working from the inside out, bottom to top. Keep in mind, your wreath may be up to eight inches bigger than the original size of the base.

As the cones begin to dry, they will open up and mesh together to form a solid mass of cones. The cones may start to dry and open before you are ready to use them. Drop them back into the water and close them up making them ready for you when you need them. Note (5)

Once you have applied all the base cones, let them dry completely. This may take two or three days. Before you start adding other materials, take your project to a well ventelated area, preferably outside, and spray your wreath with a clear lacquer. This finish will also need to dry for twenty-four hours at which time you can add decorations to your hearts content.

NOTES:

1. Pine / Spruce / Cypress / Hemlock / Juniper / Cedar / Pinon / Spruce / Sequoia / Fir
2. It is very important not to store wet or damp cones or with dried ones. Leave them out to dry before storing.
3. Smaller cones and other nuts being used for filler or decoration do not need to be wired.
4. Various seed pods can be wired on at this time as well. These should not be put in water, but added dry and making sure they are snug up against the wet cones.
5. Don't store cones in water.

SUGGESTION: Make one wreath with no decorations. It can be used as a centerpiece or wall/door haning. Add dried or silk flowers and other decorations as needed for holidays and special occasions. If using as a table centerpiece, in the center, place a pilar candle, large enough to fill the hole or use two or three candles in various sizes rather than one large one.

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