Amaltas Spring Wreaths

$15 - $20 (based on 2017 prices)

Makes two wreaths

 

The Dia de Los Muertos portion of 2017’s haunted house required dozens of wreaths and flowers for an intricate funeral scene. For this version, I used the butterflies common in the holiday’s themes and dangling sprigs of amaltas. Although I stayed with hues of blues, greens, and yellows, the colors of each element can be modified for a unique look.

• Two twelve-inch grapevine wreaths
• Ten four-foot garlands of artificial leaves (roughly thirty-six leaves per garland)
• Four four-foot garlands of artificial amaltas (roughly twenty sprigs per garland)
• Hot glue gun and glue sticks
• Six decorative butterflies

1. Separate the leaves from their garlands. Although you can do this while you glue them to the wreaths, I found performing this step beforehand makes the following process much easier. Plus, it gives you a clear idea of exactly how many of each item you have. Next, use hot glue to adhere the leaves to the wreaths. For visual interest, build up layers and vary the color patterns so leaves with the same hues and shapes are not clustered in one area.

2. Evenly divide the sprigs of amaltas among the wreaths and weave them into the greenery, gluing them in place. To enhance the aesthetics, aim for a random arrangement and, if you are making more than one wreath, try not to make them too symmetrical. It may help to play with the flowers’ placements before permanently affixing them.

3. Add further flourishes to the wreaths by gluing butterflies to the foliage. You can use an evenly spaced pattern to create balance or a random placement for extra irregularity. While I used blue to complement the yellow amaltas, the hues can be modified for your specific scheme.