What to do with your Wreath after Christmas
Well it’s that time of year again… when the old Holiday Wreath on the front door starts turning brown, and the needles are falling off of it. Not so festive looking anymore now that the holidays are over! If you’ve been wondering What to do with your Wreath after Christmas, then this post is for you. I actually had 2 of these natural Pine Wreaths this year, since I used a second one in my dining room as part of my inside decor. I purchased both of these locally, but I thought it would be fun to try making my own next year. I started to throw these out and then realized that … Hey! There are a lot of good useable parts on these things! So I grabbed them both and headed outside for the dismantling.
Here you can see one of my Holiday Wreaths after I took it down, and my sweet Corgi is out enjoying the snow!
You can see how dried out and sad it’s looking here. But those pretty bright red faux Berries, and other embellishments, are totally worth saving for another day. I used some wire cutters and I wore gloves, those needles are sharp, so be careful! Not to mention the wire pieces used to hold everything together can be quite sharp too, so the gloves are a must.
Holiday Wreath Parts Dismantled
And this is what I ended up with, it’s like a “wreath kit” all ready to go for next year! I’ve got faux berries, some pine cones, 2 red velvet bows, some icicle things, and 2 wire wreath forms. So then next year, all I have to do is add some fresh greens to the wreath forms, put the embellishments back on and I’m good to go. Of course you could use some of these pieces for other projects too, like Pine Garlands for your railings, or Ornaments for your tree or perhaps you could use them in a Holiday table top display.
And as for the rest of the wreath…. I’ve added it to a little make shift compost pile in the back of our yard, where we typically put our yard waste, like weeds and things. So nothing went into the trash! Yay!
I hope that answered the question of What do do with your wreath after Christmas. What do you think? Do you recycle your old wreaths? Do you use the parts to remake wreaths for the following year or do you create and entirely new project with them? Be sure and share your ideas in the comments below, I would love to hear them.
St. says
The pine boughs are great for the roses or your blueberry bushes.
Karen Watson says
Ooh! I didn’t know that. Thanks for sharing! 😊
Kathy says
Great idea, when I make mine, I go to where they sell Christmas trees and they always have a scrap pile, where they’ve trimmed trees, sometimes I have to pay a couple dollars for scraps, most of the time they give it to you, they want it gone, so then I go home and start playing, a lot cheaper than buying a wreath, just save all your goodies, pick up a few more at garage sales or thrift store.. thanks enjoy your site..
Karen Watson says
Ooh! Good to know Kathy. We have lots of Pine Trees all around us, but this very useful info for those that don’t. I’m glad you’re enjoying my site! 😊
shhdp says
That’s one reason I use old mid century plastic wreaths. I just keep using them over and over, no fuss, no muss, no waste. If decorations break or fall off l replace or reattach. Which also kind of refreshes and updates the look. Retro yet contemporary. And the old plastic ones look pretty real! Shauna
Karen Watson says
Great tip Shauna! Thanks for sharing. 🎄
Chris from Tonawanda says
I took apart both of my green wreath’s last year and donated the bow and the decorations back to the church that I had bought them from….I also helped to decorate them this year….the only thing about saving that metal ring is in order to get a great looking wreath you need a special machine to tighten the branches onto the ring….I tried doing it with out any help and I nearly killed my hands trying to close those clips. This year I have hung my wreath’s on the outside of my storm door. The other day it was so windy that when my hubby opened the door the wreath had slid…wreath hanger and all to the end of the top of the door and he caught it as it was going to fall off….so I brought it into the house and there are NO NEEDLES falling off the wreath. It is back outside now and I hope to be able to keep it up until late Jan or early Fed and then I will dismantle it and save the stuff for next year again.
Bonnie says
I make wreaths for a tree farm and I’m amazed that people don’t save the decorations from the wreaths. I make my own bows and put unique decorations on them. It’s so easy to re-decorate. The rings you have had the prongs upright to start with. Once the boughs are put down, the prongs are bent down to hold them in place (either with a machine or a hammer) You can try to put the boughs into the bent prongs and wire them on tighter if need be. Is that a cedar tree near your compost? I use a lot of cedar in my wreaths along with yew and juniper and sometimes dried artemisia. I hope you remember to make your own next year!
Karen Watson says
Thanks for the awesome tips Bonnie!! Yes, I believe it is a Cedar, we have several of them, as well as Cyprus, & Holly and a few other lovely things that I can’t recall the names of, so I should be set for greenery. I love the idea of adding in the dried artemisia too, that sounds really pretty!
Dewdrop Gardens says
Good idea, Karen! I make my own wreaths (working at a garden centre, we make lots of fresh greenery decor) and it is so much fun! You get to do them just the way you like. And I save all my wreath supplies like you did.
Debbie 🙂
Karen Watson says
Oh, you are a pro then Debbie! Maybe you can come over and help make mine next year! That sounds like such a fun job that you have!
Danni Baird @ Silo Hill Farm says
What a great tip Karen! I try to recycle everything I can and you are right…there are a lot of reusable parts to those wreaths!
Karen Watson says
Thanks Danni!
Angela - My Personal Accent DIY Blog says
Very good idea! So many of us just toss it and not think about how we can reuse it again next year. Just a one without the décor is expensive so the “kit” will help cut the cost. Clever!
Karen Watson says
I’ve been guilty of that in the past Angela, I won’t be doing that again! Thanks for your comment!
Heart Vintage Design says
Good idea. I once threw away a wire heart-shaped wreath form and still wish I'd kept it to recreate a wreath : )
Karen Watson says
Oh, a heart shaped one would be nice!! And perfect for you especially!
Pendra says
I did that last year, dismantled it and saved all the parts…and then forgot about them, until after I had ordered new wreaths for the season. Apparently I need to figure out a way to remember BEFORE I order! hehehe!
Hugs,
Pendra
Karen Watson says
That could be a problem for me too Pendra! I'm leaving little notes for myself in the boxes where I keep my holiday decor. I've got some projects that I purchased supplies for and never got too, so those will get notes too, so that I don't forget what I planned on using them for!
A Vintage Fairy says
That is a great idea Karen! Hope you have a good week end!
Karen Watson says
Thank you! I hope you have a lovely weekend too!
susan says
Great idea … now why didn't I think of that? All these years I've just been throwing the whole darn thing in the trash. Thanks!
Karen Watson says
Me too Susan! I'm glad I'm not the only one that didn't think of it! haha!
susan says
great idea .. why didn't I think of that all these years?