It's the 11th Day of Christmas at CKC and today we have a free pattern from Kara! Here she is!
I think this late into the holiday season we can all use a craft that is fun to make, but isn’t really work intensive. With all the Christmas baking, cooking, and sewing I think we could all use a fun little break! This wreath is a pretty little project that you can easily do while kicking back and watching TV.
To make this Rolled Wrapping Paper Wreath you will need the following supplies-
· Wrapping paper- I used the holographic foil kind, but you can use whatever kind you like! You can make it all from the same paper, or break it up with a few different kinds like I did.
· Hot Glue Gun and Glue Sticks
· Flat wreath form- I used a 12” chipboard wreath form I found at Hobby Lobby, but you can use a wooden or foam one if you prefer, as long as it is flat
· A pencil
· Cutting tools- I used my rotary mat and ruler, and my rotary cutter with an old blade in it that I didn’t mind cutting paper with. You can use scissors if you prefer but I found the rotary tools made measuring to cut a lot easier.
You will start by cutting your wrapping paper into 4x4 squares. You will need about 150 squares total for a 12” wreath. If you are making a different size wreath, you may need to add or subtract some squares based on your size. If you are using several different prints of wrapping paper you will want to divide the 150 squares among the different prints you have. For example, I cut 50 of each of my three papers.
Once you have all the papers cut it’s time to roll them all up! Plug in your glue gun and grab your pencil. Take your paper square and turn it on the diagonal and place the pencil under your paper.
Roll the pencil so that the wrapping paper wraps itself around the pencil, just until you reach the end.
Place a thin bead of hot glue on the corner of the paper and finish rolling it up to attach the glue. I like to press it down for a few seconds with my finger, just to make sure the glue is set and adhered.
Slide the paper off your pencil, and you’re left with a neat little spiky tube of paper! You’ll repeat this process for the rest of your pieces. This is why this is a perfect project to do while watching tv at night!
Do be careful when you are wrapping your paper on the pencil that you aren’t wrapping it too tightly, or you will be left with this, when you’re unable to slide the paper off the pencil. You want to make sure the paper is snug around the pencil, but not super-duper tight.
When you’re all finishing rolling up your papers, you should have a pile of rolled up tubes like this one.
Now we need to snip one end off each tube, so that each one has one flat end and one spiked end. The flat ends are what will go on the inside of the wreath giving it a nice neat finish. Place your scissors just above the point at the end of the tube, and cut straight across to make the bottom flat. Repeat this for the rest of your papers.
Now it’s time for the fun part- assembling the wreath itself! Run a thin bead of glue down the wreath and place your paper on the glue with the flat end lining up with the inside of the wreath. You will want to leave a little space between each of the tubes as you work around the wreath.
Keep working your way around the wreath gluing the tubes on as you go. You can lay the tubes out on your wreath before gluing them, to check and make sure that you are spacing them evenly around. However, I found that a little bit tricky as the tubes just rolled around. This wreath is meant to be a little bit fun and funky so if it’s not totally perfect it’s absolutely okay! Once you’ve worked all around the wreath you should have something that looks like this. It’s pretty but, a little but thin. So let’s add another layer to it, to fluff it up!
To make the second layer you’ll run a bead of glue along the bottom portion of your paper tube, and then place it in between two tubes on the first layer. Continue this all the way around the wreath.
When you have worked your way around the wreath again you’ll have a wreath that looks like this.
Now you’re finished! Stand back and admire your work! Add a hanger to your wreath and it’s set to display. Since this wreath is made from paper this is one that would be best for an indoor decoration. I hung a sparkly snowflake from the center of mine just to spice it up a bit, you can leave yours plain, add a bow or flower, it’s up to you!
Happy crafting! ~ Kara
