What to bring:
- A foam ring 10in or 12in (Naylor Base are good, remember it will come out bigger once all the greenery etc is on it)
- Anything you fancy decorating it with - bells, whistles, ribbons (maybe a big, wide one to put a bow at the bottom), dried orange slices, cinnamon sticks (perhaps raffia to tie them together), pine cones, Xmas baubles and decs
- A bin bag for tidying up after you have finished
- An towel to put on the table to stop your wet wreath slipping about and catch some of the water to keep the floor dry-ish
- A piece of string about 1m long to make a hanging loop
- strong scissors or secateurs if you have them
- Lots of greenery! Plenty of bog standard conifer (like Leylandii) for the background
- 'Fill in' greenery
- There is usually lots of spare stuff and we all share, plus I will bring florists' wire for wiring on cones etc.
Some suggestions for 'fill in' greenery:
- Holly in berry (fake it with thin red ribbon on wires if not)
- Ivy - good for adding trails and great if you can get it in berry too
- Variegated foliage (holly, Pittosporum, Weigela, laurel, Euonmymous, Pieris
- Silver/blue foliage for contrast - Eucalyptus, blue spruce, blue prince, Eryngium (florist's 'thistle'), Senecio
- Scots pine, spruce, Douglas Fir, larch (leggy with wee cones which look good)
- Yew has an interesting shape
- Hebe - comes in a few different colours
- Box hedging
- Birch and dogwood stems for decoration (they are bendy so can be used to make the actual wreath base out if if you prefer to go more natural - in which case bring garden twine or wires to use to fix on your greenery)
- Herbs - bay, rosemary (nice long spikes add interest and scent), bog myrtle, thyme
Food and drink:
Please bring something to go towards a pot luck lunch. Prosecco often makes an appearance as a lunch item, and did I mention the mulled wine? There will definitely be mulled wine.
Please let me (Ally Entwistle) know if you will be coming/have any questions on
allyentwistle@gmail.com