Garlands that don’t look plastic

[Idontmeanto]

I’d really like something on the bannister and the mantlepiece, but when i’ve Looked at garlands they all look tacky and plastic close up. How do you get them to look lovely please?

Have you access to any fresh foliage? I usually use the faux garlands as a base then add some fresh pine, holly, ivy etc onto it. Then my baubles or pinecones.

I got some years ago from one of those "The Christmas Shop" that spring up in shopping centres.

I have a pre-lit one from QVC not massive about 6' .

But YY , some ivy or off cuts from your tree if you go for real, holly , some of the berries on wire .

Do a fresh foliage one? Buy a length of rope then attach foliage in bunches with wire. I add autumn leaves to mine preserved in glycerine and water for extra colour as well as dried citrus fruit slices, cinnamon sticks and pine cones.

How long does fresh foliage last in it? Do you use oasis/ water it? Would love to try if someone can explain a bit more please.

I’d love to try too! How do you preserve the citrus slices please?

I use holly from our garden and cuttings from our fir trees. I soak the fir cuttings in the bath for 24 hours then let them drain for another 12 hours. I buy wilt pruf from Amazon (that lasts me 3 years) and spray the foliage with that. The garlands last 4 weeks minimum, that's the longest I've had them up for and they're still fresh when I take them down. I dry lemon, orange and lime slices in the oven. Heat the oven to 140 degrees and leave the fruit on a wire tray to dry. It normally takes 3-4 hours.

I have numerous garlands around the house - honestly, they're so easy to make.

I've tried for years and spent a fortune on plastic. Last year I went real and it was fab.

For the leaves it's 2 parts water to one part glycerine, you don't need loads of leaves. Just make sure they're submerged for at least 4 days in the solution. You need you weight them down (I use a brick on top of a baking tray)

If you want to do pine cones then put them in a solution of one part white vinegar to 8 parts water for 30 mins then bang them in the oven for 10 minutes at 200 degrees. This kills any bacteria etc on them and if they're closed they open up.

If you get fresh, spray with water and hang inside to dry before decorating. We bought beautiful fresh garlands from a Christmas farm last year, they had been stored in a barn, and with them came an entire ecosystem of creepy crawlies! Had to take them down again and wash.

Ooh just read about the soaking. The Christmas farm obviously didn’t do that!

It's probably best to soak them and the creepies come out. It's the same with any fir cones you collect - they float. A lot of places that do real trees or garlands will happily give you the offcuts that you can make garlands/wreaths from.

Thanks so much Pipparabbit! I feel a project coming on!

Wilt pruf is showing up as £48 on Amazon. That feels like a lot! Does it get cheaper into the Christmas season please?

I googled “pine oil emulsion anti transpirant” (wilt Pruf description from amazon) and there’s 1 for under £8... surely it’ll work the same? Won’t it?
What else do I need? Just rope?

Oh my god I want to live a life where this is part of it!!! It sounds amazing and so creative - just got a feeling I'll end up with something worthy of #nailedit on Pinterest!

Can you get ahead with any of it eg citrus slices, leaves, soaking fir or does it need to be done as close to decorating as possible for freshness??

Sorry for the late reply. Howmanysleeps I would imagine it would be the same thing and do the same job. I only use wilt pruf as I bought it a few years ago and still have some left. I use proper rope as I find it hangs better but my friend uses old wire coat hangers though as she likes to bend her garlands to her weird shaped banisters.

Fusion if you soak autumn leaves in the glycerin solution you can do them now. I've already dried orange/lemon/lime and apple slices. Just store them in an airtight container and they're fine. If you're using pine cones you collect yourself remember to steep them before drying in the oven to get the creepy crawlies out ☺️

Is it just the autumn leaves that need soaking in glycerin? What about ivy/ fir? (Getting quite excited now, though not sure dh will be impressed if I fill the bath with fir for 4 days)

If you have a completely fresh wreath or garland, the advice I was given was to take it out first thing in the morning, weekly & lay it on the grass, to soak up the dew, for about an hour, so no drips due to excess water!!
Keeps them nice & fresh, it`s worked for me with my fresh wreathes[santa][santa]
Not sure about a mixture of fake & fresh-maybe half the time???

I normally just soak the autumn leaves in glycerin and water - ivy would work too though but that tends to stay fresh if you pick it over Christmas. The reason I soak the leaves is to keep them a fresh colour - I love the yellows, reds and oranges. I soak the fir cuttings a day or so before I make the garlands and wreaths to get anything living out of them but don't use glycerine on the fir. I'm like a squirrel at this time of year collecting cones and leaves etc. I really making natural garlands/wreaths/pot pourri/table decorations. I collected a load of twigs today for a huge vase I have in my porch. I'm going to spray some gold at the weekend and keep the rest natural then hang crystals from them. I lose hours on Pinterest ha ha