Grape Vine Wreath

It is spring time here in Phoenix! I spent some time this afternoon on mucking out the little pond in the front yard, and then went into the back yard. I noticed that the grape vines were sending out new leaves. Aren't they pretty?



Unfortunately, that reminded me that I still had a pile of grape vine prunings that I needed to do something with.



It seemed a shame just to chop them all up for the compost pile when I knew that grape vines made great weaving elements. So I went inside, hopped on line, and got a few tips on how to make grape vine wreaths. Then I went back outside to try it myself.

I found a long one and coiled it into a hoop shape. (The dogs were excited to have my company in the yard. Play time, Mom!)











Then I coiled a few more long ones around the hoop, trying to catch the ends.












When the wreath started getting unwieldy I hung it on a chair to work. Then I discovered that you can take the end of the vine...








...and shove it down in the wreath you have already made to lose that end.







Then I reached through the wreath and grabbed the vine...








and pulled the whole vine through to the other side. I rotated the wreath on the chair, and did that again, so the vine wrapped around and around the wreath, building up layers. I tucked the tail ends of the vine down in the wreath the way I did the beginning ends.




After awhile, I had a pretty respectable wreath built up! It isn't perfect, but not bad for a first try.







I added a bit of card woven trim for a tie, with a hoop threaded onto it. Then I pounded a couple of nails, and hung the wreath outside of the kitchen door in the back yard.


I tell you what, that looks so much better than a pile of yard waste! Now the rest of the trimmings that were too short to use can get chopped up for the compost, and I won't feel the least bit guilty. Hmm...I bet I could decorate the wreath too... But that will be a later day.