A lot of people do not think they can make a wreath or that they have the time for it. But it only takes 15 minutes, and even though everything does not have to be fast, it is just to let you know that you can do it in a short amount of time. However, if you take your time, you may find it joyful. First you must collect your materials from the garden or nature, and then you can go home and be creative.

Everything can be used and in this case we took a perennial from the garden – the pretty orange and red Chinese lanterns which in Latin are called Physalis Alkekengi. It is a beautiful perennial that keep its colour when it dries.

How to do it

Step 1

Use some aluminium wire and a large pot to shape the wire and make it round.

Step 2

Tie floral tape around the wire. It will keep the flowers in place when you are tying the flowers on the wire.

Step 3

Place the wire on a table and tie some boxwood or some other evergreen leaves on the wire along with a stem of Chinese lantern. Use floral tape to tie it all together all the way around the wire. Keep the wreath on the table so it does not get uneven. Avoid lifting the wreath while tying the leaves and flowers on it. If there are any holes, you can use a glue gun and glue a lantern on to fill in the gaps.

Step 4

The finished and almost luminous wreath is ready to be hung up in the greenhouse or on your front door.

About the Chinese lantern

Physalis Alkekengi also known as Chinese lantern or strawberry groundcherry. Chinese lanterns have been growing wild in Turkey and Eastern Europe as well as in Japan, Korea and North China. The Botanical name “physa” is also the last name of the plant meaning ‘bladder’ since the plant was used for medical purposes for cystitis and arthritis. The small berry in the middle is full of vitamin C and is edible when ripe and is no longer green. It grows from roots and can spread fast, therefore, some keeps it contained using concrete blocks.