How To Make a Beautiful Foraged Wreath
(Photo: Sian Richards)
Like the farm-to-table movement, which is concerned with producing sustainable food and delivering it to local consumers, the idea behind foraging is to use what is native to your surroundings. It’s about creating a connection between people and nature to foster a feeling of conservation and protection.
Embrace Mother Nature
Let the characteristics of your found foliage determine the shape of your wreath. A loop of red dogwood is the starting point for this elegant teardrop wreath. Supple branches of rose hips with dark crimson berries are bent and tied together with the dogwood to fill it out, and a silky bronze ribbon completes the look.
Accent with arboreal detail
Search for healthy, robust evergreens, twiggy branches supple enough to bend, interesting seed heads and rose hips, holly berries, juniper berries or pine cones. Use floral wire or twine to fasten them together.
Appropriate organic detail
Accent your foraged wreath with the fruits, buds, nuts, leaves, twigs and pine cones that finish each beautiful branch.
Wreaths reference the landscape
“There is a delicate quality to foraged wreaths. Each is unique to its geographical origin and in its composition,” says Sarah Nixon.
Follow Sarah's steps
Sarah Nixon, owner of My Luscious Backyard in Toronto, is a pioneer in the urban-farming movement. Since 2001, she has cultivated over 100 varieties of organic flowers in unused residential yards, selling them to local flower studios and markets. In the winter, she turns to foraging to follow her philosophy of working with nature, always abiding by these rules.
Sarah's first rule
Stick to untamed public lands or your own backyard. Don’t trespass. Stay on your neighbours’ good side by asking for permission before you start pruning their prized cedar.
Sarah's second rule
Snip moderately and respectfully. Take only what you need and never take all the plants of one kind in a given area.
Sarah's third rule
Leave the environment looking as beautiful as you found it.
