Monday, June 20, 2011

Dictionary Wreath Tutorial

Hello again!  So good to be back in my blog world.  I have a special tutorial for you today.  I really enjoyed doing this and it's so easy you can too!  It's a totally "green" project too because we are using things that we already have or can buy at a thrift/resale store.  All the supplies you need for this is a wire hanger, an old dictionary (the older the better!), and some ribbon.  

A Recycled Dictionary Wreath

I cut the hook part of my hanger off and formed it into a circle.
I bought a HUGE, very old dictionary at my local resale shop for a buck.  Tore out some pages.  
OK. ALOT of pages. 



Next, I tore them in half, long ways from top to bottom.
 



Then I softly folded each one randomly.  Do not crease them and make a harsh fold.  You want the soft, curved look.  Here I am saying random folds and I'm showing you how I folded them.  I know, I know, but I wanted you to SEE how random.  

Fold again.

 And again.  You can make any size of wreath but you want your pieces of foldedpaper to be roughly the same size each time. 



Then pierce the folder paper with the hanger and move it down to the others.


Here is another way I often folded my papers. Just be different.  Under, over, diagonal, etc.



Now you may be tempted to quit after folding your 1,000,000th paper but don't!  They seem to squish together when they are hung and you are left with empty space.  Pack it pretty full.  When you are satisfied with the amount, hook and twist the too ends together.

I cut some leftover burlap that I had and made a loop out of it but you can use ribbon.



So?  Whatcha think?  Something you can do, right?  It's easy and when you are finished, send me a picture!

Have a great week!
Kerrie

p.s. yes, I know that I should have washed the paint off my hands BEFORE doing the tutorial but that's pretty much what they look like 24/7...  :)


Parties I've linked to:
Dittle Dattle
Between Naps On the Porch
DIY Showoff
Coastal Charm 
Vintage Wanna Bee 
Momma Hen's Coop 
Lollipop's 
Handy Man Crafty Woman 
Savvy Southern Style 
Goobye City Hello Suburbs 
Blue Cricket Designs 
Trendy Treehouse 
Passionately Artistic 
Wandering Wednesdays 
Paisley Passions 
Brambleberry cottage 
Somewhat Simple 
House of Hepworths 
Finding Fabulous 
Chic on a Shoestring 
It's a Hodgepodge Life 
The Shabby Nest 
At the Picket Fence 
A Little Knick Knack 
Monday Mad Skills 
Mad in Crafts

20 comments:

  1. oh my gosh. this may be the prettiest book page wreaths i've seen! ok. it definitely is! this technique makes all the difference! and it's so easy! i'll have to try it.

    thanks for sharing :)

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  2. that is really cute and a really great idea!! you did a great job! i love book page wreaths, so cute!!

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  3. Oh, this book page wreath is an interesting idea. Thanks for sharing!

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  4. Love it!!! Thanks so much for sharing it at my NTT party.

    Blessings,
    Linda

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  5. Awful cute done on the wire! I made my first one last month. You're right about the one millionth folded piece of paper..... LOL It took forever! Visiting from Linda's party.

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  6. Very interesting idea! Loved the book page wreath.
    Thanks for sharing.
    Hope to see you on my blog:)

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  7. Kerrie, luv the wreath I just got a huge book for $1.at a garage sale.
    Would luv for our readers to discover this.
    please add it to our linking party here
    http://www.passionatelyartistic.com/2011/06/beautiful-furniture-redo-pop-up-cards.html
    Have a great week,
    Maggie
    http://passionatelyartistic.com

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  8. Thank you for posting this tutorial on how to make that gorgeous wreath. I just LOVE it!

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  9. I love projects that use old hangers. I always keep them from the dry cleaners. This is a great project, thanks!

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  10. What a great wreath. I have a few wire hangers and I think I might have to make one like this.

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  11. this is so textural and gorgeous! i need to make one!

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  12. I LOVE this! Super cute and so simple. Definitely going to be making this one. Thanks

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  13. It look great! Really love the way it looks with the folded pages.

    Nice to meet you and love your blog name.

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  14. soooooooo beautiful!!!! love it :)

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  15. I am just reminding everyone about tonights link party that runs Friday evening through Mondays!
    I also have an ongoing give away link party now too.
    Hope to see you soon.
    http://bacontimewiththehungryhypo.blogspot.com/
    come strut your stuff

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  16. This is so cute and different from the other paper wreaths I've seen! And easy - I'll have to try this out. Thanks!

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  17. I just found this on Pinterest, and I LOVE it! I made it and am going to feature it on my [so cheap, so easy] series on Thursday. I'll link back to your tutorial. Thanks for the great idea!

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  18. I purchased a huge encyclopedia at a used book sale for the purpose of making this wreath. In the interim, my kids and I used the same technique to repurpose the piles of holiday catalogs arriving in the mail. Our results are here: http://www.flotsamofthemind.com/2012/11/catalog-wreath.html# Thanks for the idea!

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