Country-style decorations are often handmade crafts that add warmth to a home. Country home decorations frequently feature elements found in nature, such as flowers and berries, heart motifs and metal pieces. Create your own country d cor crafts using silk replicas of flowers and berries, real pressed botanicals and metal foils available at most craft stores. Does this Spark an idea?
Wreaths
A wreath on a door or wall is a popular country-home decoration idea. Create your own wreath using foam or wire frames and silk flowers, berries and foliage. Attach the decorations to the wreath frame using floral wire, floral pins, floral tape or hot glue. Cover the face, inside perimeter and outside perimeter of the wreath frame with silk greenery, and then nestle the flowers and berries -- or any other decorative accent of your choosing -- among the greenery. Cut the stems from silk flowers and decorative floral picks, then wire or tape them to a wire wreath frame. Hot glue may be an easier option for vine or foam bases.
Candles
Decorative candles fit in with a country home style. Embellish ready-made candles with potpourri, pressed flowers or silk floral items to craft customized country home decorations. To add potpourri to a candle, brush melted wax onto one side of the candle, then press the hot wax into potpourri scattered on wax paper. Cover the perimeter of the candle with potpourri, one section at a time. The melted wax also works to attach pressed flowers around the outside of a candle. Brush the wax onto the candle in the spot designated for the flower, press the flower into the wax, and then cover it with more melted wax. Adding silk floral items, such as berries or picks, is easier if you use floral pins to secure them to the candle. Floral pins are U-shaped and fit over the wire stems; hold the embellishment in place and then press the pin over the wire stem, into the candle.
Country Heart Garland
Craft your own country heart garland using 5-mil metal foil and 1/4-inch-wide ribbon. Hearts are a prevalent design in country home decorations; look for heart templates online and in craft stores that you can use as a guide for the garland. Trace the heart template onto the metal foil to make at least 10 hearts; the more hearts you make, the longer your garland will be. Cut out the heart shapes with tin snips. Scissors also work, but they must be sharp. Punch holes on each side of each heart and join them side by side with strips of ribbon.
Punched Tin Wall Art
Punched tin crafts are common in country home decor. Make your own punched tin wall art using 5-mil metal craft foil, a coloring book-style pattern, a hammer and a nail. Cut out a section of foil that will fit inside the frame you plan to use. Tape the pattern image onto the front side of the metal; consider tracing or photocopying the original pattern so you will have it to use again. Place the metal, picture side up, on a block of scrap wood. Hammer the nail to punch holes through the image and into the metal along the outlines of the design. Space the holes up to 1/2 inch apart. Remove the tape and pattern, and insert the metal into the frame. This technique works for making metal lampshades and tin-can lanterns, too.
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