How to Make a Della Robia Wreath

The term Della Robia refers to an object that is decorated or enhanced with fruit. Here we are going to make a wreath and decorate it with fresh fruit and nuts. Wreaths are easy to make and add a festive touch to a door or mantel during the holiday season.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Ribbons
• Wire Wreath Frame
• Hosiery
• Garden Shears
• Fruits
• Nuts
• Paddle Wire
• Fruits

Build the wreath frame

1. Gather a large shopping bag full of 6-inch garden trimmings. Some suggestions for trimmings are magnolia, oak, redwood, cedar, and pine. Remember to include some red berries in your collection. The tip ends of the branches work best.

2. Use a wire wreath frame or make your own from a wire coat hanger (simply unbend it from the familiar shape into a circle); you can use the hook to hang your finished wreath.

3. Attach #24 floral wire (sometimes called paddle wire) to a place anywhere along the wire wreath frame.

4. Select several stems of the 6-inch foliage pieces and place them together in a bunch with the stems at one end.

5. Place this bundle on top of the frame where the floral wire is connected.

6. Hold the bundle in place and wrap the floral wire around the bundle and frame. You will need two hands for this: one to hold the bundle in place against the frame and the other to wrap the wire.

7. Wrap the floral wire around the bundle a second time and then pull it tight. Make sure to leave the wire attached to the frame - you still have a long way to go.

8. Gather another bundle of foliage and place it so that the leaves overlap the first bunch and cover the stems. Make sure that the stems on both bunches are facing the same direction.

9. Continue overlapping the bunches of foliage and wiring them to the frame until you complete the circle.

10. Lift the first bundle that you wired onto the frame and tuck the last bundle under it.

11. Twist the wire tightly around the last bundle, and knot the wire onto the frame, leaving 1 inch of wire with which to hang the finished wreath.

12. Cut the wire with scissors or pruning shears when you're finished.

Add the fruit and nuts to the wreath

13. Cut 4-inch squares from discarded nylon panty hose. Light colors work best and are less visible.

14. Wrap lemons, pomegranates, limes, small apples or crab apples, nuts and other long-lasting fruit in the cut sections of panty hose. (The panty hose will be all but invisible once the wreath is hung, and the fruit will last longer if you don't have to pierce it.)

15. Pull the nylon tightly across the fruit, twist the end and secure with floral wire (sometimes called paddle wire). Wrap the floral wire tightly around the base of the wrapped fruit. You now have little fruit "packets."

16. Leave 6 to 8 inches of wire attached to the base of each fruit packet.

17. Wrap several nuts together into one packet. Twist a bit of the nylon tightly around each nut and tie with wire to separate the nuts in appearance. Leave 6 to 8 inches of wire attached to the nut bundles.

18. Prepare as many packets of fruit and bundles of nuts as desired.

19. Tuck the prepared fruits and nuts into the greenery on the wreath, wiring them in place as you go. Leave some space between the fruit.

20. Add small pinecones, if desired, by wrapping wire around their bases and wiring them in among the fruit.

Tips & Warnings

• The finished Della Robia wreath will be very heavy, especially if it is large. Make sure that you have adequate support when you hang it.