I didn’t feel like attempting my usual vase today, so instead, I thought I’d make a harvest wreath from things in my yard and land, along with a few bought items. I’m pleased with how it came out and it looks nice against the rustic barn boards of the woodshed.
I started by going to the river and collecting young, wild grapevines to weave into a base, which you can hardly see, as it is mostly covered.
I used fresh sage from the garden and drops from the wild Baldwin apple tree west of the house. There was a nice crop this year and they are sweet and flavorful. I will collect the good ones and store them in the garage to feed the birds come January. Robins, cedar waxwings and bluebirds love them.
Dried magnolia leaves left over from my birthday bouquet have delightful, cinnamon-colored, felted backs that begged to be repurposed.
Glycerine-treated oak leaves add a touch of gold and I included a few rusty ones I picked up in the yard as well.
A few milkweed pods from a swamp milkweed that self-sowed into a crack next to the garage were salvaged before the winter snows crushed them.
The final touch was a burlap bow.
Happy Autumn to you!
Eliza Waters 
If I saw this in a store, Eliza, I would buy this!
Why, thank you, Kim! Maybe I ought to go into business. 😉
I agree wholeheartedly! There are a lot of places making a lot of money off of wreaths that aren’t half this pretty!
Wow, thanks for that awesome compliment!
It’s a beautiful wreath Eliza.
Thank you, Karen!
Love these colors and textures 🙂
Thank you very much!
Beautiful. It looks great against the wood.
Thank you, Gigi.
Gorgeous!
Thank you!
Wonderful! I must plant some sage next year! It certainly adds dimension and interest to an already beautiful wreath:)
Thanks, Stephanie. Sage is a great plant. I love the tricolor and other variegated varieties, but they don’t last like the common sage does. This plant of mine is ancient and still going strong.
The softness of colour in the Sage provides a wonderful counterpoint to the Autumnal colours. Beautiful!
Thank you so much, Maureen. 🙂
You always were a champion wreath maker! Love the colors in this one.
Aw, thanks! Aren’t those magnolia leaves something? Love ’em! 😉
It’s fantastic! Who needs a vase?
Thank you! 😀
The wreath is beautiful. The colors are lovely. What a wonderful idea.
Thank you, Patricia!
I love how the blue grey texture of the sage enhances the beauty of the fruit.
A wreath is such a great idea!
Many thanks, Val. I loved creating it – I get ‘in the zone!’ 😉
Beautiful! Well done, Eliza! 🙂
Many thanks, Julie!
Very beautiful & Fall-like! Perfect for the season! I would love this as a decoration! 😀 I used to have to make wreaths and other floral things in high school because I was in the Horticulture program. It was very fun and this brings back pleasant memories! ❤
Thanks, Kim. Maybe you could try your hand at it again. I find it very therapeutic and soothing. 🙂
Thanks for the idea! I would love to get some supplies and make something floral & beautiful for the season! My creativity is sparked more in Fall & Winter! Arts & crafts and things are very soothing to engage in, I agree!
Marvelous color combinations of the silvery blue-green sage and cinnamony magnolia leaves, Eliza! They make a wonderful wreath, with the apples and pretty preserved oak leaves.
Thank you, Hannah. It was fun to make and I love those leaves – such a rich color!
Now this was a nice surprise! I like it, would have it on my door.
Thank you, Lisa. 🙂
All in season is good
🙂
The soft green of the sage just makes this so pretty!
Thank you very much, Sue. Sage is such a great and useful plant!
It is and surprisingly beautiful and hardy in the garden too.
Happy Autumn Eliza! This is lovely – you are so creative! I’m afraid I do not have the patience and talent to attempt something like that!
Thank you, Cathy. Oh, they are really quite easy and meditative to do. I’m sure you have all the ‘talent’ you need to do one. Maybe I should have made a ‘tutorial’ as I created it. Next time perhaps!
Inspiring Eliza, I am going to make one, yours is lovely and the birds can enjoy the apples too.
Thank you, Julie. I hope you do make one and post it, they are great fun!
The rusty colours really push the sage into almost turquoise ranges of colour, and the barn door is a perfect background. Absolutely lovely colours.
Many thanks, Cath. Much appreciated!
That really is lovely and you obviously got so much pleasure making it too, Eliza. So autumnal – and perfectly acceptable for a ‘vase’ on Monday as it serves exactly the same purpose. Thanks for sharing
Thank you, Cathy. Glad it works as a vase substitute. 🙂 Flexible rules are a plus!
Stunning Eliza! Your creativity is an inspiration. Love the colours and textures – you’ve captured autumn perfectly:)
Thank you! It does say, ‘Autumn!’ for sure! 🙂
Beautiful and inspiring work, Eliza!
Thank you so much, Dina. Glad you liked it!
This is truly lovely and reflects the beauty of the season. 🙂
Thank you, Judy, much appreciated!
By far my favorite arrangement! Beautiful colors and well, just perfect.
Thank you, Kathy! I appreciate that!
Such a lovely fall wreath. Like others who have commented on this blog, I am inspired by your creativity and, of course, by your thrifty, recycling ways.
🙂 Thank you, Laurie. Yes, we Yankees have trouble throwing perfectly useful things away! 😉
Very nice, first time I see one with fruits!
Thank you, Maria. Using fruits in wreaths is a old style called Della Robbia after a Italian Renaissance sculptor of that name. He carved fruit into his sculptures and friezes.
You have inspired me to have a go at making a wreath Eliza. The combination of fresh foliage and dried leaves you have selected works very well and I also think the glaucous sage leaves highlight the rusty tones. Lovely.
Many thanks, Gillian. I hope you post your results. It is a fun craft.
Creating can be such a high. Looks like you really were in the zone!
Indeed, it is a spiritual meditation for me. The best!
Just discovered your blog and spent a few minutes enjoying your work. You are a wonderful photographer and artist. Love your autumn images.
Thank you so much for such a wonderful compliment, Karen. I’m honored!
Just beautiful… you are creative in SO MANY ways! How do you treat the leaves with glycerin? I have some that I use in place of water drops when doing macro photography.
Thank you very much, Denise. I bought these oak leaves already treated. Martha tells you how to treat leaves here: http://www.marthastewart.com/271616/preserving-leaves
Happy Autumn back! And that wreath was a perfect way to say it. 🙂
Thank you, Dor!
ok permission or not I am absolutely stealing this idea for Thanksgiving this year. Wow.
Permission gladly granted – lol! Thanks for the compliment, Debra!
Beautiful, you are so creative Eliza 🙂
Thank you, Ann! 🙂