Make Door Wreathes for Summer

Here are some merry wreathes that you can hang on your front door and that can bring luck to you and your family.

Midsummer Hay Ring

This wreathe allows you to celebrate the height of summer’s glory with a dried flower hay ring composed of dried flowers in many colors. It can be hung on a rustic gate, on an outside wall or set up on a mantelpiece.

As it is made of hay you may prefer it outdoors if allergies are a problem.

Materials

Green twine
10 inches (25 cm) diameter copper wire ring
bundle of dry hay or dry sphagnum moss
selection of colorful dried flowers such as sea lavender, statice, cornflowers, strawflowers and carthamus
scissors
florists silver roll wire
wire cutters
stub floral wires
ribbons in colors that compliment the flowers

Step 1

Tie the twine to the outer circle of the ring. Place handfuls of hay or moss over the ring and bind it securely with the twine.

Step 2

Gather the flowers into small, colorful mixed posies. Cut the stems short and bind them florist’s silver wire.

Step 3

Cut several stub floral wires in half and bend them to make U shaped staples.

Place a posy over the covered ring, loop a staple over the stems and press them into the hay or moss. Bend back the wire ends and twist them around the back of the ring to secure them.

Step 4

Continue fixing more posies around the ring so that the heads of each one cover the stems of the one before. Alternate the colors for the brightest effect. Fold the ribbon lengths in half and attach them to the ring with a floral wire.
You can also make a Striped Rose Ring Wreathe

This is a mass of roses in two contrasting colors that once placed on the ring create the optical illusion of stripes. The roses you use can be of any color. We have only used red and yellow here as an example.

Materials

Scissors
34 stems dried red roses
33 stems dried yellow roses.
4-inch (10 cm) diameter plastic foam ring for dried flowers
ribbon.
This is George Bush laying a striped style of wreath at Ground Zero in New York. Only in this case there are also carnations in the mix.

Step 1

Cut the rose stems to 2.5 inches.

Around the outside edge of the foam ring form a circle of alternating yellow and red roses by gluing their stems and pushing them into the foam. Be sure to leave a small gap in the rose circle for a ribbon to be fixed into.

Step 2

Inside the first circle construct a second circle offsetting the colors in the first ring. Continue building circles of roses until the ring is covered.

Your summer rose wreathe is complete!

How to Decorate for a Kenya Tea Party

Take your friends on an afternoon safari with a Kenya tea party that includes leopard and zebra print decor, spicy dips and curry from Kenya, traditional British scones with jam, German chocolate cake as well as playing croquet for a good cause.

Kenya culture has a bit of an unusual history. To throw an authentic Kenya Tea Party you will find yourself incorporating three different important culinary influences: spicy Kenyan dips and curries, German desserts and traditional British tea bites. This is because Germany was the first country to colonize Kenya in 1885 followed by England about 30 years later.

The theme of this party is Safari in Africa. This is your time to get out your best safari themed accessories and linens such as Zebra print, leopard print and bamboo print tablecloths and linen. Rattan and woven furniture also evokes the culture Kenya. The china can be a traditional British white or you can go for a brown earthenware look that is more German in flair.

A Kenyan tea party is perfect to throw for ten to twelve friends who just need an excuse to get together and perhaps indulge in a bit of croquet. To enhance the colonial feel you could ask your guests to dress in all in white. However much more fun would be to ask them to dress in leopard or zebra prints. Make sure the paper you send out the invitation on is also in a leopard or zebra print.

Another way to evoke the atmosphere of Kenya would be to play some indigenous African music, or at least music with a bit of a tribal sound. Many of the electronic dance bands from Germany incorporate tribal rhythms in their contemporary mixes.

As a party favor each guest could receive a little gift bag of Kenyan coffee or tea or a small donation to an African charity in their name. You could also encourage individuals to donate to an African charity by setting up a decorative donation box at the door. You could also set up bets as to who will win a croquet tournament and use the proceedings to help the Red Cross or another good cause.

Remember that the key to throwing a fantastic Kenya party is to make it a mix of German, English and Kenya culture.