If you read this blog….
….I just wanted to say thank you.
I was thinking about that today.
I’ve written this blog for over a year and a half and you have cheered me on and laughed with me and rolled your eyes with me and sighed with me and smiled with me.
Every. Single. Step. Of. The. Way.
And you know….that sometimes around here…a post just writes itself.
There are days when I’m just as surprised as you what the post comes up with.
But it’s always what I wanted to say….only better.
Like today.
I was going to write about the mama turkey and her children turkeys that live in the back field.
How everyday they make their pilgrimage from one side of the field to the other….single file line….the sunshine glinting off their feathers….
Without a care in the world.
And how I wanted to tell them to run.
And then I thought about how you would laugh and I wondered if you had any turkeys and that we totally need to discuss that Thanksgiving is right around the corner….and then….
…..right there in the middle of writing the post I realized I was so thankful.
For you.
Oh…and for my fall mantel and my new hydrangea wreath.
For friends and laughing and Thanksgiving and fall mantels and watching the turkey cross the road.
Because the best things in life are always free. 🙂
How To Make a Hydrangea Wreath
Supplies:
grapevine wreath
florist wire
dried hydrangea
Step 1: Dry the hydrangea
I wish I totally had a fancy way to tell you how to do this.
I wish I was a hydrangea drying expert.
But I’m not.
I just cut the stems and left them on the table on the back porch and went inside and forgot about them.
That’s it.
I went to baseball games and parties and out to eat with friends and basketball practice and cheerleading practice.
I meant to check on them.
But by the time I remembered…they just went ahead and dried themselves.
Step 2: Add a piece of floral wire to the hydrangea
You want the stems to be nice and long.
Trim the leaves.
Wrap floral wire around the hydrangea and insert into the grapevine wreath.
Step 3: Repeat step 2
Continue wrapping the wire and adding hydrangea around the wreath.
Step 4: Trim excess hydrangea
You may need to trim some of the hydrangeas so they look even.
See the overly-exuberant friend at the top.
He needed a hair cut. 🙂
OK. I couldn't help myself. What key won't open any door? (A turkey!) Why did the turkey cross the road? (It was the chicken's day off!) Why did the chewing gum cross the road? (It was stuck on the turkey's foot!) Why did the turkey cross the road twice? (To prove he wasn't chicken!) What do you get when a turkey lays an egg on top of a barn? (An eggroll!) Where do you find a turkey with no legs? (Exactly where you left it!) What do you call it when it rains turkeys? (Foul weather!) Why did the turkey sit on the tomahawk? (To hatchet!) Why did the police arrest the turkey? (They suspected it of fowl play!) Which side of a turkey has the most feathers? (The outside!) Why do turkeys lay eggs? (If they dropped them, they'd break!) What's the most musical part of a turkey? (The drumstick!) What happened when the turkey got into a fight? (He got the stuffing knocked out of him!) Daughter: Mum, may I please have a canary for Christmas? Mum: No- you'll have turkey like everyone else.
Fun, I can't believe giggled at some of these this morning. Thanks for sharing and making me smile this morning.
My kids are going to love there turkey jokes. Thanks for sharing!
Bad Michelle. Bad. (and yet I still giggled at a couple of those completely terrible jokes!)
This is so beautiful! I love the crisp white background with the earth colors! Now if I could only find myself a dang hydrangea in Arizona... So lovely though! -Haley
I love the hydrangea wreath! Simple things are always the most beautiful in my opinion. What are the knobby red things in the photo? Great turkey story, we have a turkey family that comes through our yard once in a while too. I think our chickens are a bit jealous of the freedom the turkeys have!
Oh these are soooooooooooooooooooo gorgeous!!!! Love them : ) Guess what...even in the middle of the NJ Suburbs...we do have an occasional family of wild turkeys ...I will help them cross the road so they can hang out in the back yard...I think they know that vegetarians live here and they are totally safe : ) You are right...the most wonderful things in life are free : ) Thank you for the smile and the morning inspiration...time to feed my squirrels now! : ) hugs...
Just beautiful! I will have to try this. I know what you mean about wanting to warn the turkeys to run - I feel the same way about the deer and their babies:) Have a wonderful day!
Love the wreath. You make everything look so easy. We love the wildlife we get to see once in a while in the yard. Turkeys only visit once in a while but I have a son that has a turkey call and tends to act like a turkey at times.
Always look forward to reading your posts...thanks for the simple and real...love your Fall mantel. Never had wild turkeys in our yard but the kids enjoyed sitting at the window watching "our" groundhog, squirrels and an occasional fox when we lived in IN. Blessings!
So gorgeous!! I love the look of dried hydrangeas and they do make a beautiful wreath! And I love your mantle. A LOT. And I love your stories of living in the country, because frankly I miss our little farm we left a year and a half ago. Have a great Wednesday!
Beautiful. I'm so grateful and thankful for you and your blog. :) I always have a smile on my face after reading your posts. I'm a HUGE fan of hydrangea and think I may need to try one of these for inside our house. I have all the supplies. Happy day to you! x
Your turkey family reminds me of the mama duck and her 13 babies that live across the street. :)
Loving the Hydrangea wreath, the turkey banter... and most of all ... YOU! Have a fantastic day!
Your wreath is gorgeous! You're also a hoot!! ~Tammy
I smiled as I read through this and thought about how your sense of humor blessed my day so often, and then not to mention the magic you create with a few flowers and a wreath. Looks so good on your mantle!
You could write an updated version of "Make Way for Ducklings" - only it would be "Make Way for Poulets" - ooo- that doesn't sound as cute as they look - oh well enjoy your day and I am thankful that the Lord is using your amazing creativity to bless so many. "Make Way for More Posts" is my words of the day- thank goodness.
I was just looking at my hydrangeas and thinking I needed to find a way to preserve them and now I can use those naked grapevine wreaths that are hanging up in my garage. I saw a discarded spring on the side of the road yesterday when I was out walking and considered picking it up pondered repurposing it but came up blank. Then today I saw your mantle. Going back to get it today! Love your fun, down to earth blog and your beautiful home KariAnne.
LOVE the wreath! and the fact that they can dry themselves! Too bad my dogs can't do that! I don't have Hydrangea's - yet - but my neighbor does! You are my morning smile! L.
Karianne, I just LOVE reading your posts! With rolling out the new site, I ran out of time for reading a lot of posts and I've loved catching up on them this week! I can't tell you how refreshing yours is :) OH, and that wreath and vignette are AWESOME!!!
Love your mantle KariAnne and love your wreath,it is gorgeous and to Andrea,I love squirrels and used to feed them but they take their food and hide it and like to hide it in vehicles..inside the heater,under the hood.....the heaters in both of our vehicles were plugged(every time we'd turn the heater on,all kinds of stuff would be flying out)and they chewed the four wheel drive wires in my jeep(cost me almost 400 dollars to get it fixed)needless to say I don't feed them anymore and rarely see any anymore.Be careful!!!!!
Oh my goodness.....pesky little beggars!
Karianne, Lovely wreath and cute turkey tale. I see wild turkeys all the time around here. oh and deer right in my yard!
We have a flock of turkeys that roam the neighborhood. Traffic comes to a standstill when they decide to cross the road - what a fun sight just like that wreath Kelly
LOVE the wreath! We just moved a few months ago and hey, we have a hydrangea bush in our yard. After I finish my morning cup of joe, I am going out to cut some flowers. I will put them in the garage and forget about them. :-). I am a newbie to your blog AND am enjoying your sense of humor, your down to earth persona and love for nature. I look forward to reading your posts! Thanks for writing them. Shhhh....on my next day off I will take time to read some of your past posts.....housework can wait, right?!!
Great minds think alike! I was driving home this morning (night shift nurse) and saw a doe on the side of the road. She stood very still. Not a muscle moved, nor an eyelash twitched. I slowed down and caught quick glances, but those were enough to give me pause. I'm glad that I've never shot a mammal. I'm thankful I don't have that picture in my head. I'm thankful she stood still and didn't leap across the road. I'm thankful that she didn't leap into my windshield. I'm thankful for a wonderful job, doing wonderful work that happens to be "up the country" just far enough that I can still drive roundtrip, but far enough away I can see true wildlife. I'm also thankful I found your blog. I need a smile and a little beauty most days and you provide both admirably. Thank You.
Hydrangeas and turkeys. KariAnne and Michelle. Life is good.
So beautiful...and so thankful for...YOU!! Heather
I love this Karianne! My hydrangeas got the funky fungus this year so alas, I am without blooms to dry. There's always next year!
I adore hydrangea wreaths!It looks amazing!!!
We have turkeys in our neighborhood. They like to stand in the middle of the road and chat with one another. They get quite offended, when you drive up and they have to move out of the road, lol. Great wreath!
Thank you for your posts and your blog. I wish I had thought of the Hydrangea wreath back when I had the chance to ask my neighbors for some cuttings. It is so beautiful. And I am very upset about the Turkeys. I would never want them to be killed. I would rather go hungry. If I had a Turkey or plural....... they would have to die of old age.
And sorry I used one of my other emails to comment. It is me, Sheryll & Critters. And I am going to steal those jokes from Michele to share with my friends.
I don't think there's anything in my yard that I would want to bring inside ... now, my neighbor's hydrangeas are just screaming for me to sneak out under the cover of dark and snip away ... Love your wreath!
Linda, you totally crack me up. If I was in Chicago, I would totally sneak over with you and snip away. Marian
We have turkeys here too and I think the same thing. Run!!!!!!
I'm so glad you posted this! I have been wondering where I can get dried hydrangeas. Now I know :)
I'm sure you never expected your blog to be a "ministry"... But for this reader it is! I stopped attending church for reasons you'd certainly understand, but I'd rather not mention....and since then my relationship with God has suffered...we're still tight, but I sincerely miss the fellowship,the music and especially the children (I taught Sunday School for many years)...and then I found your blog...I've told you before how much you have blessed my life...but in the true meaning of this season...I wanted to thank you again for constantly bringing me to the alter...your beautiful spirit has the eyes to see and the ears to hear the glory of God all around you and when you share your heart with us, He is revealed to us in such meaningful ways. Whether you know it or not...you have answered your calling and continue to unwrap the many gifts God has given you...and we are blessed to receive them! With gratitude, Roberta
We could so be neighbors...drinking sweet tea while coaxing turkey and deer to hide and dancing/waving in the front yard because we're so excited at a new project's completion or just life. You make my days, KariAnne, and I am so appreciative of you. No one has ever inspired me as much as you and your posts. If someone would have told me I'd run around the house turning bookcases upside down to see how they'd look as a shelf, I'd have asked what they were smoking :) You allow us in your life and in your home...the bestest kind of friend - all in such a wondrous, joy-filled, laughter-filled way. I am grateful and blessed to know you. Oh, and the wreath...like everything else...AMAZING!!! After work I'm going to be on the hunt for hydrangeas :) Have a wonderful day!
So pretty, Karianne, and I am thankful for you too!
Hydrangeas are my favorite..love the wreath
Oh my...it's that simple? Hydrangea drying that is? Your wreath is gorgeous! Wild turkeys are kinda fun to watch...do you turkey watch? It's free! ;)
Thank you, Karianne - you always make me feel happy!! Have a happy day!
LOVE this, Kari! Thank YOU, sweet friend, for being my listening ear at 11 pm. :) Love you!
I LOVE this!! I can't believe you are showing hydrangeas in decorating today because so am I! I bought this cool scale at an antique store the other day and I actually thought of you and how you would love it and what you would do with it! It was like you were there with me telling me...oh ya...get that. (Is that creepy?) Anyway, I hope you check it out. I am so making one of these wreaths as soon as my hydrangeas take off (which may never happen here on the dry and sunny west coast but hey...a girl can dream can't she :) Blessings, Ashley Rane Sparks www.makeitrane.com
As always....a smile is evoked while reading your posts. A laugh, an idea and all of the joy that goes along with reading. Thank you for the smile, laugh, idea and joy! LOVE the wreath......and the little branch thingies along side it... :)
I love hydrangea in wreathes!
Thanks so much for sharing your how to wreath. I really like it. Love the story about the turkeys and hope to see some pictures. Happy Fall Day. Mary
Beautiful wreath Karianne!! Don't you love how easy Hydrangeas are to dry? They really do all the work themselves don't they?!! Thanks for the entertaining post... your posts always make me smile! xo Karen
You know I make lamps out of books and stuff, right? So I am just going to have to mosey on over and check out that twig lampshade your friend posted. Maybe even right now. But I love your wreath. I just gave my dried hydrangea to my dear friend who lives down the street because I didn't know you were going to post this awesome project. Maybe she can make a wreath. She just really loved it, and I was kinda done with it. So next time with the hydrangea wreath for me. Or maybe I'll just buy a bunch of fake blue hydrangea in the spring and make one then. I do love a good spring wreath and don't have one. So I guess this is "thank you" in advance. Have a lovely day, dear lady. The Other Marian
Love the wreath....and as usually you have put a smile on my face. You are truly an amazing and a dear friend!
Loving the hydrangeas. I have some stuck in various places in our home - a wreath might be a good way to corral them. Thanks for writing the blog. I don't always make it over here, but enjoy the visit when I do.
Even this non-crafter will give this gorgeous wreath a go.
What a timely posting! My neighbour who works crazy hours has a huge hydrangea bush and told me to help myself. I think I will add some sunshine to her world and make us both one! Thanks
This wreath is just gorgeous. I can't wait to plant hydrangea bushes in our new yard. Seeing all of them in blog world made me want to plant them without a doubt. I love seeing the wild turkeys wondering around and especially with their babies. It is the little things, you know!!! Cynthia
I absolutely love hydrangeas! And how they dry themselves without any help from me. Your wreath is beautiful! I love your turkey story! And I love my visits here to your blog!!! You always make me smile!
I was looking at that picket fence screen, behind the wreath. And I was looking at my mantel with the big flat screen tv on it, and how I couldn't put the wreath there (I can hang it on the mirror, but enough about me). So I realized that the picket fence screen would be a really cute way to hide a TV on your mantel, which you could then hand these cut wreaths, buntings, etc. Wouldn't it?
I would love to make a dried hydrangea wreath, BUT none of my several huge bushes chose to bloom this year! I wonder what I've done wrong? Anyone out there have a suggestion? Enjoyed the silly turkey jokes AND the story about YOUR turkey family. We have wild turkeys often in our back yard, but I have not seen a Mama with babies. We live in the country too, just not as MUCH country!
Hi Norma Jean, I`m not sure what went wrong with your hydrangea bushes, but, they should bloom pretty much every season and throughout, I have eleven bushes and add one or two every year, the blooms are beautiful, now my sucess is the coffee grinds I put on them every morning and even in the winter, they are acid loving plants! I heard too, that if you push a few big nails around the base of the plants the blooms are more blue. Well, better luck next seasons! ;-)
Thank the Lord for hydrangeas that just dry themselves!! Your wreath looks gorgeous my friend and "free" has to be hands-down one of the best words in the English language! :-) Vanessa
SO thankful for a girl with red lipstick that makes me laugh every day. You are my favorite blogger, hands down. I have turkeys too...and a lot of deer, as deer season is about to open here in Michigan, I do tell them not to go towards the neighbors who like to do bad things to Bambi's mom :( Love the wreath, now I have to find somebody with hydrangeas to swipe :)
I love all the jokes! Just read them all to my husband and he rolled his eyes at every single one. ( the eye rolling means he should've known the answer) ;)
Looove the wreath, Karianne- just gorgeous. I just may be able to follow your method for drying hydrangeas, since most plants in my care seem to dry themselves, intended or not.
If there's another way to dry flowers, I'm not interested in hearing about it. Ignorance can indeed be bliss;). I miss my beautiful hydrangeas from our previous home of 26 years. Almost every year I made a hydrangea wreath from the clippings and they were ALMOST as pretty as yours.
I love your hydrangea wreath and the twig things in the birch logs. What are those and where can I find some. I also like the big springs. I have been looking for some of those and can't get my hands on any. I love it all. It looks great. We have a family of turkeys and I think their extended family that wonder the streets of our neighborhood. It's kind of funny to see them just strolling down the street. And they seem to come out around hunting season taunting all of the hunters. The first time I saw them I told them to run and hide or they were going to be on someones table for Thanksgiving. My husband got a good laugh over that one.
This was the perfect first read for me this morning! I love being a girl, because we understand each other and appreciate these things - I am thankful for that! I was talking with Dearest - as I put it to him, 'he works in a world of women'. He said, 'they share EVERYTHING! At work, I don't care'. 'We're a differente breed from you, Dearest. You need your buddy at work - just understand we women carry a lot with us ALL TIMES. We carry your needs, our children's needs, the needs of others and work needs - then also ourselves...you're about business - we're about people - have patience and understanding - That's why I love the way you share - in your storytelling, we can understand, laugh and find time to create something cool for ourselves and our home. I love being a girl! Have a blessed day, Kathy
Love how you converse through your tutorial. Beautiful wreath (and beautiful writing, as always.)
Absolutely amazing- as usual!! So stinkin beautiful!! xoxo Becca
We have 9 turkeys this year that roam our place. Last year we had 16...we watched the babies grow up and they got to where they would walk right by me when I was working out in the yard. Sometimes they would stop within just a few and just look at me. They are funny creatures if you stop and watch them. Love having them around. Love the hydrangea wreath as well....beautiful!!
This is such a beautiful hydrangea wreath..!! I am loving it. I can also try to make it at my home.
Gorgeous fireplace mantle... Wow so unique and different....the wreath is stunning. Come over and share your post with us on the Style Sisters linky party..https://thestylesisters.blogspot.com/2013/10/centerpiece-wednesday-95.html Karin
Hydrangeas are my favorite! Love this wreath. Thanks for sharing!
This is sooooo lovely! I will have to remember to dry my hydrangeas next year. We have a group of turkeys (a herd? a gaggle?) that live in the woods behind our house. They are so interesting to watch!
You tell the post stories. And your writing gives me the chills. And your posts are so inspirational! I'm your biggest flan!
*best