Last week I hosted a Paper Wreath Workshop and it was so much fun.  
The wreaths that I made for demonstrations are now available to purchase in the store.  They are quite a hit, so I am planning on making a couple more in various sizes. 

In case you wanted to attend but missed it, no worries, below is a step by step tutorial. 

As with most things, we need to start somewhere.
I found that in a lot of online tutorials, there was a lot of steps left out so one had to use their imagination to get to the next step.  
​My hope here is that I can make this as easy as possible for y'all! 

First you find some cardboard which will become the backing for your wreath.
Make sure it is clean and not from a pizza box! 
Take your cardboard and draw a circle on it for you to cut out.  The bigger the circle the bigger the wreath.
​This tutorial is for a double layer wreath. You can make a smaller one, but I'm a fan of go big or go home!

Once your circle has been cut out, make a smaller one. Like a doughnut and a hole!
Put the cardboard aside as the fun part now begins.  It's time to start rolling the paper into cones.  I have used anywhere between 50 cones to over 100.  Just depends on how big the paper is you use and how tightly you roll them.
​Please remember to be consistent with your sizes as it will appear on your wreath. 

I am using a large print Art History book for this wreath.  It has lots of art pictures and with the contrast of the white, it will pop!

Once you have rolled and rolled, and even rolled some more, it's time to add them to your cardboard.
​Apply some hot glue to your rolled piece of paper and position it on your cardboard doughnut. 

I like to glue mine on in a compass style. North, East, South and West. Then fill in the points between until it is filled in completely.  The next step is to add another layer over this row by gluing a rolled cone in between each cone. This way it covers the gaps. 

Once your second level is done, it's time to start on your doughnut hole!
Here I rolled the papers slightly tighter and started in the compass style again.

Once one side is filled, I flipped over the circle and glued the cones on, but this time overlapping the points to make a tight centre. 

Once done it will look like a tight flower. Take the finished top layer of the wreath and hot glue it to the larger bottom portion of the wreath to make one large wreath. 

For the back, I glued on a bit of ribbon and some scrap felt.  The felt reinforces the backing and gives the hanging ribbon a bit more strength. 

Made with an older book with the centre made of burlap and an old book cover. 

A smaller wreath made with only one layer.  I used a small red burlap and a little stag toy.

Quick little rainy day table.   

I accidentally broke the top of the table and it needed a small repair.  Once glued with Gorilla Glue, I felt like it needed a new life.  When raining outside and you are a wee bit bored, bust out the sandpaper and paint. 
I chose a cherry pink colour called Full Bloom.  Once it was painted I put a graphite glaze on the flat surfaces and it is looking quite spiffy!

​She's all ready and available for her forever home.  

Truth be told, I cannot make a pretty pie. Try as I might, the crust is beyond my ability. I have made them with lard, shortening, butter...then thought maybe it's the type of counter or rolling pin.  No, it was the handler each and every time.  
I usually stick to press-in shortbread crusts or really cheat and but the pre-made crusts that I can unroll and put into my own pan. You know, to make it look like I made it.  Add a little bit of flour dusting to my apron and hair, and voila.  
That said, I hardly ever use canned fillings.  I love making the blueberry fillings, the cherry, raisin...  even the cavity inducing butterscotch filling.

Last year I absolutely forgot about the Perfect Pie Contest and missed submitting one. 
This year.... I made it just in time to their cut off of 10:30 am!  I submitted my entry at 10:20.

As I said earlier, I do not make pies.  My entry was not pretty. It was Perfectly Imperfect.  Delicious, but not pretty. 

I made a Toasted Coconut Cream pie with a meringue top and a coconut shortbread crust.  It was submitted into the Meringue Category. Fingers crossed!

Either way, I enjoyed making it with my daughter who kept me entertained with her antics, except for when she dropped all the sugar onto the floor and my dog got a sugar high.

​Next year... I'm thinking one of my pot pies (which I am actually good at!) and a fruit one.  As they say, practice makes perfect.