Making a Wreath is Pretty Simple, Right?

Most people assume that there isn’t much involved in wreath making.  And for the wreaths that you buy at a local retail store that is probably true. But for us at the Wreaths of Maine the story is a little different.  We decided to share some details about what goes into our process of making a high quality wreath.

Not All Greens are Created Equal

Hundreds of evergreen varieties exist but not all of them are suitable for wreath making. Cone bearing evergreens are the most typical greenery used such as spruces, firs, and pines which all have soft needle-like foliage. We use balsam fir to make our double sided wreaths because Maine is a hardiness zone for balsam fir so it’s plentiful and locally available.  It also happens to be one of the most fragrant decorative greens so it simply smells like Christmas.

Not All Wreaths are Created Equal

We begin by collecting greens from fir trees based on their length.  Tips refer to shorter pieces and boughs are the longer branches.  We harvest the tips and hang them over poles which are brought to our wreath makers. The wreath makers trim longer pieces to maintain a uniform shape. Each tip is combined in groups of three or four to create what is called a bouquet.   Each bouquet is wired on to a metal ring by hand.  On average the wreath maker wires about 32 bouquets to each ring alternating between the front and back of the ring to give it a full appearance. The greens are then tucked in and a loop is formed for the hanger. Our process is almost entirely manual and our most skilled wreath makers create 6-7 wreaths an hour.

Our dedication to locally sourced greens, high quality wreaths and pride in our work make our story unique.  We hope you share it!