I have been thinking about my Mawmaw an awful lot lately. Every good southern girl has a Mawmaw, not a Grandmother. She used to love to wear brooches when she went to church or any event. I loved that woman so much! She was a special lady, and took up a massive amount of time with me as a child. She is the one person in this world that loved me unconditionally. I could have murdered someone and she would have been convinced they deserved it or pushed me to do it. I loved that she always saw the goodness and worth in me. When she passed, I was given the pins she loved so much, and some of her other jewelry. Some of it was really dated and funky, some broken, some in need of minor repair and some perfectly fine. It ran the gamut. I decided that instead of having all of that jewelry in little boxes where I rarely saw and enjoyed it, I should have it out where it could be a reminder of the bond we shared. So, I made the wreath in this project and put it in my Master bedroom so that I could have a little reminder of her on display. If you don’t have vintage or sentimental pieces, Amazon has some really amazing retro inspired pieces here, here and here.
For this project you will need 1 Styrofoam wreath core, 2 spools of 3 inch burlap ribbon, a high temp hot glue gun and two to three glue sticks.
I started with a Styrofoam core from the floral department of my local craft store. I wanted one that was rounded, but you can find ones that have edges as well.
Using my hot glue gun, I began to attach and wrap burlap ribbon around the core, securing with a dab of hot glue every couple of wraps.
Lay out your jewelry to get a sense of the design you ultimately want to create. I started with the larger pieces and worked my smaller pieces around them. For some pieces that were not broken, I attached them to the wreath using the stick pin on the back of the brooch. For those that were broken or at odd angles, I secured them with the glue gun.
I chose to focus my pins in a crescent on one side of the wreath. I used a couple on the opposite diagonal to provide a little balance. Finally, two of the “strings of beads” as she used to call them that I distinctly remember her wearing frequently were broken in the jewelry box, but I just didn’t have the heart to get rid of them. I’m glad now that I didn’t! They have found new life as contrast pieces on the wreath.
I absolutely love having this in my bedroom and seeing it every day. It reminds me of the person who had more of an impact on me as a child, as an adult, and as a Mother. I love you, my dear, sweet, Mawmaw!
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nice collections