Jun
2015
4th of July Clothespin Wreath
Update: I was honored to have my blog and 4th of July clothespin wreath craft featured in American Profile’s Community Table Magazine, Parade Magazine, and Real Simple. At the request of readers, I have also created a Christmas version with instructions here and a Valentine’s Day version with instructions here.
With 4th of July just around the corner, it’s time to start decorating with some red, white, and blue! I saw a similar patriotic clothespin wreath and thought, Hey, I can do that! so hit up Michael’s and Walmart to pick up my supplies and whipped up a few.
For those DIY’ers, here’s what you’ll need to make your very own 4th of July Clothespin Door Hanger. Since I’m a visual learner, I took lots of snaps of each step to help you along the way.
What you’ll need:
- 12″ Wire Wreath. These are sold in the florist section of any craft store for less than $3.
- 70 Clothespins (give or take one or two). I found Walmart was the cheapest at $1.98 for a pack of 100.
- Red, white, and blue spray paint. I went with Krylon Indoor/Outdoor since I wanted something to hang outside. I also went with country colors instead of traditional but you can do whichever you like. My colors were Burgundy, Ivory, and Oxford Blue, all in Krylon Satin. They cost about $3.50 a can at Walmart. You’ll have a ton left over so keep that in mind for future projects.
- Star Punch. A 1/4″ star works great so I bought an $8 Fiskers hand punch.
- Ivory/Cream textured card stock. When I bought my wreath at Michael’s, I swung by the scrapbooking section and picked up a piece of cardstock that was textured to make the stars pop a bit more.
- Gel Super Glue
- Hot glue gun & hot glue
- Ribbon to hang the wreath.
Directions:
Spray stuff! I suggest working outside and laying down some cardboard so you can chuck your items on it and spray to your heart’s content. Your wire wreath will be green so spray both sides with your Krylon Ivory spray paint so the green doesn’t peek through.
Wire Wreath: Before
Wire Wreath: After
Spray Paint Clothespins: You’ll need 25 red, 25 white, and 20 blue clothespins. Since not every wire wreath and clothespin is identical, the total number needed might be off by one or two clothespins so I suggest making two extra blue just in case. The clothespins come pre-clipped to a piece of cardboard so I left them attached and sprayed the uglier of the two sides first, let dry, gave it another quick coat, let dry again, then sprayed the prettier side with 3-4 coats, drying in between. The drying time is short so it’s really not that time consuming and when you have your assembly line of red, white, and blue clothespins it’s pretty quick and easy. Be sure you spray at various angles to get the sides and crevices nice and coated.
Punch Stars: Using your Fiskers start punch, punch out 100 stars out of your cardstock (5 stars for each of the 20 blue clothespins).
Using the gel super glue, glue your stars onto your blue clothespins. I did 5 per clothespin, alternating each one.
I really like Loctite ’cause it’s a gel and less messy and it has comfort squeeze sides on it.
Assembly Time: Now that your clothespins are ready, it’s time to put it all together. You’ll notice that your wreath is basically four rings. You’ll be attached to the center two rings which I’ll call #2 and #3 from top to bottom.
Pick a starting point (See above picture and start top and center and move to the right of the wire divider.) and pick either red or white to start with. If you start with red then you’ll end up with white or visa-versa so it doesn’t really matter. If you look at the four rings from top down, clip your first clothespin to the 2nd ring.
With your second clothespin, clip it to the 3rd ring.
With the third, you’ll clip to the 2nd ring again and keep on alternating until you have 5 white clothespins clipped.
Now it’s time to swap colors. Keep alternating rings and colors until you’ve clipped all 25 red and white clothespins. Finish by clipping the starred blue clothespins for the last section.
Add Ribbon: Cut a 17″ piece of ribbon and glue or tie around the back wire part of the wreath.
Hot Glue Time: It’s time for gluing! Work from the back and glue any loose clothespins to the back wire part of the wreath or in between the clothespins themselves, just to secure them on to the wire wreath.
Helpful Tip: See those nasty glue gun cobwebs? A very quick and easy way to get rid of them is to blue dry them away. Take your hair dryer and apply heat to any offending cobweb and it will shrink back up, essentially disappearing. Just be careful not to apply too much heat or it could remelt the glue you want to stay stuck. 🙂
All finished! Just hang indoors or outdoors and you’re ready for the 4th of July!
18 Comments on 4th of July Clothespin Wreath
5Pingbacks & Trackbacks on 4th of July Clothespin Wreath
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deburtoDiane B.
May 5, 2015 at 4:26 pm (5 years ago)Love this idea…so easy
missbutterbean
May 5, 2015 at 7:16 pm (5 years ago)Thanks! I’ve made several for friends and family. You’re right–so easy! I loved it so much that I did a Christmas version and a St. Patty’s version. Lots of fun things you can do with it! Feel free to share pictures of what you decide to do!
Terry
June 21, 2015 at 3:43 pm (5 years ago)Love your idea for different holidays. Thanks!
missbutterbean
July 14, 2015 at 11:07 am (5 years ago)Thank you! Happy to hear you enjoyed the project.
Robyn
May 24, 2015 at 7:34 am (5 years ago)Great idea. Thank you for sharing this …
missbutterbean
July 14, 2015 at 11:07 am (5 years ago)Thank you! You’re so welcome!
Terry
June 21, 2015 at 3:42 pm (5 years ago)Love it
Verona
July 3, 2015 at 10:27 am (5 years ago)Do you have instructions for a Christmas or other Holiday versions of the clothespin wreath.
missbutterbean
July 14, 2015 at 10:56 am (5 years ago)Yes, I am working on a post for various holiday versions which will go live a little later in the year. Feel free to subscribe to blog post updates so you’ll get the notification for holiday wreaths. Happy to hear you enjoyed the project!
Patsy Caton
July 13, 2015 at 2:41 pm (5 years ago)when you put the clothespins as directed, they are not at all even. the picture of the craft is even at the top and bottom. Am I doing something wrong?
missbutterbean
July 14, 2015 at 11:04 am (5 years ago)Sorry to hear it’s giving you trouble. I mentioned in the post that wire wreaths and even clothespins can vary slightly and aren’t identical so sometimes it takes a little love to get them to all fit the way you want. I suggest starting from a different section of the wreath and get the clothespins as tight as possible within your sections. And don’t worry if it isn’t exactly perfect because the wire or clothespins weren’t perfect–the finished product will still look great!
Bonnie Russell
November 22, 2016 at 11:44 pm (3 years ago)I was wondering if you hot glued the clothespins once they were clipped to the wire wreath form?or if they even need to be, because they seem pretty solid once they are attached. I’m trying to make a wreath but I can’t seem to find any instructions about this issue. Thanks for any help you can provide. Also your wreaths are so beautiful and well made.
missbutterbean
November 27, 2016 at 11:48 pm (3 years ago)Hi Bonnie, thanks so much for your kind comment! In response to your question, yes, under the ‘Hot Glue Time’ section, it does list directions on hot gluing any clothespins which may be loose once you’re all done clipping. In some cases, you may not need to (especially if you’re just hanging the wreath inside) but it really depends since clothespins are sort of like snowflakes in not being the same so sometimes you have a few that jiggle a little too much. Have fun and let me know how it turns out!