Meriel Bradley: We’re here today talking to Dan Cooper, now Dan on our journey you’ve
sent me to many great people. Who am I going to see today?
Dan Cooper: We are going to head down to Toronto to the Distillery District and we’re
going to meet with Elaine Martin who owns a very cool landscape in
Home Décor wreath business called Vintage of Gardener.
Meriel Bradley: Now what will Elaine are showing us?
Dan Cooper: Will I mean, there is a lot to be said for what you get of the property when
you go to look at that for the first time, the first impression so when you
walking to the front door many times you either like it or you don’t like it
so it’s key it’s pivotal to make sure that when you woke up at front door
you really caught and hook and attach to that property and so talking about
first impressions, Elaine is going to show us today what you can actually
do with amazing things with your wreath.
Meriel Bradley: That sounds exciting, well I’m on my way and you’re on your way with
us. This is Daily Web TV. I am in the perfect place today with the perfect
person and that is Elaine of Vintage Garden and now you have so many
fabulous projects and you have another one to show with us today.
Elaine Martin: I do, I’m going to show you how to make what has become our signature
wreath. It something my grandmother thought me how to do.
Meriel Bradley: Your grandmother thought you so many things.
Elaine Martin: So it did when it came to the garden that’s for sure.
Meriel Bradley: So what is this?
Elaine Martin: This is a floral foam base and we start first with this all. So what we do is
we cut the stem off, I like this one here and I need to cut it a little shorter
this is two long to insert in the wreath. As we putting the greenery and we
have to be aware that this little stem will shrink as its drying. So I was to
put something in this long and once the stem is shrinking it will be too
much weight.
Meriel Bradley: Oh and it will drop out.
Elaine Martin: And it will drop out, so we cut things into shorter and what I do is come
into where there is a little node next to the leaf and I cut it right beside
that. And the reason I do that is because than this also looks like a top.
Meriel Bradley: So you get maximum use from your branches.
Elaine Martin: You do.
Elaine Martin: Wrong will be to cut like this and then we would have unsightly sticks.
Meriel Bradley: And then a little leaf you can.
Elaine Martin: And a little leaf we can, right. So, I’m going to start by inserting this allow
on an angle and the reason we do that again is for science because as this
is on the wall if I put it in straight and it’s the stem strings it’s kind of
gravity will flowed out. If I got it on the side, gravity will just locks it in
right?
Meriel Bradley: Right.
Elaine Martin: So and I want to come as flood as I can to the back on the outside, so I
usually use the table as a way to do that to get it straight. So I’m going to
come in as close as I can to the table and very flat and I just chop it in. It’s
better just to go with one quick shelve to shelving technique then trying to
make you going if I take it slowly what you do sometimes because your
nervous it goes— and it’s creates the hole becomes too big and the leaf
falls out. So then I’m going to come in or good, I’m not very good of
centimeters yet so I think about two half three inches and I’m going to do
another one right there. We just go around the entire outside of the base,
and then I’ll go all the way around to gain and all the way it around to gain
in the middle. So, on the top view we need to really layer and make it as
flat as possible so the way we get it flat is by inserting on a really severe
angle. As it dries the leaves they turn it a little bit of color so that they are
on start green a little more sage which is very, very pretty.
Meriel Bradley: But they still maintain the green?
Elaine Martin: And the reason we use this allow is because it’s stays green and the leaf is
one of the few of these trees that as it dries the leaves don’t fall off that in
magnolia so that’s one of the advantages of using flap. So here we are
almost at the dope to filling this little bold spot here so will just find the
perfect little leaf to do that.
Meriel Bradley: How do you know which way went to the top.
Elaine Martin: That’s we have to do next, we have to decide which rise up and not a
metaphor.
Meriel Bradley: All of that is gorgeous, I like it just green.
Elaine Martin: But in any weight what we do now is we hold it up and I in liking this way
up because I like the way that this leaf is coming down. So now I stick my
thumb and make a little dividend here and then I remember where up this
and I taking organza ribbon and I wiggle my way through the greenery,
wiggly giggly. And pleat through and then about the length of the leaves I
just make a slipknot and then we let the ribbon fall down kind like a they
have different bangs and then search the place of it the flowers on that we
want to use decorate this.
Meriel Bradley: Now what are you using today?
Elaine Martin: I’m going to use couple of different kinds of hydrangea and some lavender
and then because it is spring right now we are going to put a couple of
piece of willows into.
Meriel Bradley: So we just layered it up.
Elaine Martin: Layered it up.
Meriel Bradley: And you do your same we tack it in technique?
Elaine Martin: I do the tacking in and I nestle them in right into the wreath so if I’ve got
the hydrangea I am going to left to leaves up tacking in so that it looks
nestled. When I take the hydrangea and its— the floweriest a little large to
put on the wreath so what we do is we cut this and in fact it works a little
bit like broccoli.
Meriel Bradley: I’m just going to seen that, I was going to say cauliflower so that it works
pretty.
Elaine Martin: Oh cauliflower we have the same things, and you just pull this apart the
little flowers like the same way if you would if you’re going steam your
broccoli or cauliflower.
Meriel Bradley: Or cauliflower.
Elaine Martin: This stem is now too short it’s also not strong enough and even if it was, it
has the texture on it that it’s rubbery and fussy at the same time and that’s
the technical term as well.
Meriel Bradley: Rubbery and fussy.
Elaine Martin: And it spice with the foam so the next day it is jumps right back out so we
do have to use this handy little thing called the flowers to pick which is a
fancy name for a stick with the wire on it and we line the hydrangea up
with the stem and the pick and we take the wire and we go around the
stems and the pick working our way down to the stem and now I hold it
like a dart and I can just pop it in on an angle again.
Meriel Bradley: Now that will also dry as well?
Elaine Martin: Yes, yup so those staying forever so this is really like my base and then if
you are adding roses or anything that tacks in.
Meriel Bradley: Or pennies or anything else to tack it in as you go. So Elaine this is
absolutely gorgeous and I’m dying to see how it all dries out. So thank
you so much now I know you do workshop so where can somebody find
you?
Elaine Martin: Well we are in the Distillery District in downtown Toronto, you can find
this on our website and you can find it for class and come out and make
your own wreath. It’s vintagegardener.com and our phone number is 416-
364-6232.
Meriel Bradley: Fabulous thank you so much and if you want more information be sure to
contact Elaine your show will be inspired, I’m Meriel Bradley and you’ve
been watching Daily Web TV.