DIY: Nicole’s Wire Cacti Garden

If you haven’t guessed by now, I do love a houseplant or ten!  I was feeling inspired by some awesome paper and cardboard cacti I was seeing on pinterest and started thinking what could I make along the same vein, but not quite.  I’ve made objects before out of wire wrapped in wool, like words and hands…I thought why not cacti?!  These are actually quite simple to make, they just take nimble fingers, some creative thinking and a little patience.  I started by bending malleable wire from the hardware store into a shape I’ve drawn onto a piece of paper and then taping it into place.  Ahem…don’t mind me blatantly showing off my new engagement ring ;)

 

Then, you can start to wrap the wire tightly in yarn and remove the tape and paper as desired…  Some of the cacti shapes are especially easy to do completely freehand.  When you’re wrapping the wool, just make sure to not leave any spaces between each loop and have no wire showing for the best results.

 

After the wrapping comes the fun part – adding little colorful tufts of fluff, because who doesn’t love a cactus in bloom?!  I find that once I start crafting, the possibilities seem endless- you can make any number of cute cacti or flowers, so don’t stop ’til you get enough.

I stuck mine in little terracotta pots and kept them secure with stones I’ve collected.  You could just as easily prop them on the mantle or tape them up on the wall!

What you’ll need:

Malleable garden wire (I used 16 gauge/1.57 mm wire and folded it in half, twisted it and doubled it…annoying, but true)

Wool yarn *hint: the thicker the wool, the less wrapping you need to do. Up to you!

Craft glue – I like to add a dab of glue the knotted ends just to be safe

 

What to do:

Cut a piece of wire with wire cutters (if you don’t cut enough for the entire shape, you can always twist more on later)

Draw a picture of your desired shape

Bend your wire into the shape on the paper and tape it down

Tie a knot with your wool at one end of the wire

Start wrapping and pulling away the tape as needed.  You’ll probably start with the whole shape pulled away from the paper anyway, depending on size.

Tie another knot at the end of your wool and wire.

Dab a bit of glue on the knots to make them extra secure.

Tie on cute little tufts as cactus flowers if you want. Give them a trim so they are relatively even.

Et voila!  Display them or give them as a gift!

 

This post was created by Nicole Valentine Don for JB est. 1979.
For more of Nicole’s magical musings, visit her blog & facebook

Photos by: Fiona Galbraith