Easily learn how to make an elegant corn husk wreath with our step by step instructions! This elegant wreath looks fantastic on your front door, hanging over a large mirror and it also makes a great homemade hostess gift!
Are you the type of person that prefers to watch a video vs. a wall of text? Well we made this short video overview on how to make a corn husk wreath just for you! If you decide to make a corn husk wreath, l highly recommend that you check out all the details in our post when the video is over.
I absolutely love displaying dried natural wreaths like the DIY Dried Hydrangea Wreath and the DIY Dried Sunflower Wreath I’ve shared on the blog in recent years. They just look…well…real! I’m really inspired by anything Smith and Hawken creates but those wreaths are pricey and I ALWAYS think I can make something just as classy for much cheaper.
I came across a gorgeous corn husk wreath while walking through a historic neighborhood nearby. It was beautifully displayed on the front door of an old, beautiful Victorian home. I immediately knew I had to try and make one for myself.
Let’s check out the final product! I love how it turned out! I’ll be able to keep it on display practically year round by changing the ribbon out for different seasons. It’s very neutral!
So the title of my post is a bit of a tease…yes, this wreath is SHOCKINGLY easy when you’ve already made one. Technically, I’ve had two attempts at making a corn husk wreath. My first attempt went okay but there were some subtle mistakes that I’ve learned from (and I want to share these with you so you don’t make the same mistakes)!
So, throughout this DIY corn husk wreath tutorial I’m going to drop what I’m calling pro-tips! These pro-tips are absolutely crucial to learn as you go through my post step by step.
You’ll need a few inexpensive supplies to get started. Below I’ve linked to the items you’ll need that aren’t easily found around your home.
Corn Husk Wreath Supply List
12″ Straw Wreath Form
Greening Pins
Dried Corn Husks (12 Ounces– 2 Packages)
Floral Wire
Measuring Tape
Bow, Bell or Any Embellishments
Scissors
Large and Wide Bowl
Dish Towels
Step 1: Soak Your Dried Corn Husks
Grab the largest and widest bowl that you have in your kitchen and fill it with room temperature water. Grab about a dozen straight, dried corn husks and hold them under the water until they are saturated. Allow the dried husks to soak for at least 10 minutes to soften.
Pro-Tip: It’s very important at this juncture to select corn husks that are straight and flat. They should have no wrinkles, bumps, folds or tears. Most packages of dried corn husks have varying quality of husks inside. In our supplies list I’ve suggested slightly more than you will probably need but that’s due to the fact that each package is a bit of a mystery. You only want to select the best pieces for your wreath and some of the corn husks are unusable for this project.
It’s okay for the husks to sit in the water throughout the whole wreath making process. They won’t disintegrate or degrade. Be sure to keep adding husks to the bottom of the bowl so they soften up in time for you to use them in wreath assembly.
Step 2: Trim Moistened Husks to Size
Spread out some dish towels around the bowl where your corn husks are soaking cuz girl…you’re gonna get water everywhere!
Next, grab your first corn husk from the bowl. You’ll easily be able to tear the moistened corn husks into strips. We recommend that you tear the strips into widths of about 2 1/4″. Fold each strip in half and then use a pair of scissors to trim the folded husk strip to 4″ long. Station a tape measure or ruler near your workspace to aid with this
Pro-tip: It’s VERY important that you create consistent lengths on your folded husk strips. This consistent length is what allows for tidy, evenly spaced corn husk rows on your wreath from start to finish.
Step 3: Pin Corn Husks to Wreath Form
Starting from the inside of the straw wreath form, use the greening pins to pin each folded corn husk onto wreath. Make a straight line lines across your wreath. Depending on the width of your corn husk strips you may need to use more than one pin in places. It will take 4-5 strips to make one row.
For each successive row you’ll want to have significant overlap. You don’t want the greening pins to be seen. I recommend that each row measure about 1 1/2 inches apart.
Pro-tip: Spacing between rows is somewhat personal taste. I think shorter distances between rows look neat and tidy. Too much distance between rows allow the corn husks to droop (the support just isn’t there). Regardless of what you decide on spacing just make sure that you are consistent and measure consistently between each row. Carry that consistency throughout the entire wreath construction.
Step 4: Leave Spacing for Hanging/Bows
Before you pin in all of your corn husks in place you’ll want to take a moment to figure out a way to hang your wreath. If you are adding a bow or some other type of embellishment then you’ll want to make a plan for that.
I made a big ole fancy bow and pulled a dried sunflower out of my stash that I didn’t even use because I thought the wreath was a little busy looking with those items on it.
I used floral wire to create a closed loop around my straw wreath for hanging. If you want to add a little color but not a big bow….you might consider using a loop of wide, wire ribbon for hanging.
Step 5: Allow 24 Hours to Dry
Finally, you’ll want to place your wreath in a warm place where it won’t be be disturbed. Lay it flat on a table preferably somewhere in your home (or outside if it’s going to be warm out for the next 24 hours). Give the wreath a full 24 hours to completely dry before hanging it.
Pro-tip: It’s actually quite important that you lay your wreath flat to dry. If you were to hang it up to dry the outer most strips may droop and then dry in that droopy position. We don’t want droopy corn husks!
Store your wreath in a a dry place when not in use. I highly recommend using an air tight, hard sided wreath box to store your corn husk wreath so it cannot be accidentally damaged or absorb moisture.
If there some area of the wreath that doesn’t meet your expectations (or you get droop somewhere by accident) just take out that corn husk, soak it in water and re-pin it again.
You can get really creative with these corn husk wreaths. Last year at the state fair I saw several corn husk wreaths entered in the crafting competition where the corn husks themselves were dyed a myriad of colors to make a Fall or Christmas themed wreath. So don’t be afraid to think out of the box!
What do you think of my finished corn husk wreath? Is there anything you’d do differently? Have any questions for me? Have you made a corn husk wreath in the past and have even more pro-tips to share with our readers? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments at the end of the page!
We hope you enjoyed our step by step tutorial on how to make a corn husk wreath. It’s insanely easy as long as you keep our pro-tips in mind when constructing your wreath!
If you enjoyed this DIY wreath you don’t want to miss two other recent DIY wreath tutorials we done like the DIY Dried Hydrangea Wreath or the DIY Dried Sunflower Wreath.
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