DIY Cup Wreath

When I saw this idea from Twig & Thistle via Katie, I thought it was so clever and couldn't wait to try it. It looked simple enough, and actually it was. But believe it or not, you want to know the hardest part? Finding the perfect cups. She used 4 oz. cups for her wreath, so I thought I'd do the same. Except they were impossible to find! And I was looking when we were in Oklahoma City, so it's not like I was limited to no choices like I would be at home.

I am notorious for getting excited about a project and not reading all of the details before starting. In typical Sarah fashion, I just looked at this picture and raced to the closest Wal-Mart to buy cups to make it. To begin with, I tried 9 oz. punch cups...you know, like the kind in the party section with paper plates, etc. Turns out they were WAY too big. I mean, unless I wanted a wreath to hang on front of the white house. I guess the larger the cup size, the larger the wreath. And 9 oz. cups? Makes a HUGE wreath, my friends. I so wish I would have taken a picture of it, but A.) I don't think I could have actually fit the wreath in a picture, B.) I quit half way through when realizing there was no way this was going to work out and C.) I couldn't stop laughing at how insanely huge it was. Let's just say I would've had to strap it to the top of my car if I wanted to haul it anywhere. So that was a big fail.

So back I went to look at her tutorial a little closer, and then began the search for 4 oz. cups when I realized that's what she used. But do you know I couldn't find them anywhere? Yes, I could've ordered some online, but that sure wouldn'../../2011/03/pretty-in-pink-baby-shower.html">baby shower I was planning.

I used about 60-70 cups to make this. As you can see, it's definitely not perfect and each cup is not spaced the same distance apart because I just didn't take the time to be consistent. I still like the way it turned out, but next time I make one I'll probably try to be more methodical.

Here's what you need to make a cup wreath:
-cups (I think 3-4 oz. would be best - I got mine for around $2 at Wal-Mart)
-hot glue gun & glue sticks
-ribbon and/or embellishments to hang with the wreath (optional)

1. To begin, line the inside right side of the cup with hot glue. My cups didn't have any seams, but if yours do, make sure the seam is turned to the back. Take another cup, place it upside down on the table, and stack the first cup on it. She positioned hers about 1 inch apart. As I mentioned, I wasn't very consistent with mine but I just kind of eyeballed it and it seemed to work fine.

2. Place a dab of hot glue on the bottom of another cup, and stack it in the cups you've already put together. Then just repeat until a full circle has formed. For the final cup, you might have to work it a little bit to get the circle to complete. But don't be afraid to try to force the shape of the wreath a little. It might dent the cups a little, but that's where I put my ribbon so it hides the imperfection. :)

And you're done! You can finish it off with a big ribbon to hang it. I also added some wooden pieces to the center just because for the spaces I was planning to use the wreath, I knew it would need something else to look right to me.

Let me know if you have any questions...this was kind of hard for me to explain so I hope it makes sense. And more importantly, if you find 4 oz. cups in a store I'd love to hear where! :)