Did you know that you cannot recycle wire hangers in your home recycling bin? Instead there are a couple things we can do: use them, take them to a dry cleaner to be reused, recycle at a scrap metal place, and make crafts like this wire hanger wreath!
Not sure what came over me one day but I called our local residential trash and recycling company to ask if they take wire hangers. They said please do not recycle them because it can break down the machinery as they processed all the recyclables. While I felt like I knew recycling wire hangers was a “no-no” this was the first time I really felt the impact of what may happen with irresponsible recycling. If you aren’t sure whether you can recycle something call up the company your city uses and just ask; they are much happier to take a phone call then have one of their machines break down.
Anyhow, back to the wire hanger wreath craft! This is a creative way to use up some of those wire hangers you got floating around.
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Wire Hanger Wreath with Hearts Materials
- Wire Hanger
- Ruler and pencil
- Pliers (flat and needle-nose)
- Wire Cutter
- 5 – 6 2″x2″x1/2″ Wooden Hearts
- Drill and safety glasses
- 3/16 (4.76 mm) Drill Bit
- Pink (or red and white) paint
- Paint Brush
- 25 – 35 1 inch craft beads with a hole through the center
- 5/8 inch ribbon and scissors
Directions
Find a flat surface to work on and make sure your drill’s battery is charged.
Prepping the Hearts
I could not for the life of me find hearts that already had a hole going through the side. If you find some go with those so you can skip the drilling! If you had the same luck I did let’s get that drill out.
- Mark out where to drill on the hearts. Line up hearts and using the ruler draw a dash on top of the heart where you would like to drill the holes.
- Grab your drill, drill bit, and wooden hearts.
- Fit your drill with a 3/16 (4.76 mm) drill bit.
- Handle your wooden heart securely and safely while you drill a hole into the side of the heart.
- Make sure the drill bit goes all the way through. If you are a little short pull the drill bit out a bit so it is longer.
- Repeat drilling on 5 – 6 hearts.
- Paint the hearts your desired color. I used white and red paint for the light pink color.
- Allow the paint to dry then paint the other side. Paint as many coats as you like; I did two.
Prepping the Wire Hanger
- Gather your wire hanger, pliers and wire cutter.
- Unwrap the coiled area of the hanger with your hands or needle-nose pliers.
- If the holes of your hearts are on the smaller side you may need to cut off the tightly coiled part of the unwrapped wire hanger. I was not able to straighten that area and decided to cut it off.
- Flatten out the “hanger” looking parts to resemble a circle. I found that using the flat pliers helped to get the hanger kinks out.
- Straighten the hook of the hanger.
Put the Wire Hanger Wreath with Hearts Together
The pink hearts are prepped, the wire hanger is in a wreath shape and the beads and ribbon are on standby. It is time to put them all together!
- Slip 13 – 16 craft beads onto the wire hanger pushing them all the way to the end of the wreath.
- Slide 5 to 6 hearts on to the wire hanger. They may be a bit tight depending on how large the holes are. Twist the hearts around any kinks in the wire until they reach the center of your wreath.
- Slip another 13 – 16 craft beads onto the wire hanger on the other side of the hearts. Leave the hook part of the hanger free from any beads; we will use that area to hang our wreath.
- Wrap the short side of the wire hanger around the long side like a hook. Hide the end of the wire hanger into the craft bead to secure it safely.
- Bend the area of the hanger that was previously the hook (the long section of hanger left over) over the front of the hook and circle it around to the back.
- Shape that portion of wire hanger into a loop.
- Widen the hook from the other side just a bit so you can slip the looped wire through the hooked section. Hide the end of the wire hanger into the craft bead to secure it safely. You now have a loop to use in order to hang the wreath!
Let’s Make the Loop Pretty
- Cut 3 – 4 feet of ribbon.
- Leave about 9 – 10 inches of ribbon loose on one side of the loop. Wrap the loop tightly with the ribbon and the knot of the joined wire.
- Secure the ribbon by tying a bow with the loose portion. Trim the ribbon to your desired length.
Viola! Your Wire Hanger Wreath with Hearts is done!
You can swap the hearts with any decorations you like. For the holidays I used bells for a more festive vibe. Use larger beads (paint them into beach balls!), snowflakes, dried or felt flowers, anything you can slip onto a wire! Have fun!
Wire Hanger Alternatives
If you are swapping your home to more eco friendly options I thought I would share the most recent hangers we got when preparing our daughter’s bedroom. This hanger is from Ditto Hangers made of 100% recycled paper fiberboard; it is recyclable, compostable and 100% nontoxic! Sign me up!
More Crafting Ideas
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