By General Crafts Contributor Michelle

Who-who-WHOOOO is the cutest Halloween wreath of all?  Make this cute hoot owl wreath to hang on your front door and greet your fall visitors with a “Whoooo is there?”

Here’s what you’ll need to make your own Whoot Owl Wreath:

• 9- inch styrofoam wreath.
• 2 white feather boas (You’ll need at least 4 yards total length to wrap your wreath loosely, more is fine to make it fuller.)
• White, black and orange felt.
• 2 googly wiggle eyes, 1-inch size.
• 4 white bump chenille stems.
• 1 orange chenille stem, 9mm x 12″. (The fatter fuzzy ones.)
• Hot glue gun and glue sticks.
• Scissors.
• Assorted scrapbook paper for making the sign.
• Black cardstock.
• White marker.
• Tinsel glitter.
• White glue.
• Small scrap of ribbon.

The first step to making your owl is to cover your wreath with the boas.  Begin by gluing one end of the first boa onto whatever you determine to be the back of your wreath.  Then wind the boa around, and around, and around the wreath, keeping your wraps spaced evenly as you go.  Remember, you need to cover one-half of the wreath with each boa, so wrap as tightly or loosely as need be to accommodate.  When you get to the end of your first boa, securely glue down the end, and then glue the end of your second boa down and continue wrapping.  When you get to the end of the second boa, glue the end down.  A word of note:  If you make your wreath the same color as your boa, you will not have to wind your boa so close together, thus you will use fewer boas.  If you are making your owl a color other than white, consider painting your styrofoam wreath the same color as your boa.

The next step is to make the eyes.  Cut two 6-inch circles out of both your black and white felt.  Place one white circle on top of each black circle, and beginning at the edge, cut a spiral into the center of your felt stack,  keeping your cuts about 1/2″ apart, and finishing when you have about a penny-sized circle left in the center.  Repeat with your second stack of circles.

Begin your eye by folding the outside pointed end of your spirals up, and glue them down flat (See step 1 of the above photo.)  Then, starting where you just folded, begin rolling up your spiral, adding a dot of glue every little bit to hold your roll together (See step 2.)  Keep rolling until you get to the penny-sized circle of felt in the center, and then turn your roll over (See step 3).  Glue the circle down to the center of your roll to hold the spiral together (See step 4).

Glue your googly eyes to the front center of each spiral.  Set aside.

To make your beak, cut a triangle with a rounded end point, out of your orange felt.  My triangle was approximately 3 inches tall.

Begin rolling your triangle into a cone, gluing as you go so it keeps its shape.

Next, determine which is the top of your wreath, and gently move the feathers away to expose the styrofoam wreath.  Glue the beak in the blank space, on the top center of your wreath.  Next, clear another space next to the beak, and glue one of the eyes onto the styrofoam wreath, overlapping the beak slightly.  Repeat with the second eye.

To make the feather “horns” of the owl, take one of your white bump chenille, and cut it in half.  Form one of the halves into a “v” shape, and then attach the second piece to the center of the “v,” by bending and gluing, to make a “y” shape (See above photo).  Repeat with a second white bump chenille to make the second horn.  Poke the feather horns into the styrofoam wreath, using the long leg of the “y,”  on either side of the top of the owl’s head.  Glue if you desire.

Cut one orange chenille stem in half.  Taking one of the half pieces, bend two-thirds of the length into a “v” shape.  Cut the remaining 1/3 off, and glue into the center of the “v” to make a “w” shaped foot for your owl (See above photo).   Repeat with second orange half piece.  Glue both feet on the bottom-half of your wreath, on the front.

To make the wings you will use two more white bump chenille stems.  Bend one chenille in half, and then form into a capital letter “B.”  Glue the ends together and repeat with the second chenille stem.  Glue your wings each onto both sides of your wreath, bending them up so they stick out, once the glue has cooled.

To make a sign for your owl,  Cut a circle out of the patterned card stock, and mount a smaller circle of black cardstock on top.  Use the white marker to write “Whoooooo is there?” onto the black cardstock.  Using your white glue and glitter, add a ring of glitter to further embellish your sign.  Let dry.  Attach a small length of ribbon to the back of your sign, and glue under the owl’s beak so it appears he’s holding it in his beak.  To hang your wreath, glue a loop of chenille stem, wire, or twine to the backside of your wreath.

Have a “hoot” making your own owl wreath this fall.  Happy crafting!