Add a Touch of Nature to your Fall and Winter Decor!

So it’s no secret that I love using branches and dried flowers in my decor. Living in a Pine Forest with lots of “nature” around me, I love looking for new ones to incorporate in my decor. Can’t get more Budget Friendly than “FREE”! With Fall ending and Winter beginning there are some good ones out there and  I have a great trick to preserve them, that anyone can do!

There is nothing prettier than our Crape Myrtles blooming in the Spring and Summer, but I have recently fallen in love with them all over again after the blooming season. Before you clip them all off at the end of their season, take another look! The dark berries and pods that are left on the branch are so cool to me, but VERY fragile. Clip with care! 🙂 I clipped a bunch of them and kept the branches long and placed them in this tall urn. They have an elegant, vintage look to them. Perfect combo, don’t you think?

Who doesn’t love the look of grape vine? Not only is it versatile, using it from wreaths to garlands and crafts… but it has a beautiful look with it’s curly branches and dried leaves. I went out and pulled some, it can be very invasive in Florida so I was actually saving a tree at the same time! 🙂 I laid it out to dry and used them on my new potting bench area. You can see more pics here on my latest One Room Challenge Reveal.

I even entwined some starry lights in mine and love how it looks at night.

Recently I was eyeing some trees growing in my neighbor’s yard and kept saying, I want to clip some of those branches. My husband just gave me a look…you know the look. 🙂 No I’m not crazy, I just want some of those wild growing branches. So my daughter pointed out to me that we have the same tree further back on our property. What??? So I trekked back there and was so excited when I got to the tree. I hadn’t seen the flowers up close, I just knew they were white and really pretty from a distance. When I got up close I saw they were more like dandelion feathers…even cooler… but I kept thinking they will all probably fall off by the time I get these branches cut. Thankfully, I made it back with branches mostly intact.

Now time to preserve theses beauties. A lot of people use hairspray and I’ve done that in the past. While it does work, I have found something that works so much better.

Just spray the branches lightly all over. Let dry and give them another quick coat. The feathers stayed fluffy, yet didn’t fall off. I sprayed my Crape Myrtle branches as well because those things will literally drop off at the drop of a hat. This stuff is great to have on hand for all sorts of projects. I’ve linked it for you here. Most people think Shellac is only used on painting and staining furniture but it’s great for so much more, especially the spray version and is my #1 Go-To for preserving branches or flowers like these.

What branches or flowers have you found? Tag me on Instagram, I’d love to see them! I’d love for you to follow me on my blog for more DIY’s and on Pinterest.

Until next time!

~Holli