DIY Fall Metal Door Hanger

How to Make a Wreath Out of Metal Flashing

I’ve seen people on my personal Facebook with wreaths or door hangers in cute shapes made out of metal. But when I went to search what to use, all I found were $45-50 already-made ones on Etsy. While, there’s nothing wrong with that, I obviously wanted to make my own!! So I found a solution and now I’m sharing with all of you, in case you want to make a metal wreath for the fall or any occasion! The options are endless when you make it yourself!?

Materials

• • aluminum flashing
  • gloves
  • metal snips*
  • acrylic craft paint
  • paint brushes
  • nail/hammer
  • 20 gauge wire*

Cut the Metal

I showed in the video above how I printed a stencil to trace onto the metal. Here is the stencil you can download and print yourself! Click the image below to take you to the PDF for a higher quality image!

Simply cut the outline of the pumpkin and hat and tape to your metal before tracing with a permanent marker. Then with small snips, slowly cut around the outline on the metal. And WEAR GLOVES for this part! The metal can easily slice your finger if you accidentally slide along the edges, but once you’re done cutting it’s not that hazardous!

Pumpkin Painting

Use whatever paint you want! I used acrylic craft paints since they are so cheap and come in so many colors! You can find them at Michael’s, Hobby Lobby, Walmart, etc. As I mentioned in the video, I cut up my stencil so I could use the curve of the hat to trace onto the metal before painting along it with my black and orange paints. Just an FYI in case you’re leery of free-handing like me!

Also be sure to paint uniformly since the brush strokes will be somewhat visible once the paint dries. After the first coat dries, apply a second coat of paint. I found that if the first coat wasn’t thoroughly dried or if I didn’t keep enough paint on my brush, the first coat of paint would peel off.

Once the second coat is dry, jazz it up! You can add paint to the hat strap or leave the metal bare while adding a buckle. I wrote ‘Give Thanks’ on mine with a permanent marker before going back over it with black paint to make the letters thicker.

You can add lines on the pumpkin in a lighter color to add some interest or keep it simple with some polka dots! Because polka dots are always in season!?

Add Hanger

I used a 6d finish nail to tap holes in the top of my wreath. Then used some wire I had on hand to create a hangar. Of course you can adjust the length of the wire to suit your door! My favorite part of DIY-ing=customization!

After I was finished with my pumpkin a coworker pointed out that it’s the same shape as Frosty the Snowman’s hat and face and I could easily paint the backside to make a winter decoration too! Genius level stuff right there!!

Let me know if you make a metal wreath for your door in the comments below! I’d love to see them! Since I made this pumpkin, I also used the same techniques to make a yellow jacket (my high school’s mascot) for a friend whose son plays for their football team. (I cheated and used my Cricut to cut out and apply the #31. But everything else is hand-painted.)

The possibilities are endless once you know the how-to!

Thanks for Checking In! ~Chelsea

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