How to Choose a Handmade Wreath (And Why Colorado-Made Matters)

Picking a wreath sounds simple until you're actually standing in front of a hundred options, all "farmhouse," all "handmade," all claiming to be exactly what your door needs. Here's the thing: not all handmade wreaths are made the same way, and knowing what to look for makes the whole decision a lot easier.

What "Handmade" Actually Means

It gets used loosely, so here's what it means at The Prairie Pine specifically: every wreath is built one at a time, by hand, using deco mesh and wired ribbon, layered and shaped until it holds its form. Wired ribbon isn't just decoration; it's what lets a bow keep its shape through wind, weather, and being brushed past a few hundred times a season instead of going flat after the first week. That's the kind of detail that separates a wreath that looks good in a product photo from one that still looks good on your door in November.

Nothing here is mass-produced or assembled from a kit. If you order a wreath, a real person cut the ribbon, shaped the mesh, and wired it together specifically for that order -which also means if you want something a little different, you can usually just ask.

Why Colorado-Made Matters

There's a practical reason and a personal one.

The practical reason: a wreath made by someone who actually deals with Colorado weather - wind gusts off the plains, hail out of nowhere, a hundred degrees of temperature swing between morning and afternoon - tends to be built to survive it. Wired ribbon and secured mesh hold up on a Fort Collins porch in April in a way a flimsier wreath just doesn't.

The personal reason: buying from a local maker means your money supports an actual neighbor instead of a warehouse. The Prairie Pine started as a hobby in Colorado, in 2020, making wreaths and door signs for fun until friends, and then strangers at craft fairs, started asking to buy them. It's still one person, hand-making each order, still showing up at markets across Northern Colorado on weekends. When you buy a wreath here, you're not just decorating a door — you're keeping a small, real business going.

How to Actually Choose One

Start with where it's going, not what's trending. A front door that gets full sun all afternoon will fade a wreath faster, so richer, saturated colors tend to hold their look longer than pale pastels. A shaded porch has more room to play with lighter tones.

Then think about how long you want it up. Some wreaths are built for a season (a Halloween Pumpkin Wreath isn't pretending to be anything but October), and some are meant to live on your door most of the year - something like the Home Sweet Farmhouse Wreath or a classic Thankful Wreath reads more "everyday welcome" than "holiday countdown," so it earns its spot longer.

And don't overlook personality. Not every wreath has to be neutral and farmhouse-neutral-toned. If you're a Broncos household, a Nuggets fan, or you just want something that makes people smile when they walk up, a themed wreath does something a plain one can't: it looks like your door, not a stock photo.

A Few Things to Check Before You Buy

A handful of small details tell you a lot about how a wreath is built:

Look at the ribbon edges. Wired ribbon holds a crisp, slightly structured shape at the edge of each loop; ribbon without wire tends to look a little limp or curled, especially after shipping.

Check the fullness. A well-built deco mesh wreath should look full from every angle, not just flat-on from the front — a sign it was shaped by hand rather than machine-pressed.

And if you don't see exactly what you want, ask. Custom orders are genuinely welcome here, whether that's a color swap to match your door or a completely different theme.

Ready to find yours? Browse the full wreath collection, or pair it with a matching handmade door sign for the full front-porch look.