I think the size will be fine.

Thanks Donna! I've been to JoAnns and the wreaths were no larger than 24-30". They recommended that I make one out of garland, but I find that you really need a stiff metal backing ring to keep it stable on the wall. Michael's doesn't have the mid-ranges sizes either, but you can get a 60" wreath! Sam's Club sells 48" wreaths too, last year's model folded in half, but it's a true 48". I called Hobby Lobby, that store has a 36" wreath that measures 33.5" according to the man spoke to over the phone. Maybe I'll swing by and see how it looks. It's on sale for $50. Otherwise it's back to ChristmasCentral.com. They do have a wonderful selection, just a bit pricey.

Thanks, Graywings! I want to love this wreath or whichever one I choose and not walk through the room doubting my choice. The effect of a wreath this size is stunning, and it makes the room a beautiful place to be at night. One thing is certain, this wreath from Target is very well-made. Storage will be an issue, but I'll cross that bridge in January.

In your original post you mentioned that you fluffed your wreath last year. Are you also pulling out (extending) the branches? All the wreaths that I have purchased throughout the years arrive smaller, but do reach advertised size after rearranging. The wreath you picture looks like branches can be extended to look more lifelike.

eta link; Fake garland fluffing 101

I think it looks too big.

You could put a decorated garland in the square perimeter with a nice Christmas poster in the center.

I think it needs to be smaller. It looks like it just might fit within that frame of the center molding and it looks larger height wise than the opening in your fireplace.

I made a burlap wreath years ago. I still love it. It was replaced by an inherited mantle clock. Stick to your wreath!! I love a wreath over the fireplace!!

I love it and think it looks perfect.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for all of your thoughtful comments, so helpful in pushing this little project forward! I went to Hobby Lobby (btw, it's been years since I've been there and wow! What a dazzling selection of Christmas decor items). Anyway, far more selection than online though I never found the one that I wanted to see. I did find a plain pre-lit 48" wreath that in it's current state is actually 36." The pine needles lie rather flat on the branches, where as the Target wreath needles rotate more fully around the branch and the color is a deeper green, but when it's placed so high on the wall (as opposed to on a front door), these details matter less than size and lighting. Here is the Hobby Lobby wreath, with a 6" smaller diameter than the Target wreath (even though both tags say 48"- I guess it's all in the fluffing):

This wreath should fit within the 37" height of the picture frame-more or less. I love the soft gold cast of the lights. Trimming the wreath means another trip to Hobby Lobby. I'm going to find a beautiful wreath to copy as closely as possible and shop accordingly. This wreath was 1/2 off of $129.99 (and the cashier said that it's all half off until Christmas) so it cost $65 plus tax. So it is two dollars cheaper than the Target wreath, at least twice as many lights. I'm pleased. I'll move the hooks up so that it is centered in the picture frame, but it will be stored for now until after Thanksgiving. Thanks again!

Bumblebee, do you love this one too? Please say yes! : )

I'm not bumblebee, but I love the HL wreath. It looks perfect as is.

The Target one, not so much. I should head to hobby lobby myself to get a wreath for the front door.

Go to the hobby lobby site there's always a 40 % off regular price items coupon to print.

I like the hobby lobby one best.

If you go to pinterest and search for Christmas wreaths there's some really great ideas.

cupofkindness, I like the contrast and colors in the first one but you have a beautiful fireplace and appear to know what you are doing, so trust your instincts.

Loe the 2nd!

I like the first one. The second one isn't dramatic enough to support the size of your fireplace and the high ceilings and all the molding on the walls. I'd go drama.

i love the second one

simple

Thumbs up on # 2.

If you want a very traditional Christmas look,nthe first wreath is perfect. The second wreath is more of a decor look. Iykwim......Christmassy.

The second one works because it fits nicely within the picture frame. Thenfirst one works because it ignores the picture frame. Personally, i love the first one but can see why you would use the second one.

If you use the first one you could hang it with 2 command hooks placed at 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock---there they might just fit under the picture rail. If you try to use one hook at 12 o'clock above the picture rail you may need a deeper /longer hook.

I like the smaller one, the larger one looks like it should be on the outside of a house to me. I love your fireplace!

I think they both work. Which do YOU love best?

Do you have to use a nail to hang the wreath? What about using a Command hook instead? Sorry if that's already been mentioned and considered. I'm only on my first cup of tea, so brain might not be at full function yet. ;-)

I really appreciate the comments that point out the color difference in the wreaths. And the honest feedback, thank you Bumblebee and others! The deocrated Target wreath is a richer green and the needles were a better quality, which gives it a beauty that the HL one doesn't have. Few if any of the HL wreaths had high quality needles. Kudos to Target for that feature. Plus with fewer lights the green wasn't overpowered. The HL wreath has 2-3 times as many lights, which washes out the green, which was a slightly yellower green to begin with. However, the most important feature of the wreath besides fitting nicely on the wall is lighting. The 18' x 22' room is so beautiful at night (and nights are long now) when lit only by the wreath. I might swing by Michael's this afternoon and see what they offer.

The command hooks idea is awesome. I just love those and think that they would be perfect. Thank you Katrina for the complement on the fireplace. Ten years ago it was an ugly stone 10" by 11" wall with no mantle, just rocks, but we demo'd it, found a very nice neutral shade of brick, and painted the once-dark oak paneling the cream color you see here.

It's very important that I not get overwhelmed by a wreath in mid-November. I can't overthink this or I suffer from decision paralysis. It doesn't help that we have a very tight budget, but that's probably a good thing!

Here is a picture of the wreath I ordered last year in 36" that is available in 42" and 48."

Michaels is where I buy my wreaths. We have 2 Michaels quite close to me and I'm always impressed by their selection and they seem to last. I get tired of them before they wear out!. I do wait until they go on sale but they seem to put their things on sale quite early.

Just got back from Michaels, nothing larger than 36" although they do sell a stiff wire base that measures 28." Found a charming red burlap/black checked edge trim bow but the ribbon was sold out. Here are a few inspiration pictures. First, from Horchow:

The checkerboard ribbon and mix of several sizes/colors of ribbon are fun! No checkerboard ribbon at Michaels, but lots of houndstooth.

Next, from Front Gate, always classy:

From the Magical Christmas Wreath Company:

and

I'm seeing a trend here. I like fairly natural looking wreaths, nothing too sparkly or overly beribboned (is that a word?). No sleighs or santas wired onto the wreath, no woodland creatures or old-timey toys either. Can't get enough cranberries. Love black and white checkerboard. But not a lodge look. I've got to have at least 100 lights. I have this feeling that I'll be ordering the one from Christmas Central *sigh* and adding checkerboard ribbon, small ornaments, and cranberries to it and trimming the sticks so they don't look like bug legs.

As I was researching ribbon I learned that the checked ribbon is from MacKenzie Childs, and it is $68 a bolt, but what a gorgeous design. It has an aged or worn look that is charming, wire edges, and the backing is gold-colored.

It's a lot like the Horchow one... found it on etsy for $148. It's 21" inches in diameter. The ribbon pattern is called Courtly Check. I love the same pattern in different scales.

By the way, the Michaels floral designer said that wrapping a wreath around and around with ribbon is out, and tucking little bunches of ribbon here-and-there is in. She also added that there is far more involved in her specialty wreaths than you would guess and advised me to buy more components than I think I need. Unfortunately, I cannot find much checkered ribbon in town, but I have found black and white gingham. Not sure if that is the look for our family room Christmas wreath, but it's fun to think about. The patterned ribbons add a lot of style to a wreath, but it changes the classic natural look to something a bit more polished and trendy. Not that I could pull any of this off! Its a blessing to have so many choices!

Interestingly, the beribboned wreath is the outlier in your photo array, as it isn't especially natural looking and I would go so far as to say overdone and a little dated. Of all the wreaths you've posted, that one would look worst, IMO.

In order of preference but any one would look lovely over your mantel:

Big target wreath dark green

HL brightly lit wreath (although would it look garish lit during the day and uninteresting not lit?)

Magical wreath Co. #1 only (not the second one)

Frontgate wreath in appropriate size

do not like Horchow wreath (reasons stated above) or second wreath from Magical wreath co.

To really notice all those ribbon patterns you would have to hang that Horchow wreath on a darker background than the paint color of your over mantel paneling. The two I don't care for and think wouldn't look very good in your room are both displayed on dark backgrounds....they'd look quite different in your room.

I like the HL and Target wreaths. I also like the 2nd one from the Magical Wreath Company and the one you ordered last year. I don't care for the first Magical Wreath Company, Horchow, Front Gate, or Etsy wreaths. They're just too busy for my taste.

Thanks so much KSWL2 and Porkandham. KSWL your insight about the wreaths being photographed on dark backgrounds was brilliant, that did not occur to me. P&H I also like the Target (which has been returned) and HL wreaths, but I am a little put off by the poor quality of the HL pine needles, and the yellow cast (it will go back today-in the daylight, you can see that it's not a beautiful wreath). They are flat and monochromatic. I love the velvety look of the Target wreath, that's a better quality needle. The Mackenzie Childs ribbon is completely beyond our budget, and even the wide grosgrain ribbon is expensive when you add it all up. I have already purchased some of that type of ribbon instead of the cheaper Christmas ribbon. Same with all of the fruit, pods, ornaments, etc. It gets pricey. I really love checkerboard, but I don't want a dated, fussy look either. Not sure how I can work that in.

I have poured over the Christmas Central website which, for each size/type of wreath, the number of tips is listed. Called customer service and they measured the wreaths for me (had to request them from the warehouse for the CSR to measure-very kind of them). These Vickerman wreaths are true to measure, and the gracious CSR said that with fluffing, they'll be a couple of inches wider. So I am confident that I can get a 36" pre-lit Vickerman wreath and decorate it myself. Here are my three choices:

The Cashmere Pine for $94.99/LED lights with 210 tips:

Or the Cheyenne for $64.99/incandescent lights with 340 tips:

Or the Sierra also for $64.99/incandescent lights with 280 tips:

I love the one I bought last year but will have to move up to 42" since that one is a little on the thin side. The Christmas Central website listed the 36" berry wreath with 213 tips. I'm leaning towards the Sierra Pine, but I'll wait until I hear back from the CSR before placing an order.

Thanks again for posting your comments. Please keep them coming.

-Cupofkindness

After a couple of conversations with the Christmas Central CSR, who told me that the Cheyenne wreath was the lushest 36" wreath, I did a little research about LED versus incandescent lights. It's clear to me that for a small scale decoration, incandescent is best because I want soft traditional lighting. Even though LED claims to last tens of thousands of hours, the high price doesn't seem worth it, plus you get those overly bright bulbs which I find unappealing inside my home. Also I "chatted" with online support this morning about the warranty. The warranty, which really covers whether or not the lights work for a certain period of time, is for a three month season, lights on for 6 hours per day. This means that I would be lucky to get two seasons out of the lights and then replace the string. I'm going to order the Cheyenne wreath today, along with an inexpensive storage case that allows you to hang the wreath to keep it fluffy and nice. To keep costs in line, I'm going to decorate the wreath with berries, pine cones, some shatterproof red ornaments, and ribbon this year.

Here is a sample of what has taken hours to find in six stores: a burgundy-red grosgrain ribbon (unwired) in two different widths, plus brilliant red wire-edge satin ribbon (I also bought a smaller 2" width), wired gingham and unwired gingham. No checkerboard ribbon but HL did have a cool looking harlequin ribbon. I even went to a specialty ribbon store. I'd prefer not to use burlap looking ribbon because I don't think it will hold up well over the years, but it does lend a very charming look. None of these ribbon spools were from the Christmas ribbons aisle, but instead in the fabric or floral departments of HL and JoAnns. Michaels had a very limited selection of non-holiday red ribbon. It's hard to find a quality wire-edge red ribbon in the Christmas decorations department... there's always a little something extra, like gold or glitter on the edges, or velvety or sheer, red ribbon. The ribbon cost about $4.00 each, including coupons/sales.

The little case of berries is from Target: 40 picks for $6, and the deep red ornaments are from Walmart: $3.48. I'm interested in the matte and shiney ones-no glitter. Still looking for brighter red shatterproof ornaments like this deep red/burgundy set, I've found them only in red/green/gold/white assortments, and the other colors are unneeded.

Once I receive the wreath, it will be easy to decide what works and return the unused trim. It's all good!

This is an awesome thread. I just ordered a large Oval shaped wreath for my front door from Kohl's, which matches the shape of the window and a smaller wreath for my mantle. Thanks for the inspiration! Now I need some red berries and a nice bow :)

Thank you, Janet! I received the wreath from Christmas Central yesterday (Two weeks... A long time to wait, methinks). When the plumber leaves this morning I'll unpack it and start playing with ribbon, ornaments, berries and bows. Amazingly, I went to a Habitat for Humanity Re-Store looking for a light fixture and found a 24" scrap of wire-edge buffalo check black and white gingham. The very nice sales lady just gave it to me. I found a spool of wire edged red/cream plaid ribbon at Sams Club priced at $5.97 for fifty yards.

It's a little distressing that I shopped at seven retailers and in the case of Tuesday Morning, a couple of stores, to find the right ribbon and trim. Going forward I won't buy ribbon that doesn't have a wire edge. I hope this wreath lasts for years. Still thinking about adding flowers, such as red hydrangeas.

Good luck with your wreath Janet. Please post pictures, the more the merrier!

I think almost all of the ribbon at Michael's is wired, and they have some beautiful selections. The last time I was there (believe it was this past Saturday), everything was either 60 or 70% off, and there was still plenty to choose from.

Thanks AuntJen about the update on Michael's ribbon. I'll have to stop by because they had just beautiful Christmas flowers a couple of weeks ago, I'll check out the ribbon too. Here is the latest addition to my ribbon collection:

And here is my Vickerman 36" Cheyenne wreath, still in the box (plastic covering is removed);

Unfluffed it measures 27" across, I'll hazard a guess that the metal ring backing the wreath is 24". It seems sturdy enough.

Out of the box:

The lights work, here is a close-up of the needles:

Front Gate branch tips:

These Front Gate needles are awsome. But the Vickermen ones are perfectly fine with me. The lights, at least 100 bulbs, work, however, they are tied-up around the wreath in a very strange fashion.

And here is the wreath coarsely fluffed and on the mantel. It barely measures 36" wide. I'll neaten up the direction of the pine branches later.

The metal ring/frame backing needs a wire across to hang on our hooks, but that won't be a problem. The customer service rep told me that it would fluff to about 38" but I don't think it will stretch that much and still look natural. But she recommended the best wreath, IMO. It really helped to know the "tip count" of the wreaths I was interested in. Clearly, the more tips, the more you have to work with. This wreath will be lovely, though I'd be grateful for three or four more inches in width. I've got to buy floral wire and some hydrangeas at JoAnns or Michaels and wrap up this project!