Succulent Rake Wreath With Leather Belt Hanger

My rusty rake has a new life as door decor. Rake heads make great backdrops for wreaths, and the succulent wreath I created can be displayed year-round. Faux succulents are so colorful, and I love the bold earth tones of the ones I used for this project.

An old rake head is a multi-purpose piece that’s good to have in your junk stash. I got this one from the junk shop for $3.

The rake wreaths I make always have the tines hanging down but I’ve seen some really pretty ones hung the opposite way. Hanging the tines down seems more logical to me.

Of course, you could hang the whole rake, wood handle and all. I don’t see why not, except for maybe the weight.

When I decided on the wreath plan, I looked through all the shelves in the workshop and found these faux succulents from past projects.

I’ve made succulent displays using martini glasses, vintage movie reels, and even a wood billiard ball rack. 

I have a lot of faux succulents, but I headed to the Dollar Tree and picked up a few more just in case. I would hate to run short in the middle of a project. The succulent display on the rake needed to be really full, or it would look inexpensive and tacky—that’s my thinking anyway.

The reddish-orange succulent in the pot was a pretty color, so I grabbed it, too. All I had to do was pull the succulent out of the pot and remove the stem before gluing it to the rake.

The rake wreath needed a cool hanger, and I thought this belt would be perfect. Plus, it was the only belt I had in my stash. I got it at the thrift store for 50% off. 

I just thought of trying the belt as a rake hanger. I usually use the crossbar on the rake to hang the wreath.

I removed the stems from the succulents and put them in a baggie in case I wanted to put them back together later. I will take the wreath apart at some point and reuse everything in new projects.

Some of the succulents had clips instead of stems, and I removed those, too. I just needed a pair of pliers to pull the stems from the heads.

Next, I pulled a piece of wire through the two screw holes at the top of the rake head and twisted the wire together so the belt wouldn’t slip through the open area at the top. 

Then I pulled the belt through and buckled it. Now it’s time to hot glue the succulents to the rake.

This is the part where you have to wing it. I laid out the succulents in a pattern I thought looked okay, and then I grabbed the glue gun. I started with the top left succulent and then went down the rack with succulents. 

I eye-balled the overall look as I went, trying to place the succulents in a pleasing arrangement, considering color, shape, and size. The display turned out well.

I didn’t have to shift any of the pieces. It would have been easy to remove them and reposition them of I needed to.

Maybe I did a good job? I think so. I’m patting myself on the back. I hung the rake on our front door, but the blue door in my reclaimed door stash makes the colors of the succulents really pop, so that’s mostly where I took the photos.

The wreath is pretty darn classy considering the backdrop is a rusty rake. I tried something different and looped the belt hanger over a chippy lawn chair sitting on the front porch. There are all kinds of ways to display a wreath.

I had a few sheets of moss and tried using those under the succulents, but it wasn’t a good look, so I used the little green plant thingies as filler. I don’t know the name of the plant. Someone help me out.

What do you think of the belt as a hanger? I think It adds a bit of character to the display and looks much better than a plain old metal wreath hanger.

I enjoyed putting this project together. Junk DIY’s are my favorite thing.

If you like recycling and upcycling in general, take a look at my video below. It contains three quick craft project ideas using lamp shades, wood picture frames, and terra cotta pots. 

3 Easy Upcyle Craft Projects

How about circling a teakettle with a cool belt or using a water dipper as a planter….click here.

Leave a note if you have the time and thanks for being here, Kathy

Kathy Owen

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Author: Kathy Owen
Kathy Owen is the founder of the home decor blog Petticoat Junktion where she shares tutorials on painting furniture and upcycling thrifty finds into unique home décor. Her DIY projects have been featured on the Home Depot Blog, Plaid Crafts, Behr Designer Series, and in numerous magazines. Kathy’s newest website is HappyHomeDIY.com