Deck the halls: 21st-century Christmas wreaths and table arrangements

Wreath of pine, juniper, thistles, eucalyptus, grasses, scabious heads, oranges, rosehip, poppy heads, lavender, ilex, hydrangea, artichoke heads, rice flowers and limonium. Photograph: Stephen Lenthall for the Guardian

Dried chillies, lavender, feathers and palm fronds: these are not your usual Christmas wreath ingredients. But by combining more unexpected plants and flowers with seasonal staples – pine, conifer, eucalyptus, say – you can create displays that venture far beyond holly, ivy and mistletoe. Nik Southern, owner of London- and Essex-based florist Grace & Thorn, mixes fresh materials with dried foliage or flowers, forages for many ingredients and is liberal with the spray paint.

“Whether you’re going to your local woods or taking a walk down by the canal, keep your eyes open for things you could use, and later dry or spray for different effects,” she says. “Be careful with picking berries if you’re not sure what they are, though. And keep an eye out for great shapes and textures that you could layer together.”

Table arrangement of red hydrangea, mimosa, blue thistles, crab apples, ilex, rosehip, amaryllis and kangaroo paw. Photograph: Stephen Lenthall for the Guardian

All Southern’s wreaths start life as a pair of copper wire rings. For one wreath, she first weaves pine around the rings, securing them with floristry or fisherman’s wire, then layers the wreath with the foliage, tied on with wire. For a fuller fresh wreath, she packs moss tightly between the two rings, securing it with wire, before tucking stems into the moss, making sure they are all pointing in the same direction.

Dried wreath of pampas grass, palm leaves and honesty. Photograph: Stephen Lenthall for the Guardian

Southern’s signature look is asymmetrical and graphic: to achieve this, she says, use as many different types of foliage as you can, in different shapes and sizes. When it comes to displays in vases, let the flowers breathe, she says: “Give them room, rather than compacting them in. And think about the height of your arrangement. If it’s for a console or side table, let it soar. But for a coffee table, you need to be able to see over the top.” Choose a palette and stick to it: warm, rich colours such as red and orange, say, or cooler neutrals such as dusky pink and silvery green.

Wreath of sprayed dried eucalyptus, rosehip, crab apples, echinops, conifer, grasses, asparagus fern and green hydrangea Photograph: Stephen Lenthall for the Guardian

A dried wreath could keep all year. (If you want to forage for pieces, you’ll need to plan ahead and look for honesty in spring.) Or you could make a swag, a traditional American take on a wreath: simply tie a bunch of foliage together and hang upside down from your front door. “We think of them as the anti-wreath,” Southern says. “They’re simple and light – a cluster of festiveness.”

• All arrangements by Grace & Thorn. Wreaths from £85; make-your-own wreath kit, £80.