Wreaths. My earliest memories of wreaths have to do with Christmas, grave yards, and war memorials. While we were in Manhattan, KS, I noticed that many houses had wreaths on their front doors, wreaths which would change seasonally. It was kinda nice, but most of them were plastic *sigh* And then we were heading into our first Solstice and Christmas in Manhattan, KS, and I couldn't resist the temptation of a $10 bunch of branches... And a tradition was spawned!
So, when a neighbour was doing some pruning, and that pruning included a wattle tree and a few olive trees, I couldn't resist making some wreaths for the festive season, even though they would probably be a bit tired within a week. He didn't mind – the branches were destined for a hugel mound – I just delayed that journey for a few branches.
In lieu of florists wire, I cut some wool to (hopefully) usable lengths, Michael cut the wattle branches into individual segments, and we got stuck into it!
Michael wound some short wattle branches together without the wool, while I made a bigger wreath of wattle using a combination of winding branches together and anchoring it all in some places with the wool – which turned out to be a good length. I also made an olive wreath by twisting branches together (no wool required).
In the course of 30 minutes we made three wreaths while drinking tea and enjoying the afternoon. It was a really nice activity and I kinda wish we made them more often but I know that the green branches last longer if they are on the trees...
We tied the wreaths together using the wool, making a string of wreaths and hung them from the front door so they hung largest to smallest. They looked lovely at first but now they are past it and we probably need to take them down and make some fresh ones next week, in time for the Solstice and Christmas. What traditions do you have for this time of year? Which ones have been passed down over the years and which ones are evolving?
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