Decking Out the Halls

On these cold, short winter days, I have been keeping busy around the homestead getting it spruced up for the holidays (pun intended) with greenery brought in from the outdoors. Wreaths, swags, garlands and trees are an age old tradition that I thoroughly enjoy participating in every year. Evergreen trees and boughs have a long, rich history in decking the halls, and standing as symbols of life and hope in the returning spring. Holly has been used for centuries for everything from good luck, protection from lightning (holly trees actually conduct lightning strikes away from houses and other trees), warding off malevolent fairies, and representation of the Celtic God, King Holly who rules the coldest half the year. Mistletoe has a long history of lore, and has stood as a symbol of love, peace, healing and fertility.  I’ve written a couple of posts over the years on the history and folklore surrounding these traditional holiday greens which you can read here:
Boughs of Holly
Beneath the Mistletoe
Tree of Light

And, this handy Wreath and Garland Making Tutorial.

Our front entryway has these beautiful old glass windows facing south, with nice wide windowsills, so I put out some old mason jars as candle holders with sprigs of redwood, spruce and holly around them to welcome visitors.

I made a second, smaller wreath for a centerpiece around a beeswax candle on our kitchen island. I added a few holly sprigs and lichens from our woods, and have been enjoying it while I’m working in the kitchen.

With the leftover greenery I made a swag to hang out by our front walkway. Jack Frost decided to lend a hand and adorn it even further with a sheen of frosty ice crystals. It’s a cheery sight to be greeted by when arriving home at the end of the day.

I always keep my eye peeled for oak trees with mistletoe infestations so I can hang a few sprigs up around the house. After searching around on the ground under one near my friend’s house, I was rewarded with one single branch that had fallen off in the wind with a few lovely white berries on it. I managed to divide it up into two mistletoe sprigs with red ribbon and hung one in the kitchen and one in the front entryway. My kids are getting to an age where they think it’s a big hoot to joke about mistletoe and kissing, so it’s added some extra fun this year.

I got the idea for these little baby food jar luminaries from a crafty friend of mine. They’re simply jars with white tissue paper, Elmer’s glue diluted in water and glitter. They really brighten up those dark winter evenings.

I got our little seasons table set up in a corner of the dining room with snowy white silks, tree roots, candles and Queen Winter with her Arctic polar bear and Ice Gnomes. 

My son spent a good part of a snow day home from school stringing cranberry popcorn garlands for our tree. The popcorn was a bonus treat in our CSA box back in November, and the cranberries I picked up at the Olympia Farmer’s Market while visiting relatives for Thanksgiving. It makes me smile seeing cranberries grown near my old home and popcorn grown near my new home decorating the Yule tree.

All the while we’ve been enjoying these snowy days, keeping a warm fire crackling in the woodstove and staying busy with projects for the holidays.