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A staircase railing is an ideal spot for greenery. The berries on the banister are winterberries.

’Tis the Season…. Holiday Decorating Annapolis Style
By Nadja Maril

In Colonial America, the house would have been “dressed” for the holidays which usually celebrated an entire season (from early December to the end of Twelfth Night).

Annapolis has a reputation for being a colonial town and a boating town. On the water and down at the docks, boats are decorated with lights and greenery in anticipation of the annual Eastport Yacht Club Lights Parade. Walk the streets and alleyways of the Historic District and you are likely to see homes bedecked with natural wreaths that feature apples, oranges, lemons, pinecones, berries, and nuts. These were the decorations available to the citizens of our fair city in the 18th and early 19th centuries. They still make for elegant and colorful decorations today.

Dressing up the house, both inside and out, as we get ready to entertain family and friends is a ritual in many households. In many where Christmas is celebrated, the toy train is brought down from the attic, the pinecone wreath is unwrapped from its nest of tissue paper, a collection of whimsical bears in green and red wool hats is set in its place atop the mantelpiece, and a wire Rudolph the reindeer is placed on the front lawn to graze.

While not everyone with a busy schedule has the time to install elaborate decorations, a few wisely placed accents may be all you need to dress up your house to greet the month of December. Perhaps this is the year to try something different as we get ready to greet 2007. Start with a wreath. The tradition of placing a wreath on the front door as Christmas approaches is rooted in traditions that predate the birth of Jesus. Wreaths were initially created to adorn the heads of royalty and were called diadems in Persia, Parthia, and Greece. The word was derived from the Greek phrase things bound around. The Romans adopted the diadem to crown military and athletic champions with wreaths of laurel leaves, which symbolize victory.

The parlor mantle at Hammond Harwood House is dressed with evergreen, hydrangea, red sticked dogwood, yarrow and cockscomb in keeping with what would have been used in the 18th century.

The shape of a wreath, a continuous circle, symbolizes the continuity of life never ending. Holly and mistletoe wreaths were hung outside doors to show the house was a shelter from the spirit of winter and cold. If a woman gave a wreath of birch to a man, it meant she accepted him as a lover.

During the middle ages, European Christians adopted the practice of placing a wreath with four candles in the center of their table. The candles represent the 4 weeks of Advent. In a traditional Advent wreath three of those candles are purple and the fourth is rose colored. The purple candles symbolize prayer, penance, and sacrifices made in preparation for the Christmas celebration. The rose candle, lit on the third Sunday, which is the midpoint of Advent, represents that Christmas is close at hand. Some Advent wreaths also include a center white candle, to be lit on Christmas Eve, that represents the birth of Christ, while other, more modern, Advent wreaths have four white candles lit throughout the Christmas season. A variant of table wreaths are centerpiece displays that feature white candles, evergreen, pinecones, and sprigs of holly.

Whether you hang a wreath on the door or on a wall or place it on the table, evergreen represents continuous life; pine, holly, and yew represent immortality; and cedar, strength and healing. Pinecones, nuts, and seedpods represent life, fertility, and renewal.

In addition to artificial greenery made from paper, silk, and plastic, wreaths can be made of a variety of objects, including candy, Beanie Babies, compact discs, and baseball caps. Natural materials for wreaths include shells, dried flowers, tree branches, and chili peppers.

Wreath created by Melinda Sebastian. All decorative components available at Be…Home

While you can buy unusual and lovely wreaths from florists and gift shops at prices that generally start at $35 and can go upward to $235, it is relatively easy to create and personalize your own wreath by purchasing a plain wreath for less that $10 at the supermarket, farmer’s market,or Christmas tree stand and then adding your own decorations. Wreaths can also be made from scratch, using florist wire and wire forms available at craft stores.

During the colonial era, fresh fruit, such as lemons, oranges, and bright red apples, was attached to wreaths as decorations. I use a combination of bamboo skewers and wire to attach fruit to my wreath, along with sprigs of holly and pinecones.

Dried statice makes a lovely decoration on a wreath, along with long seedpods and generous sprigs of red bittersweet. Extra Christmas tree ornaments, curly ribbon bows, tinsel stars, and red and green lollipops are just a few inexpensive ideas of items you can add to make your wreath unique.

Some of these wreath decorations can also be used to decorate your Christmas tree. While fruit may be too heavy, a selection of dried flowers and bows wired to the tree branches can be very attractive.

Pagan festivals to celebrate the winter solstice frequently featured a tree to symbolize life, fertility, and renewal. The custom of decorating an evergreen tree to celebrate the holiday of Christmas has its roots in Germany, where it is said the preacher Martin Luther decorated a tree with candles and told his children they were symbolic of the stars that shone above Bethlehem the night that Jesus was born. The earliest tree decorations were candles and cookies. Scandinavians who adopted the Christmas tree custom added ornaments of braided and woven straw. Early European settlers in this country decorated their trees with popcorn, strings of red cranberries, and decorations fashioned from cornhusks.

The dining room was the center for hospitality as symbolized by the pineapple in the centerpiece arrangement. Additional floral and fruit items being used include: okra, popcorn berries, wheat, thistle, roses, grapes, apples, pears, pineapple.

Commercially made Christmas tree ornaments were made as early as the late 1700s, but they became a lucrative business in the 1870s. They came in all shapes and sizes, but most were made in Germany, primarily in Dresden and in tiny villages in the Thuringian Mountains where craftsmanship was a tradition. Stars and crosses of lead were created in molds the same way toy soldiers were. Santas and angels were made of wax, while figures of shepherds, elves, and Santa in furry garb were made of cotton wool folded and glued over cardboard or wire frames, their faces made of embossed paper. Masters of embossing and die cutting, manufacturers in Dresden made three-dimensional ornaments in all different shapes, from birds to bicycles to locomotives, out of cardboard. Most were covered with gold or silver paper, while a few were hand painted.

The tradition of having special Christmas ornaments that have been passed down from generation to generation is a wonderful one, and many stories and memories are associated with family ornaments. New ones can easily be made as a craft project with children and friends, using old Christmas cards, wooden popsicle sticks, yarn, glitter, paint, photographs, cookie dough, and clay. Creating personalized Christmas decorations can also be a great excuse for a party with your friends—and a lot less fattening than a cookie exchange.

Decorations in a Jewish household include the menorah, a special candelabrum that holds eight regular candles plus the shammes (the helper candle). This year Hanukkah, a celebration that lasts 8 nights, begins at sundown on December 16. Each night an additional candle is lit. They both symbolize a miracle in which a small amount of oil burned for 8 nights to keep the eternal flame lit and celebrate the ancient victory of the Maccabees over the Syrians. The candles also represent faith, devotion, and hope for a lasting peace. Menorahs can be made in a variety of unique shapes and artistic renditions and from a variety of materials. Many families have several, which they display throughout their home.

Many African Americans gather the week of December 26 to January 1 to celebrate Kwanzaa, which means first in Swahili. It is based on the African celebrations honoring the first harvest of the year. The Kwanzaa colors are red, green, and black. A ceremonial table is set with a straw mat, a candleholder, and a bowl of fruits and vegetables. Each child places an ear of corn on the mat. Families gather in the evening to light one of seven candles and to discuss one of the seven principles of Kwanzaa: unity, taking control of one's own life, collective work and responsibility, sharing money and profits, purpose, creativity, and faith. Decorations are made by the children to decorate the table and to represent the seven principles.

Secular decorations you may wish to display in your home for the holiday season include gingerbread houses, a model of a small village to go with your toy train, tin soldiers, and jolly snowmen. Don’t forget the bowls of fruit and nuts, which indicate hospitality and generosity to everyone, this holiday season.

Editor Nadja Maril enjoys entertaining and decorating for the holidays and has written extensively about the decorative arts.