Home > Media > Books > Libbey Oliver, Betty Babb, Betsy Kent, Elizabeth Booth, M. Marquardt - Colonial Williamsburg Decorates for Christmas: Step-By-Step Illustrated Instructions for Christmas Decorations That You Can Make for Your Home
Libbey Oliver, Betty Babb, Betsy Kent, Elizabeth Booth, M. Marquardt - Colonial Williamsburg Decorates for Christmas: Step-By-Step Illustrated Instructions for Christmas Decorations That You Can Make for Your Home
uglybugg's Full Review: Libbey Oliver, Betty Babb, Betsy Kent, Elizabeth B...
I just saw the movie The Break-up where the female lead asked her boyfriend to buy 12 lemons and he came home with only 3 and she had a conniption because she can't make a 12-lemon centerpiece with only 3 lemons. Seeing that movie reminded me that it's Christmas and I haven't done my annual review of my Colonial Williamsburg decoration books.
I’ve been a Revolutionary wer reenactor since I was a teenager and have spent lots of time doing all things Colonial. As a result, I’ve been to Colonial Williamsburg about a million times. OK I exaggerate, it’s more like a dozen times. But I’ve been there enough to gain a great appreciation for the beautiful homes and buildings in the area and nothing warms my heart at Christmas time like seeing the wonderful Colonial decorations there.
Several years ago I had a colonial style house built on some land I owned in Pennsylvania. Now the people of Pennsylvania decorate for Christmas much differently than we do here in Michigan. I noticed that nearly everyone used fresh fruits, greenery, and natural items like acorns and pinecones in their holiday decor and it reminded me so much of what I had seen in Williamsburg. It was then that I remember a book that I had purchased on one of my many trips to that area Colonial Williamsburg Decorates for Christmas. While I’ve only made two of the items in this book, I really love just looking at the pictures.
Every Christmas the buildings, shops, and houses of Williamsburg are decorated with wreaths, garlands, and other accents by the floral arranging staff at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. The items are created using natural materials and the style is distinctly Williamsburg. They have become so popular over the years that they have received tons of requests for instructions explaining how to make them. The result is this four-chapter, 80 page softcover book filled with color photos, detailed instructions, and step-by-step drawings.
From the back cover: Step-by-step illustrated instructions for a variety of popular Williamsburg Christmas wreaths, centerpieces, accents, and other decorations that you can make from fresh fruits, greens, and natural materials are featured in this Colonial Williamsburg publication. A special section focuses on decorations created from herbs and dried materials.
This lovely book is divided into four chapters – Wreaths and Other Outdoor Decorations, Table Decorations, Accents, and Decorations Featuring Herbs and Dried and Natural Materials.
Chapter one is titled Wreaths and Other Outdoor Decorations and includes directions for making a basic boxwood wreath, boxwood and white pine wreath, double-face boxwood wreath, boxwood on straw base wreath, wreath of apples and holly berries (includes a beautiful full color photograph of this gorgeous wreath hanging above an outer door), wreath of lemons and limes (photo), mixed fruit wreath of lemons, apples, oranges, pomegrantes, and various greens (photo), and eight other wreaths including the one that hangs in front of the Governor’s palace. There are also directions for making a stunning apple fan with a pineapple and magnolia leaves, as well as a beautiful evergreen windowsill decoration.
Chapter two is titled Table Decorations and includes directions for making ten different table centerpieces. The first is called the mixed fruit curve with nuts and berries. Next is the apple cone made from either red or green apples and boxwood, then the mixed fruit cone made from pineapple, apples, grapes, and mixed citrus fruits and greenery. More cones follow, including the lemon cone and and orange cone. The last few decorations in this chapter are very simple and don’t involve any foam forms, wires, or wire cutters. They are simply arranged in bowls, stacks, or symmetrical rows and take little skill or creativity so anyone can create a beautiful arrangement quickly and easily. And best of all, they can be eaten if you can bear to do so! All of the items in this chapter include detailed directions, illustrations and a color photo of the finished centerpiece.
Chapter three is simply titled Accents and includes ten more items with directions, illustrations and photos for making a pine or holly swag for a sconce, evergreen roping for garlands or wreaths, berry or apple accents for door corners, a pomegrante accent for attaching to anything from wreaths to sconces or anywhere you can think of. My favorite item from this chapter is a mantel decoration made of all sorts of natural ingredients, such as lotus pods, pine cones, red and green apples, limes, and greenery.
The final chapter is titled Table Decorations, Accents, and Decorations Featuring Herbs and Dried and Natural Materials. It includes directions for making five items for various places in the home. One is a dried herb wreath that is pictured as a candle ring. Seems like kind of a fire hazard but it’s beautiful and does not scream Christmas. I’d leave it out all year long or as long as it holds up to my cat attacking it. This chapter also includes directions for making an adorable kissing ball from herbs and bayberry foliage, a curved mantel decoration, a garland made from pinecones, pods, nuts and greenery that is also appropriate for pre or post Christmas decorating as is the final item which is a pyramid of herbs and fresh fruits.
I’ve had this book for many years and have only made two items – the basic boxwood wreath using clippings from the boxwoods in my yard and the lemon cone. Both items were easy to create by following the step-by-step directions and illustrations. The color photos are beautiful and help to create the finished product. Each pattern also details all the items needed to create each piece including quantities of fruits, leaves, wire, greenery, picks or pins, and tools. This book really gives me a lot of joy even though I rarely use it to make the items within. Just flipping through it and looking at the pictures takes my mind back to all those trips to Williamsburg and I can visualize myself walking the streets of the village and the beautifully decorated homes.
I think part of the reason that I've not made many of the items in this book is that some of the supplies are kind of hard to find. I mean, where do you buy magnolia leaves in Michigan in December? Also it really seems like a gross waste of produce. The one item I'd really like to make is the apple fan which consists of a triangular shaped piece of plywood with nails sticking out of it onto which you impale many, many apples and a fresh pineapple. That's a lot of show fruit to stick on the front of the house and would cost a lot of money. One day I plan to stock up on fake fruit from the craft store which would make the item last virtually forever and would be much more lightweight. I also think it would totally aggravate me if a dorky squirrel or bird started pecking at my creation or running off with my precious speared apples and I'd need Prozac if I looked up and found one missing.
Copyright 1981 by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
80 pages
ISBN 087935058X
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