Coastal Christmas Wreaths

Bleached Fleur de Sel Wreath

Christmas wreaths in Florida and other tropical climates are a challenge where high temperatures mean that fresh wreaths will dry out immediately. I have found some that would be perfect for the beach house and can even be used year round.

Christmas Wreaths

Laura Dowling - Flower Magazine

 

Old Town in Alexandria, Virginia has an annual holiday outdoor decorating contest that was founded in 1959.

In keeping with Old Town’s historic provenance, contest rules require that – except for festive bows and ribbons – the decorations should feature only natural materials. For the residential contest, the decorations must all be made by the homeowners themselves. Professionally-made decorations are not eligible for the residential contest. For the commercial contest, decorations can be professionally created, however decorations should only feature natural materials.

Classic Christmas Decorating

Fairfax House in York, England

I love the simple and natural Christmas decor in this beautiful foyer. This is a historic Georgian mansion that has been used for several movies. Miniature wreaths are hung from ribbons, a beautiful magnolia garland adorns the staircase bannister, and a topiary sits in a black wicker basket.

A Chinoiserie Christmas

Matthew Bees - Southern Home Magazine

 

This home is a wonderful example of how to decorate your chinoiserie filled home for the holidays. You will notice many wreaths inside including the red lacquered magnolia wreath and pinecone wreath featured in yesterday's post. You can read the entire article in Southern Home Magazine. I ordered two wreaths yesterday - excited to start my Christmas decorating soon.

Unique & Chic Wreaths

Red Lacquer Magnolia Wreath

I love unique and beautiful Christmas wreaths. A fresh wreath on the front door is of course a classic and traditional choice, but wreaths are also wonderful indoors. Hang a wreath inside your front door, above the mantel, in your entryway, on a mirror, in your kitchen window, above your bed - there are so many options. These red lacquered magnolia wreaths from The Magnolia Company hung one holiday season in the White House. 

Tropical/Colonial

Colonial Williamsburg

 My daughter Kate is in Williamsburg for a few days. Colonial Williamsburg at Christmas is so charming. She took some photos yesterday and this one really caught my eye. I have posted before about how pineapples play a big role in both tropical and colonial decorating. 

Here is another example - wicker. I love the wicker bells - vintage ones are easily found on Etsy. With some tweaking, this wreath would be great for tropical decor as well - perhaps with sea shells or palm fronds. This door apparently won a blue ribbon.

Lacquered Magnolia Wreaths

Coral Sands Lacquer Wreath - The Magnolia Company

 I hope everyone had a lovely weekend in spite of these extraordinary times we are living in/through. I spent most of the weekend in the garden and it was so delightful. I cleaned out and tidied up beds and put down 30 bags of mulch so far. This Florida lifestyle is making me very fit and very blond. LOL

I am very picky with mulch. My favorite is the black mulch. I just love the way it defines the beds and the way plants just pop against it. It is funny how opinionated gardeners are with mulch choices, but it really does make a big difference IMHO.

I found these stunning lacquered magnolia wreaths. They come in several sizes and colors and I think they are just amazing. The lacquer even gives them a chinoiserie vibe. The red reminds me of red lacquered pieces, the pale green is like celadon, and the blue like blue and white Chinese porcelain. Unfortunately, they are pretty pricey and I wonder how they would do outside in the heat even though my front entrance is protected. Check out these colors. They are available in other colors as well. BTW they are fresh cut from the farm and barn dried. And guess where they are located - Florida!

Maybe I will end up getting one for inside they are so beautiful. Do you have a favorite?

Holiday Decorating

Amanda Lindroth

 Yesterday was an interesting day here - my first tropical storm in Florida. We got about 6.6 inches of rain, but no damage or flooding or any problems, and it was actually very pretty with all the palms swaying. It has all moved out, and should be a gorgeous day here.

The highlight of my day was reading all the comments on Christmas decorating. Thank you! I absolutely loved them and it has gotten me so excited about decorating. Here is a great idea from Amanda Lindroth - the wicker console and pagodas and bone boxes are all from her collection. So pretty with the backdrop of the chinoiserie wallpaper. But what I am copying is using palm fronds from my garden in lieu of Christmas greenery. In Virginia, I did traditional Christmas decorating for decades and am excited about having a fresh start here with a very tropical chinoiserie look with flamingos, seashells, and palms. Flamingos are going to play a big role indoors and out.

These faux palm frond wreaths below were from Frontgate and are no longer available there at any rate, but they are a great look. My front entrance is completely protected from sun and rain, so I have a lot of flexibility as to what I use.

Frontgate

Frontgate