Christmas Tips

There is nothing better than the smell of fresh greens in the air for the holidays. A fresh Christmas tree and a fresh Christmas wreath can make a house smell absolutely perfect for the holiday. While some people prefer to have artificial trees and wreaths, I just can’t fathom that concept. December isn’t the same without a fresh Christmas wreath and tree to help welcome the holiday season.

The moment that December arrives and the chill in the air lets me know that Christmas is just around the corner, I am stopping at some little roadside stands to purchase a fresh Christmas wreath. In fact, I usually purchase several. I like to have a fresh Christmas tree wreath on the outside of my front door, my side door and hanging over my inside fireplace in my family room. I could stand there and breathe in the fresh pine smell for hours. I always decorate each fresh Christmas wreath differently, each having its own theme. Of course, the theme for my family room usually remains consistent to match the dñÄor of my home. If I really get into the Christmas spirit, I will take a fresh Christmas wreath to my office at work so that I can smell that pine all day long. My husband’s store has a fresh Christmas wreath in each window. Only a few people have complained that the smell bothers them. That is one thing to keep in mind when getting a fresh Christmas wreath or tree - if you are putting it in a public
place, some people may have allergies. I never had thought about that before, but some people are bothered by pine trees and wreaths just as they might be to fresh grass clippings. If that is a concern, perhaps a fresh Christmas wreath or tree should be reserved for places that have a solid airflow. If you are hanging it outside, that isn’t even a concern. Most people tend to put a fresh Christmas wreath on their front doors. However, fresh trees are most often indoors.

A fresh Christmas wreath can be decorated in a million different ways. Whether you put bows or beads on it, dress it to reflect the spirit of the season. I like to wrap white lights around my fresh Christmas wreath for my front door. When the evening is approaching and I turn it on, it glows elegantly. My husband says that he loves pulling into the driveway and seeing its friendly and welcoming glow. He opens the front door and takes a moment to enjoy the smell of the fresh Christmas wreath before dashing inside and out of the cold.

It is getting close to Christmas time again and this means digging out holiday decorations and lights. This is my favorite time of the year so I have accumulated many decorations. Each year I think that I need to go through the boxes and discard or donate things that I no longer use, but it is difficult for me to part with the items. I also like to buy something new every year to add to the collection and to have a variation on the decorating. My husband is telling me that we do not have room for anything more in the storage area so I either need to not buy anything or get rid of some things. We decided that we would pull out all the decorations well before Christmas this year so we could sort through what we have.

I discovered that I had purchased a Christmas wreath at the end of the season last year. I had forgotten about buying it at the end of the season sales. It is a pre-lit Christmas wreath and is suitable for indoor or outdoor use. When I bought it I had thought we would use it by our light post at the front of the house. My husband could not believe that I had forgotten about this because we had just ordered a Christmas wreath from the boy scouts. I told him that this was no big deal because we could always put the Christmas wreath that we had ordered on our front door.

We went through the many plastic storage container filled with ornaments, lights, figurines and other holiday decorations. We managed to fill two bins with items that we would donate to the local Goodwill store. The Goodwill store was very pleased that we were bringing in the items prior to the holidays. They said so often people made their donations after the holidays and then they had to store the items. This way the items would be available to the needy in time for the holidays. They were giving special appreciation gifts for those that donated any items. We had our choice of a Christmas wreath or evergreen garland. The wreaths and garland were donated by a local tree grower. We decided on the garland since we had the pre-lit wreath as well as the fresh Christmas wreath coming from the boy scouts. The garland was six feet long and would be a great addition to our mantel. My husband could not believe that we went to Goodwill to get rid of decorations and then came home with a new item. I of course was thrilled with the addition of the fresh garland for our home.