Wreaths Bring Creativity
This coming weekend is the third of three “Grand Illumination” weekends in Williamsburg. In general, Colonial Williamsburg is a very popular December tourist destination. I have seen Facebook posts from a number of FB friends who have been in Williamsburg during the past few weeks.
Williamsburg really is a delightful place to visit this month. Entertainment options abound, and Christmas decorations are up everywhere. The article in this morning’s Virginia Gazette focuses on one aspect of these decorations – the door wreaths in the restored part of Colonial Williamsburg.
Visitors may not realize that the buildings in the restored area are more than museum displays; 80 of them are homes where about 200 people live. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation owns the properties and rents them to CW employees and their families. The employees do not have to hold down prestigious jobs to be eligible to live in one of the houses; a few years ago I met an employee of the gift shop at the Williamsburg Lodge who was living in one of these apartments. I sang in my church choir with a woman who was living in one of the houses. One of my college friends lived in one of the more upscale houses while she was working as Provost for the College of William and Mary (one of the exceptions to the rule that you had to work for CW to be eligible to live in one of these properties).
The people who live in these properties are subjected to some pretty strict rules. Here’s what another newspaper article from a few years ago said about this:
All residents are subject to the same house rules. Because they rent from the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, they are forbidden from performing maintenance that would compromise Colonial architecture. Painting is not permitted. Air conditioners are allowed only in windows hidden from the road. Wood floors may not be polished, waxed or oiled.
Wall hangings are allowed. Window decals are not. Indeed, windows can be a sensitive issue because items placed near them are visible from the sidewalk. Occasionally, inspectors leave a note on the door.
"The one I got was `We can see the Ivory Liquid bottle in the window,' " says Elaine Shirley, a livestock husbander who lives in a one-bedroom house that would have been a kitchen in Colonial times.
Most residents happily comply, says Peg Waite, director of property management. "They're employees of the Foundation, and they realize this is part of the museum," she says. A broken fence or a malfunctioning light is quickly reported. "I think that residents are very, very good caretakers. They're there to tell us when there's a problem."
Today’s article in the Gazette gives us an opportunity to look inside the lives of the people who live and work in these houses and apartments. Every year CW runs a door-decorating competition in which the occupants of the houses and the people who work in the various trades buildings in the restored area design and display wreaths during December. The rules are simple --- you must use materials that were available in the 18th century. Residents use traditional natural fruits and greenery, as well as sterling silver objects, oyster shells, pieces of wheat, cotton bolls, and a variety of other creative and interesting objects.
Here’s what the article says about a few of the winners of this year’s competition. First, the amateur winners:
Jennifer Wilkoski – at the Scrivner Store on Duke of Gloucester Street, built a tiny windmill that served as an architectural element in her wreath design. As an architectural historian for the foundation, she was interested in an early windmill that has been featured in the restored area since 1956.
Lauren and David Niebuhr used the English Christmas carol “I Saw Three Ships” as the concept. The ships on their door display were labeled Hope, Peace, and Love.
Frank and Heather Megargee at the James Moir Shop on Francis Street created a more traditional door decoration using various colors of apples circling a large pineapple, then encircled the fruit with large oyster shells. This is the first time in 18 years of decorating that the Megargees have received a blue ribbon.
At the Blue Bell Tavern behind the Capitol building, Courtney Hurt used vintage silver plates to enhance a simple wreath of Fraser fir, pomegranates, pinecones, green leaves, and a light blue ribbon.
In the professional category (defined as designers with floral-arranging experience) Diana and Michael Lorence at the Peter Hay Shop on Duke of Gloucester Street were winners for the second straight year with their elaborate pinecone wreath, wheat, and greenery display. As an aside, the Lorences are also instructors in the Osher program that I write about regularly.
The trades category award went to the Colonial Gardens headed by Eve Otmar.
Here are some pictures of the door designs from the Colonial Williamsburg website.
You can see more pictures of the door decorations by going to the website https://www.colonialwilliamsburg.org/learn/living-history/vote-your-favorite-holiday-wreath/. The competition is over, so you can no longer vote for your favorite decoration. But you can still enjoy them.
Living in Williamsburg is a lot of fun. You can only be bored here if you’re not paying attention.