19-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Thursday, December 17, 1914: <<no entry>>
Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:
Since Grandma didn’t write anything a hundred years ago today, and to get into the holiday spirit, I thought you might enjoy seeing what Christmas wreaths looked like a hundred years ago.
The wreath on the wall above the sideboard is decorated with tinsel, and a bright Christmas ball hangs at the bottom.
Pretty wreaths are made by tying small sprigs to circular wire or wood frames.
Crimson ribbon bows make a most effective contrast with the green sprays.
Ladies Home Journal (December, 1914)
A Hundred Years Ago 
All natural greenery, it would seem.
Yes, they all are natural greenery. Your comment reminded me of a sentence in the original Ladies Home Journal article which accompanied these pictures.
It said, “In every instance the greens which have been used have been brought from the woods. A few branches of hemlock, pine, cedar, or spruce cut clean with a sharp knife from the lower part of the tree will not harm the tree in any way and will lend themselves charmingly to the decoration of the house.”
Actually these are prettier than most of todays!
So do I. 🙂
I LOVE fresh greenery for the holidays; a boxwood wreath on the front door has been my choice for many years!
It’s sounds wonderful. I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen a boxwood wreath. Up here they generally evergreen.
Beautiful wreaths! If they had fresh cut pine in them , they would smell as good as they look. 😉
I bet that homes smelled wonderful during the holidays back then with all of the fresh greenery.
I love the simplicity of the designs.
I like them, too. They remind me of a fund-raiser at the nursery school my son attended years ago. The parent’s met one Saturday afternoon to make wreaths to sell. Looking back, it sounds like an old-fashioned and quaint fund-raising activity–but my memory is that it was a lot of fun.
I would be happy to duplicate any one of these and hang in my house. Just perfect.
They would be fun to try to make. I made a pine cone wreath years ago–and I still hang it by our front door each year.
Simple, natural elegance! thanks for sharing, Sheryl!
I’m glad you liked them.
So lovely, but I have to wonder: how did these poor folks cope with all the pine needles without having a modern vacuum cleaner at hand? I’m sooo glad I’ve got one. Our garlands are shedding all over the place!
hmm. . . I hadn’t thought about that, but it would be a mess. Homes won’t had had wall-to-wall carpeting back then. I wonder if they might have rolled the carpets up and taken them outside to shake the needles off–though that sounds like a lot of work.
I like the last one with the bells, that’s a good idea.
It is pretty.
What beautiful wreathes!
I agree.
So interesting, the difference in now and then. I would love to use those ideas for next year’s wreath – – just to see what response there would be.
Maybe we both should try it next year. 🙂 I think these old wreaths are really pretty.
Mom always took us for an outdoor session to gather the Christmas greens. I still do it today. Jane
What a wonderful activity! Is sounds like a lot of fun to gather Christmas greens.