Advent Wreath

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GeorgeSword

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Advent is fast approaching, and my family loves to put things out early, so we already have no less than two trees up and a third on the way…
This will be the first time I’ve ever done advent, so I want to make an advent wreath, rather than buying one, out of natural materials. By this I mean twigs from evergreen trees and bushes. Besides, it would be hard to buy one small enough to fit on my desk.
I’m sure this was more common in the past, but one doesn’t see living wreaths often these days. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to keep it green all through the season?
 
Actually, Christmas trees should not be put up before Christmas Eve–or no sooner than Advent IV.
 
I have never successfully had an ‘living’ advent wreath stay green–especially since they are inside the heated house and there is no good way to water them. If you put a place mat or plastic underneath, you can mist the wreath and depending on what it tis made of that may work. We have a metal wreath with a cross design worked into it. Sometimes I’ll place greenery around it, but most of the time we just leave it plain since it is beautiful as it is (and when the kids were younger I didn’t have to work about them setting a dry pine cone of fire accidentally!)
 
We have a resin/stone one from Abbey Press and I just place some real greenery in the center. We used to buy the “regular advent candles”, but I’ve found some natural toy companies and a couple of online homeschooling suppliers that sell sheets of beeswax in purple and pink so you can roll your own advent candles and custom-fit them to your wreath.
 
I see nothing “wrong” with replacing the cut greenery as needed. I do this every year, and have never heard nor read anything that states that this is not acceptable. When it is blessed, the blessing is for the wreath as a unit - the base, the greenery, the candles. Replacing the greenery, which is only a part of it won’t negate the blessing, but if you feel it would, say the blessing again!
 
My four children really look forward to Advent now that we have a wreath and candles. I purchased a fake green Christmas wreath at a craft store along with candles and four glass votives for the candles. For the center candle we use a large white candle that can stand on its own. I decorated the wreath with purple silk flowers and purple ribbon. We put the wreath on the kitchen table as a centerpiece and light it every night and say the prayers from a book about Advent. I place an upside-down pie tin in the center of the wreath which elevates the candles.
I also decorate the house in purple and put a Christmas wreath on the door with purple ribbons. We put up our Christmas tree just a few days before Christmas (sometimes even Christmas eve!) then we leave it up until the Epiphany.
Since we have started doing this we have all decided that we enjoy Christmas even more. It is very similar to observing Lent before Easter - great anticipation.
I just love the traditions of the Catholic church!
 
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