The wreath is up!

Well, I can check one thing off my December to do list. This past Saturday my sister, my sister-in-law and I attended a wreath making workshop at Colborne Lodge. Colborne Lodge is a historic building located in High Park, in Toronto. High Park is a lush, large green space near downtown that has a pond, a huge children's playground, a swimming pool and many hiking and cross country skiing trails. If you have children and come to visit Toronto you really should pay High Park a visit...and of course the charming and hip shops along Roncesvalles too!

Colborne Lodge, and most of High Park, was the 1800's home and land of John and Jemima Howard. John Howard was a successful architect who designed many buildings in Toronto. Nowadays, the Lodge is a museum where visitors are greeted by people is period costumes, and during the holiday season, may take part in various olde world activities. This is the second time my sister and I have taken part in the wreath making workshop...and it is charming.

Our class was conducted by Kate, a local history buff. You can tell that she loves her work at the Lodge. We followed a few simple steps and in the end we had a beautiful wreath.

What you need

2 wire hangers shaped in a circle

floral wire - green

scissors

a variety of clippings; balsam, pine, cedar

1. wrap the wire a few times around the circle form, anchoring it in place.

2. make a small bundle of clippings, wrap the wire tightly around the bundle

3. use the wire to attach the bundle to the frame

4. DO NOT CUT THE WIRE - just continue wrapping bundles and attaching them to the wire frame all the way around the frame

5. once the entire frame is covered make a knot in the wire and cut the wire, tuck the end into the frame

6. attach pine cones by wrapping a piece of wire around the base of the pine cone and then wrap the wire around the wreath
7. attach a bow...done!

Once our wreaths were done, we enjoyed a glass of warm cider and homemade shortbread cookies while hanging out by the fire.

Then a charming man gave us a tour of the home.

We were able to see how the Howard's would have celebrated the holidays...I told you it was charming.

The museums in Toronto have been in the news a lot lately...threats to their funding from the city. They really are the jewels of our city. Run primarily by passionate volunteers, these homes should be visited by everyone. I hope you have an opportunity to step back in time and visit a local museum this holiday season.