REVISING CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS

As her family and decorating ideas have expanded, Kathy Oberschlake has added several more festooned trees and Colonial Williamsburg-inspired vignettes to the period-style home she and her husband, Forest, share in Ohio.

Dawn C. Adiletta

THE ROYAL CHRISTMAS TREE

A widely publicized drawing of the decorated tree British Queen Victoria and her consort, Prince Albert, set up at Christmastime in 1848 caught the fancy of her subjects and Americans, but she was not the first royal to embrace the holiday tree.

YULETIDE AT WINTERTHUR

For more than four decades, dozens of rooms in Henry Francis du Pont’s mansion-turned-museum have been decked in holiday splendor to recall Christmases past and bring the beauty of his gardens indoors.

SAVING THE NATIONAL CHRISTMAS CENTER

When Pennsylvania entrepreneur David Abel met National Christmas Center founder Jim Morrison three years ago, it was a matter of faith that together they would continue the mission of preserving the true meaning of Christmas.

Jeanmarie Andrews

MAGNIFICENT CHRISTMAS MINIATURES

From the late 1800s until World War I, German toymakers created small pressed-paper ornaments to delight Christmas celebrants worldwide. Today collectors pay hundreds or thousands for these ephemeral miniatures.

DIRECTORY OF TRADITIONAL AMERICAN CRAFTS HOLIDAY

The work of this year’s best holiday artisans—rendered in clay, fabric, paint, paper, wood, and more—can inspire a new look for your holiday decorating or fill the need for that one-of-a-kind gift for someone special.

ODE TO A GOOD DUKE

The story told in the Christmas carol “Good King Wenceslas” is fictional, though the man was real and made such an impact in his short life that the Catholic Church canonized him as the patron saint of Bohemia.

THE DELIGHT IS IN THE DETAILS

Herbsmen and inveterate decorators Don Haynie and Tom Hamlin offer tips for transforming simple figurines, baskets, and wreaths into charming holiday decorations—with bows, sparkling lights, and, of course, bits of nature.

MAKE A FUZZY SHEEP

With this simple pattern and a few embellishments, you can make a single sheep—or a flock—to add to your holiday decorations.

CREATE YOUR OWN “SWEET TRADITIONS”

Directory artisan translates her holiday memories of growing up helping a favorite aunt bake cookies for Christmas into three-dimensional wool appliqué pieces you can group or use separately as ornaments.

Kathy J, Gaul