Several of the sources shown here are Swedish, and Martha herself calls it a Swedish-style wreath. We're not sure of the Swedish roots of the Advent wreath, but we sure like the idea of hanging one chandelier-style over the table or entryway!
(Images: 1. Hus & Hem, 2. Cottage Living, 3. Skona Hem, 4. Martha Stewart)
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I love the look.
Absolutely adore! Gives the room such a warm feel!
The proximity of open flame and greenery in the first photo makes me nervous. Please be careful with candles and fires this holiday season!
The 'horizontal wreath' idea is a nice one, though (other pics).
I for one will be hanging a horizontal wreath in my teeny tiny english cottage dining room.
The traditional German Adventskranz looked like this
A horizontal hanging wreath tied with red ribbons to a special red wooden stand. There had to be four red short candles on it (those in the picture definitely are too long and dangerous!).
My grandmother made our Adventskranz when I was a child. In the late afternoon we were sitting in her kitchen around the table with this wreath. My aunt read stories out of a special Christmas book, my grandmother peeled apples and cracked nuts for the kids. On the first Sunday in Advent we wrote our lists of wishes which we put out on the window sill where a helping angel picked them up during the night. Sometimes in Advent an uncle who was a pastry chef dropped in and we made marzipan snowmen with chocolate hats.
For us kids the advent season was the most exciting time of the year. For me it is inseparably connected to this kind of advent wreath.
Love the look!
That first wreath is going to kill somebody! I like the lushness of the last one though.
"Advent wreath comes from 1839, when the German theologian Johann Hinrich Wichern introduced it into his mission work" quote Danish history magazine Historie. They speculate that he got the idea from the pagans celebrating the turning of the year as a wheel. Today the danish word for Christmas (jul) sounds the same as wheel (hjul). After the 2nd world war the advent wreath became popular here in Denmark because of the defiance in lighting candles after 5years of blacked out windows and decorated in red and white - the colour of the Danish flag.