Holiday Decorating can be a Natural and can Save on the Old Pocketbook

By Paula Huff

Holiday decorations, whether for the Christmas tree or as a table centerpiece, need not be expensive.

Kathryn Walbom augments dried flowers and herbs from her garden with weeds collected near her West Vlley home to make natural holiday decorations. It has been a lifelong hobby.

As a teen, Ms. Walbom became interested in plants when she discovered helping her mother in the family garden excused her from cooking and washing dishes. At 18, a motorcycle accident resulting in 30 operations and eventually the amputation of her right leg below the knee turned gardening into a survival mechanism, then a career.

``For so many years I had no real control in my life, and it could have driven me crazy,'' said Ms. Walbom, florist and decorations teacher of how to use natural decorations for Red Butte Gardens and Arboretum. ``Instead I took control in the garden. I scooted around on my butt trying to water and weed to keep things living.''
Buying a home overgrown with vines, Ms. Walbom's perspective of horticulture broadened. While pruning, she experimented with winding vines into wreaths.

``The message is not to just think of horticulture as growing plants. It goes well beyond that. It involves every way plant material can be used to create beauty and usefulness.''
With her tools -- hot glue pellets melted in an old electric fry pan and dried plants -- she has filled every nook of her home with natural decorations.

Here are some suggestions:

• Tuck small pine cones into miniature baskets, attach a ribbon to the handle and hang on the Christmas tree.
• To customize Christmas bulbs, glue small bouquets of dried flowers around the hooks.
• Cut a piece of heavy cardboard into the desired shape. Place a candle in the center and create a design around it with cones, dried flowers, ribbons or Christmas ornaments.
• A match holder for fireplaces and wood stoves can be made with a brick with three holes. Lay a flat piece of cellophane paper over the holes on either end. Using the index finger, push paper into the holes, leaving enough lapped over the edge to create a lacy look. Place wooden matches in these holes. Decorate the center hole with a bow, holly leaves, dried flowers or Christmas birds.
• Swags shaped like an arch are becoming as popular as Christmas wreaths and easier to make, Ms. Walbom said. From the yard, gather twigs or vines approximately the same length. Determine the center of the twigs and wire the bunch together. Cover wire with sphagnum moss, then glue on dried flowers, ribbons and pine cones.
• For a potpourri, tie together several 8-inch cinnamon sticks with a ribbon. Attach dried flowers to the top.

``It's unlimited what can be done with things from nature,'' Ms. Walbom said. ``That's why the true gardener never has to throw anything away.''