Our Maine Street's Aroostook Issue 6 : Fall 2010 | Page 47

An Aroostook Wreath
A Look At The Winter Tradition
from OxBow Wreaths & Deep In The Woods Gift Shop

OxBow Wreaths & Deep In The Woods Gift Shop
TRADITION:

The tradition of the wreath extends back thousands
of years. It was used to celebrate victory and worn as a
headpiece. The original wreaths were made of branches
and leaves.

Many cultures adopted the wreath by using their
own species of plants and flowers that were available to
them.

The wreath is a symbol of eternity…there is no
beginning or end. It can be made out of anything; but the
circle has no end…it goes on forever.
The evergreen wreath was born to celebrate the Christmas
season. It did not have to worry about losing its leaves. It is
like the circle, it is ever green. What better way to celebrate
the birth of life.

our logo, brochures, etc.

Judy had a small general store in OxBow and would
be able to make some wreaths to sell to the locals and to the
hunters that would stop in. I think the first year we made
around 100 wreaths.

Our business has grown into what it is today. We
make between 1200 – 1500 wreaths per year. Steven and
Judy’s brother go out harvesting the tips as soon as possible.
They bring them to Judy and her crew to get to work. One
worker does all the cutting, one makes the bouquets, and
Judy makes the actual wreath.

As soon as the wreaths are made, they are taken
back outside and stored in the cold. They stay outside until
it is time to come back in to be decorated. Once decorated,
they are either delivered locally, picked up, or shipped to
customers all over the USA.

The days are long and the nights are very short
during the holidays. The workers start at 7:00 a.m., and
the gift shop is open 9:00 – 7:00 daily in November and
December.

Family and friends pull together during this very
busy time stopping in to lend a hand when they can. We
couldn’t do it without them! They even drop cones off all
year long to be used for decorations. Judy gathers most of
the material herself from the local area.

During the holiday season Steven is also busy
harvesting Christmas trees for his customers. His Balsam
Fir trees are all sheared by hand. He has around 15,000
trees in the ground right now that he tends starting as soon
as he can in the spring right up until the time of harvest.
On average, a tree is 10 years old when it is cut.

OUR STORY:

In 1986 our dear friends, Phyllis and Leonard
Hutchins, gave us a video that they had just received in
the mail. It was on making Balsam Christmas wreaths. As
soon as they watched it, they knew that it was more than
they wanted to embark upon. So, after watching this video,
we went down east and visited the business that made the
video. We were very impressed with the whole operation.
A short time later, we were in business.

We sat down with family and friends and developed
FALL 2010 Wreaths 45