Is it time to take down the Christmas tree?

 When do you take apart your Christmas tree, stowing lights and ornaments and setting the furniture back in place?

Mine’s already done, although that’s a little earlier than usual. How early is too early?

 

Many people wait till after Twelfth Night to dismantle their Christmas trees.

This church holiday, also known as Epiphany or Three Kings Day and celebrated annually on January 6, marks the arrival of the trio of wise men (or magi) to welcome and honor the infant Christ. Some Christians also recall Jesus’ baptism (as an adult) on this occasion

Other folks un-decorate and remove their Christmas trees on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day.

 

My tree came down a few days early by either measure.

This was a weird year for sure – in so many ways. From pandemic to politics, distances from person to person became painfully evident.

 

I love Christmas. It’s one of my favorite times of the whole year.

Perhaps that’s why I put up my Christmas tree and decorate my home for Yuletide as soon as the Thanksgiving dishes are done. True story: We are still eating turkey leftovers each year, while lighting the Christmas tree.

Usually, I leave the tree up and lit (even if the ornaments are packed) through New Year’s Day. Sometimes we are hunkered down with a blizzard. Or we may host a family gathering. So the holiday festivities and feelings linger at least that long.

 

But again, this year feels different.

My Christmas tree is neatly stashed in its appointed tote, tucked away in the basement for next year. The holiday ornaments are packed and stowed as well. The colorful wreath still hangs on the front door, although its storage box stands ready. Soon, it will be replaced by my more subtle winter grapevine/floral version.

The wrapping paper rolls are tucked away (with the bigger ones hidden in the Christmas tree tote. The ribbons are boxed. The cookies are gone, and the holiday cookie cutters are tinned for next year in an old Christmas popcorn bucket.

Somehow it feels good to simplify my décor and reorganize my home, even before the New Year rolls in.

Maybe it’s one way of marching on from an abundantly difficult 2020 into the promise of finding brand-new opportunities and options (including vaccines and values) in 2021.

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Personal photo/s.

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Maskmaker, Maskmaker - 1,000+ masks made

How have you spent the “safer-at-home,” “shut-in,” “corona-quarantine,” or otherwise named stay-at-home season during the period of heightened global COVID-19 health concern?

I’ve been making mask after mask after mask. So far, my personal mask-sewing endeavor has produced 1,000+ masks. Recipients have included emergency responders, medical professionals, nursing home staffs and residents, high-risk populations (mostly locally), colleagues, book group members, family, friends, and various professionals (such as the postal carrier, hairstylist, FedEx drivers, and coworkers).

Where did I find the fabrics and supplies?  I went through hundreds of yards of personal fabric. OK, I may have been something of a hoarder over the years. I’m still an avid sewer, it started early in my life. My grandmother and mother both sewed, so I learned from the best. And I put myself through graduate school by working in a fabric store, where I handily applied my employee discount to plenty of yardages of pretty textiles.

Sewing my way through my fabric stash, I even cut up some cotton sheets, a few sets of cotton curtains, and some fancy leftover cotton decorator fabric from our past residence. Hey, it doesn’t match this house, so why not use it?

Fabric designs vary with my supplies.

Once my own fabric collection dwindled, turning into fabric masks, I was blessed by a few donations from friends. One pal, who recently retired from a nursing home career, even passed along several of her own scrubs, which I cut up and sewed into cloth masks for community needs.

What styles of masks have I made? I started with a mask pattern offered by Froedtert Hospital / The Medical College of Wisconsin. This tie-style mask is easily sterilized and holds up to countless washings. Eventually, I began making the Deaconness Hospital style of mask, which as ties affixed to each side. Both the Froedtert and Deaconness masks featured horizontal pleats (see below). By special request, I also made several cloth masks with elastic ear loops, although these do not usually last through hundreds of washings. But for basic non-professional everyday use, they fit the bill fine.

Two different mask styles with pleats & ties.

Where did my masks go? Many of the masks I made went directly to charitable organizations. I gave boxes and bags filled with freshly sewn masks to a local grassroots group that was collecting and distributing them locally. We even stood in a parking lot one rainy spring day to hand out fabric masks for adults and kids to families lined up in the cars for our city’s free school lunch program. (Because schools were closed for the last few months of the academic year, such practices have arisen all over town to meet many families’ nutritional needs.)

Eventually, I began placing a big basket of home-sewn fabric masks by my front door, so folks could stop by and pick out their favorites. A few people left something to help with material costs, keeping me sewing. Some left a yard or so of fabric. A couple left spools of thread.

Will people continue to wear masks out and about? Folks are debating the wearing of masks, but many businesses still require masks for entry to their premises. Even those who don’t feel they are fully on-board with the whole mask thing are finding the need to obtain masks for access to several spots in their communities (perhaps even their workplaces). As long as folks continue to request sewn masks, I will try to keep making them, and I have a small inventory ready to go now.  (Need a cloth mask, or even a small quantity of them? Email me for info. Masks are $10 shipped - Continental US only. Solely PayPal. Fabric designs vary, as these fly out quickly after I finish them.)

Overall, though, I have certainly scaled back in the past couple of weeks. During the heat of the closed-in crisis, I was sewing 50-60 masks daily, with two sewing machines loaded and at-the-ready. That’s a little tough to sustain, as my professional and personal responsibilities are returning to a normal level these days.

After all of this mask-making, I guess I’m qualified to drink from this fun mug from CafePress. (Full disclosure: OK, I created this imprint and wrote the poem. It also comes on tees, tops, caps, cups, magnets, and more. And I get a small commission from any orders.) Anyway, I just ordered it, and I hope it arrives soon.

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Personal photos – all rights reserved

Product promo photo – fair use

Feel free to follow on Google Plus and Twitter. Like this blog?  Check out Practically at Home on Facebook. You are invited to visit my author page on Amazon.com.