NORTHAMPTON — For lovers of the holiday season, open air Winter Wreath Workshops through Passalongs Farm & Florist in Florence are filling up quickly leading up to the seasonal celebrations.
Passalongs Owner Adrienne Bashista told Reminder Publishing she first offered the wreath workshops in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic as a way to utilize her outdoor workshop space and get people together in a space they could feel comfortable for a holiday activity.
“For a lot of people who came to those first few workshops, they said it was the first group activity they had done the entire year,” Bashista said. “I did them because making wreaths is fun, people like it. It’s been a really nice community-oriented tradition now.”
Now heading into its fourth year, the wreath making workshop has grown in popularity and has returning participants each year, according to Bashista.
“That’s been a really nice element of it is the people who come back again and again, and also the new people who have discovered us,” Bashista said.
The workshops provide a firsthand lesson from Bashista on how to create a hand-tied wreath using local foliage from Passalongs Farm’s woodlot in Southampton, as well as a local Christmas tree farm, accented with fond, foraged and sourced extras. Participants will then have time to create their own wreath using the wide variety of natural wreath “ingredients” — seasonal foliage, dried grasses, pinecones, twigs, pods, berries and birch — as well as an assortment of ribbons and various tchotchkes needed to craft that will be provided.
The workshop dates scheduled that still have available tickets as of print time include Friday, Nov. 29 at 10 a.m.; Saturday, Nov. 30 at 2 p.m.; Saturday, Dec. 7 at 2 p.m. and on Saturday, Dec. 14 at both 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Tickets for these dates are $65.
Dec. 8 at 10 a.m. there will be a special workshop taking place at Brunelles Marina and tickets for this workshop are $75.
To register for one of the limited spots available for the different workshop dates, visit the Passalongs website or visit the community calendar on the Northampton.live website. If a workshop is full, interested participants can join a waitlist by emailing passalongsfarm@gmail.com.
The hand-tied wreaths are completely biodegradable when finished, minus some of the ribbons. The wreath forms can be reused if not composted or burnt following their use but can be useful as new year bonfire starters once dried out, according to the farm.
Bashista said the event also helps people wind down as the holiday season arrives, giving participants a holiday crafting experience.
“What I’ve found is people want to learn something new, but they also like I have all the stuff already for them,” she added. “Also, the way that we do it I really think it’s the communal aspect that’s the most memorable and attractive thing. People are super positive and its really nice.”
