The More the Merrier

Designer: Tom French Flowers (278-9420).

Approach to challenge: Goes right to the famous ending. Angels, bells and riches. The rich gold and copper tones symbolize money throughout the story line.

Materials: Lots of Christmas balls and bells — bronze and copper, with a little chocolate brown — on a formed Christmas wreath. White ribbon with gold flecks blend with white goose feathers, which represent angels.

Advice: “Experiment with wildness. You don’t have to be so traditional. Mine has symmetry in ways, but it’s not symmetrical.”

Nature’s Wings

Designer: Joie Crary of Flower Girls (440-0681).

Approach to challenge: Takes a less literal approach, instead focusing on the era of the movie. Likes to use natural elements.

Materials: Butterflies cut out of “Butterflies of America,” an illustrated book from the ’30s. Crocheted pot-holders and Christmas cards from the ’40s found at an antiques store while visiting in-laws in Vermont. Wreath elements cut from the woods in Vermont: balsam fir, dogwood, winterberry holly. Eleagnus from her Virginia garden.

Advice: “Open your eyes to what’s around you. There are so many things in your yard or in the woods around you that you can utilize. And it sort of forces you to get out in the woods, which is always healthy on a nice weekend day.”

Angels Among Us

Designer: Francine Mercer of Fuqua & Sheffield (282-4211).

Approach to challenge: Zeroes in on the line that always stands out for her in the movie: “Every time you hear a bell ring, an angel gets his wings.”

Materials: Chose shades of purple, silver and white. Angels made of painted foam cuts, with feathers for wings. Silver bells. Opalescent ornaments. Different foliages, both fresh and artificial.

Advice: “Color is a real important thing. If you’re going to spend the time and money to make a wreath, you want it to show up on your door. Color can convey feelings, positive and negative.” HS