Weed Ladies selling holiday decorations to benefit Naper Settlement
As blazing fall color transitions to the monochrome of winter, the Weed Ladies are hard at work.
The dried remains of stalks, fronds, buds and blossoms hang along one wall in their second-floor workshop inside the Daniels House at Naper Settlement, ready to adorn wreaths and baskets under construction.
Vases full of pine branches and silk poinsettias are crowded onto a side table.
"At Christmas, we use pine cones because they're popular, and pods," Nancy King said, as she put the finishing touches on a tabletop Christmas tree.
King was one of a half dozen floral designers gathered recently around a table strewed with scissors, ribbons, sparkly accents and glue guns to prepare for the Weed Ladies Winter Floral Design Sale, set for Thursday through Sunday, Nov. 12-15. Proceeds from the sale support education and preservation programs at Naper Settlement.
Diana Kasper and Diane Carson each worked on adorning wreaths, while Lynn Rogala looked on.
Rogala said each designer is free to choose their projects.
"Some of the ladies prefer to do arrangements rather than wreaths," she said.
She added that custom orders are available. Customers sometimes ask the Weed Ladies to craft an arrangement using their own container.
"Some people will bring in a family heirloom, a vase, for example," King said.
Also, Rogala said, designers will tweak pieces to suit customers' tastes for an additional charge.
Weed Ladies designers scour garage sales and flea markets for distinctive finds that can be incorporated into décor, such as ceramic pots and rustic buckets. Occasionally, people will bring forgotten treasures rescued from their attics to the Weed Ladies, designer Margaret Strohl said.
"We work with donations of things people have given us," Strohl said. "We always have different things we're going to be working with."
All proceeds from the sale benefit Naper Settlement programs, Rogala said.
While the winter sale features a preponderance of reds, greens and gold displayed on trees, sleighs and stylized Santas, the sale also offers a selection of decorations that celebrate the winter holidays with a mix of blue, white, silver and green, accented with bows, peacock feathers and glitter.
"We go for the 'glitzy, glitzy' of the holidays," Rogala said. "This year there seems to be a focus on blue."
Kasper said the inventory includes a variety, from large centerpieces to tiny tokens.
"We have lots of small things that are great for teacher's gifts or hostess gifts," she said, adding that those are priced in the $10 to $15 range.
The volunteer group meets several times each week to put their artistic talents to work, usually presenting three seasonal shows each year.
The winter sale is so popular, that there is often a line of customers waiting for the doors to open, King said.
The Weed Ladies typically step up their production as the sale approaches, so they are ready to meet demand. Even so, Rogala said, customers clamoring for handcrafted pieces keep the Weed Ladies busy right through sale time and beyond.
"Sometimes," she said, "we have a designer here as the show is going on."
If you go
What: Weed Ladies Winter Floral Design Sale
Where: Daniels House at Naper Settlement, 523 S. Webster St., Naperville
When: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday to Saturday, Nov. 12 to 14; 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 15
Admission: Free
Info: (630) 420-6010 or napersettlement.org