As May 1st approaches, Greeks are getting ready to make their May Day wreaths, or “stefani” from fresh flowers.
This tradition started as a celebration of Spring and according to the story, the month of May was named after the Roman goddess Maia, which is the Greek word for midwife, nurse and mother.
On the first of May Greeks head to the parks, fields and mountainsides to gather flowers and make these traditional wreaths which they hang outside of their home until the flowers dry. Let’s look at how you can make your own impressive May Day wreath.
First off, the things that you will need are:
Flowers
Long, flexible tree branches
Fine string, metal rope, rope or cotton yarn
Ribbons (optional)
Then you need to gather as many flowers as you wish to make up your wreath — some of the most popular choices are roses, daisies, anemones, violets, or lilacs. Make sure that they have long enough stems to pipe through the branches that will form the wreath.
Weave together some flexible tree branches to make your wreath, thread the flowers throughout and use the string to help keep them in place if you need.
You can add ribbons to the wreath as well to make personal touches. Now all that is left to do is hang your wreath outside of your front door or from your balcony and enjoy the Springtime!
- See more at: http://greece.greekreporter.com/2017/04/29/how-to-make-an-impressive-may-day-wreath/#sthash.P7GFz4fd.dpuf
