Now, in December, as visitors move from house to house, from blacksmith to wigmaker, from restored Capitol to the Royal Governor's Palace, they're walking through a contest on all sides of them: The city's designers hope for ribbons on their wreaths, garlands, "fans" and other seasonal decor, created within guidelines of historical plausibility and authenticity of materials.
Around five million poppies and 8, 000 wreaths are hand-assembled by 40 veterans with disabilities every year at Lady Haig's Poppy Factory in Edinburgh.