On a wreath the size of a lifesaving ring, a hand-painted mermaid, her tail shimmering with mother-of-pearl guitar-pick scales, hangs pearls on her seaweed tree. Made by Taryn Arakaki, she set a mood of undersea enchantment that pervaded this year’s City and County of Honolulu holiday wreath contest. The walls of Honolulu Hale’s Lane Gallery were decked with Arakaki’s wreath and those of the 77 other entrants for the annual event.

The theme, “He Kalikimaka Momi: A Pearl Christmas,” was chosen because “we like themes that have multiple meanings,” said Tory Laitila, registrar at the Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts.

“You have ‘pearl’ as in ocean, wisdom and Pearl Harbor,” Laitila said as he gave a tour of the freshly hung wreaths that contestants had delivered Nov. 30.

“And pearls are traditional for 30th anniversaries, like this event’s,” he added with a smile.

In another scene from the pearly depths, puffy sea horses and octopuses guarded a treasure, surrounded by coral tuffets made of needle-felted wool. It was hard not to touch this appealing folk-art piece by Wendy Kamai.

The Hawaii State Library’s entry, “Pearls of Wisdom” came adorned with oyster shells made from recycled (and obsolete) catalog cards. “Dear Pearl Harbor Veterans” was a salute to fellow service members from Iraq War veterans Margaret and Wattana Viboolsittiseri, who wrote, “The wreath is a symbol of lifetime service.”

In the youth category, a delightful entry from the Boys &Girls Club of Hawaii-Windward Clubhouse showed “the process of a grain of sand becoming a pearl” with progressively bigger pearls set in oyster shells.

Following the theme wasn’t mandatory: Other charming youth entries included an open-mouthed lion, made by Lincoln Elementary Preschool students from fabric and recycled CDs, and a stylishly droopy wreath of flowers made from recycled bluejeans by St. John Vianney Parish School fourth-graders.

In the adult open category, ephemeral desert rose puffs blossomed on Marian Bernal’s woven wreath, and the holiday spirit blazed out from Mela Edrada’s lipstick-red poinsettias made of 25 recycled plastic bottles sprayed with Rust-Oleum paint.