Christmas Greens, Arrangements and Holiday Decorating

dining room victroloa cabinet... framed violet postcards above were also from my grandmother - she gave them to me on my birthdays (violet is the flower for February).

dining room vanity table

library

library desk, shelf above is really an old organ top. Santas were gifts from my mother over the last 20+ years. She loves "collections". Santas to me, Nutcrackers to my brother, Angels to my sister, and Snowmen to my other sister. The first year my brother got a nutcracker, he had a really confused look on his face as he has never been into household kind of stuff. It has since been a family joke that he gets one every year for his "collection" :-)

library coffee table

Terri, I think that you definitely win the decorating award. Your efforts surely would meet my mother's standards. Your amythest glass collection is beautiful.

Holly, I meant to tell you that I do the same thing with my niece's and nephew's gifts, only don't sort them into piles. It's a hold over from when they were too young to read gift tags. The youngest one's are always wrapped in snowman paper. The middle child has Santa and the oldest (a teenager) now gets trendy paper.

My sister and my brother's grown children and I mix all of our gifts together and make the little ones hunt through them all looking for their packages. Lot's of squeals are heard when they locate them. We make the kids pick out and deliver one to someone else before they can take one for themselves. It makes for a fun afternoon.

Here are my outside lights just coming on at dusk.

Here's the back of the house. Note the big piles covered with blue tarp in front of the deck. Thats the last of the shredded leaves to go onto the beds. My house is on the corner of a busy commuter road and can be completely seen from both sides. I like to put everybody in the Holiday spirit.

Our township has an annual decorating contest and you should see some of the displays. Some are sound and light shows. I'll try to get some photos and post them. Mine are very tame in comparison.

Just love the pic Terri, keep them coming. Your glassware display is beautiful as well as your antiques. Your white deer are miniatures of my bigger ones in the front yard. Josh made them as Christmas present. Every year I gave my children a Christmas ornament and some kind of Christmas decoration. As they moved into their own homes they had many things to take with them.
Stormyla, The tall guy next to the Santa is a Christmas Goose, rubber boots, top hat, bell and wreath. It was a present either form Ric or Jamie shame on me for not remembering. I have a scuba goose, too.
The Still, LOL My Dad keeps dragging things out of his basement and Mom keeps trying to tell him we don't want his junk. Then we show up and get all excited over some item like the still. Then he says "See Nancy they like my stuff". LOL
Such wonderful parents I have, they have been married 59 years.

Stormyla, I really like the lighted bear ( I have been looking at those for a while and thinking of getting one). I also love the lighted pile of presents, so cute. These are my other deer, last years present from my son Jamie. They get wreaths and ribbons put around their necks and look so cute. Must go and wrap presents now, talk later.

Love the pictures and the decorations, Keep them coming. Not much decorating here, but baking up a storm.
Holly, I have one of these Sellers too, a different style, my MIL had it and I got it when she passed. I used it in my kitchen, until we remodeled. Now it is in the mudroom and collecting junk, but I still store a lot of my baking pans in it. The enamel top was great for kneading bread and rolling out dough.

I finally finished the arrangements for my Dining Room pedastals. Last night I brought the bucket with Juniper, Magnolia, Holly & Cedar inside, but left the large Fazer Fir cuttings outside. They were frozen solid and had icecicles hanging all over them. They would not melt and I finally had to crack all of the ice off and they still were dripping down the pedastals.

I also made the small one in the right hand corner. The doll and Angel were gifts that I had given my mother many years ago and I got them back when she died. They are a nice reminder of her wonderful Christmas spirit.

I had some flowers left over so I made this small arrangement on the left. My hands are now sap stained.

Stormyla, How lovely and such nice memories. Love those pedestals.
Critter, Here is a picture of my collection.

stormy,

When you get sap on your hands--rub them with butter, Crisco, or any other fat--and then wipe clean. It will come off.....Then wash with soap --as usual--Taaa...Dahhh...!

My small contribution to all of you decorating with greens. Gita

Holly, I like your deer and love the way you've displayed your sea collection. I got inspired by your photos of Josh's swags and made one for my back den door. I've been here alone all day and every time I went downstairs, I scared myself silly thinking someone was looking in my back door! Josh's house is looking great. How nice that you are going to christen it with Christmas dinner.

I too love the pedastals and put something different on them every season. You should see how much DSO hates them every time they have to be moved. They come apart in sections aand some sections weigh over 100lbs.

Here's the deck display that I made yesterday completely crystallized in ice. The entire deck and furniture and grill have icecicles. I thought it would melt today, but maybe only a quarter of it did. The world here is now once again frozen. My friend who lives near you called today and said that your ice all melted this am. It's odd that ours didn't.

Thanks, Gita. Since my next chore is some cookie baking, that will fit in very nicely!!

Oh that is nice. The frosted look is in style this year. LOL

All the pretty stuff here got me motivated a teeny bit. I got a viburnum branch, put it in a wine bottle and then hung about a dozen of my aunt's oooollllld ornaments on it and placed it up high away from the wild things. These ornaments have been boxed for a dozen years becasue I couldn't take any out without breaking one which made me mad. Even now there was one broken in the box and I think I heard a pop from barely touching another that was still in paper. that one was broken when I unwrapped it. heavy sigh. So my branch thing is kind of neat and tomorrow sometime if I bring that camera downstairs and switch the card to this camera, then I can upload a picture. Ahh technology, or agghh technology!

Yea Sally, awaiting pics.

OK, here's my house...

Dream on! That was the entrance to Rawlings Conservatory.
This is a shelf in my little foyer. To the left, two gourds crafted by my very own child. On the right, the old ornaments. Most have a very skinny neck and are as light as a feather.

and my interpretation of a decorated mailbox. I call it Lipstick on a Pig.
Sorry folks I am no decorator!!!

" lipstick on a pig"
Too funny!!!

Holly- love your antiques
Aspen- I would kill for a library!!!

LOL Sally, NO that is NOT your house that is MY Greenhouse. LOL
Yep I recognized Rawlings right away. When did you go and how was it. Maybe a few pics......
Love your branch and ornaments.The shelf looks very nice that Santa fits right in very nicely and those gourds are so cute, you have a budding artist. I have a few to paint myself. I can see why you are careful with the antique ornaments they are very special.
I have very little very old ornaments. My Mom gave me all our old decorations years ago before the twins were born. I lived in a mobile home with a metal shed. I had them all stored in the shed and lost them all in a heavy snow storm while we were away. By the time we returned home all was lost. I still morn them :{

Just getting caught up and wanted to make a suggestion. I haven't had time for any fresh greenery this year, but I have plenty of cedar and pine in my woods. No running pine, unfortunately, which was always a traditional decoration at home.

I also have oodles of sumac up there too, which has plenty of dried berries this time of year. It makes a nice substitute for holly berries, although not as pretty a red. I just cut whole stems and stick them in with the greens. Might want to try it.

http://search.live.com/images/results.aspx?q=dried+sumac&go=&form=QBIR#focal=f5a433c4a5c938d3a5f569707807c6dd&furl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.globalherbalsupplies.com%2Fcatalog%2Fimages%2Fdried_herbs%2Flarge%2FSumac.gif

oh Holly- boo hoo! a shame
Some sumac berries au naturale

Sally, I love your foyer grouping. It's wonderful, both the gourds and your branch tree and nutcracker. I know what you mean about the fragility of those old ornaments. There are quite a few of my grandmother's on my tree and every year i lose one or two, sometimes as you say, just getting them out of the boxes. Each loss hurts, but I still use them every year, just to bring back those childhood memories of christmas at her wonderful home.

Your lickstick pig is great. I think that you are a fine decorator. I've never noticed sumac berries before, will have to keep an eye out.