So this is Chirstmas......

The old and the new.....my mom is going to kill me but I decided to post some pics of her creations. Now you may understand where my creative streak comes from. These are some stockings she made from antique quilts.

This is the tree that her and some other ladies decorated for the Arts Center. They adorned it with antique hand-glittered postcards, antique ornaments, icicles, candy canes, and southern hydrangeas.....isn't it lovely!!

Here is some of the Christmas shoppe decor. Does the tulle look familiar?

One more day to Turkey Day!

Well I am officially packed to the brim for my return trip home and eagerly awaiting my departure. In anticipation of the holidays and decorating at my parents' home I have been perusing the Martha Steart website and came across some fun quizzes. According to the tree decorating style quiz, I am "shining and bright." Very apropos I must say! Read below to see my quiz results and to take your own quiz click here http://quiz.marthastewart.com/quiz enjoy~

What's Your Tree Decorating Style?

You are finished!
You are undoubtedly Shining and Bright.
Your tree gleams with light and imparts a warm holiday glow. Decorate your tree with metallic bulbs, Kugel ornaments, and handmade Faberge eggs. For more ideas, visit our Christmas Decorations page.

Another thought

"One can't believe impossible things," Alice said."
I daresay you haven't had much practice,"
said the Queen."When I was your age, I always did it
for half an hour a day.Why, sometimes I've believed as many as 6 impossible things before breakfast."

--From Alice in Wonderland

Twas the night before......

...leaving to go home for Thanksgiving! All my bags, and by all I mean every possible bag I own, are packed and I am ready to leave tomorrow after work, but for now I am catching up on my lack of posting recently. It's out with the old and in with the new....below is the wreath on my front door--hey if you can't have snow buy it!

Sadly, I had to take this wreath down to hang the snowy wonder. This idea came from Southern Living and was made from faux fall leaves and Christmas balls in fall tones purchased from Hobby Lobby.

I have likely posted a pic of this display but I admittedly was a little camera happy this evening.

A new wreath.....I hung it in a vintage frame. It is reproduction of a shiny brite wreath! :)

This is in my bedroom. Tulle (pronounced tool not toolay) is draped over my curtains and tiny white twinkly lights were wrapped in the tulle to create a fun effect. I saw this idea at Celebrations..a florist in town.

I have to tell myself this on a regular basis..plus it is cute to boot. "Keep calm and carry on" is an old war saying and I have seen these prints on http://www.sfgirlbythebay.blogspot.com/ and in Domino magazine. Other sayings include "Loose lips sink ships" and "Every cloud has a silver lining."

Finally a decent mantle picture...the key is to angle the camera...

I keep mentioning the gingerbread house, so here it is. It is not Martha Stewart worthy, but after trying and trying again I think it was a fairly valiant effort and I could not make it through Christmas without this sugary treat.

This is how the house starts......candy, candy, and more candy plus meringue powder, cookies, and other yummy treats.

Yet again another wreath. My mom made this one last year from gold garland and vintage glass Christmas ornaments. It is gorgeous. I would hang it outside, but do not want it to face the elements.

Good Night.....

It's the most wonderful time of the year....

Another lovely chilly day is here and I am planning on finishing the gingerbread house I started last night....to my dismay it came with pre-made frosting which left much to be desired, so I am off to the store today to get supplies for the frosting so I can finish the house. I am on a Christmas movie kick and have been watching them all morning! One I thought of last night thanks to a friend was Love Actually, watch the clip below with Hugh Grant....I love it!

Decking the halls.....

(or at least my cubicle walls....) I cannot resist spreading the holiday spirit everywhere.....including my drab cube at the office. The walls and desk could not look more sterile, but that is easily changed with the a perfectly sized tree, garland, and some other carefully placed items. I have included pictures from last year's first Christmas at the office and an updated verson for this year.

While I am not necessarily a fan of garland per se I found it a necessity to add sparkle and pizazz to my workspace. I hung it from one wall to the other. Also notice the vintage electricity advertisement framed from vintage Better Homes and Gardens very apropos!

That Diet Coke (plus a few more) get me through the day!
......and what better for Christmas than a red coat....this lovely number is compliments or none other than Anthropologie.

My snowy village.

Normally I have vintage books displayed on a shelf in my cube, so I rearranged the layout and displayed my glitter Christmas houses and silver trees. I also use a gumdrop tree and sprinkle it with miniature vintage ornaments.

Rocking around the Christmas tree...well actually not so terribly much rocking, but some quiet dreams of white Christmases will do nicely.

Another vintage felt tree skirt, similar to the red one at my house.

And to finish up this post....a clip of a funny classic Christmas movie.....

Why can I not have that many lights??

On Dasher on Dancer......

...On Prancer and Vixon.......Here are some more photos of my 2008 Christmas decor. This vintage felt tree skirt is perfect for my vintage aluminum tree and ornaments.

This wreath is made of metal and from http://www.anthropologie.com/ I have it displayed within a found vintage picture frame above my front door. It took a little work and a bar stool to get it up that high but it looks lovely.

My kissing ball from http://www.williamssonoma.com/. I got it as a surprise last year and smartly saved it for this year. Surprisingly it is not worse for the wear and dried quite nicely. The original kissing ball originated in 18th century England and was made of mistletoe.

Frosty on my fridge. These cute magnets were from my Mom. Hey, if you can't build a snowman outside, the next best thing is one for your refrigerator.

Visions of sugarplums....

My dinner table display. I have a matching vintage felt table runner place beneath a vintage frame I painted black and had a mirror inserted. The mirror works perfectly for candles. I am still waiting to unpack my candles, so for now my flocked deer, tree, and crystals must do. notice the vintage tulle (or too-lay, as some people like to say) tree. I want a green one!

Notice the tile....it is a 12 days of Christmas tile.

This sparkly trivet was purchased from Anthropologie and I always use it through January.