Champagne and Christmas Lanterns

The weekend before Christmas I like to host a small luncheon for a couple

of special friends.  Making time for Christmas is the key to making sure I get to

stop and smell the roses during this hectic season.  We also do a gift swap and this year 

I was inspired by some Christmas Lanterns I saw on Pinterest.  

Each guest was asked to bring a lantern and any miniature items they may

have on hand for creating a vignette insdie the lantern.

 The end result was as charming as it was varied.  

My lantern had some hand dyed  bottle brush trees in purple,

and a tiny cardboard church, both brought to the lantern party

by someone who knows me well, my friend, Matthew Mead.

Matthew brought his camera to record some of the festivities 

and take some shots of my decorations.

Even Piper posed like a good girl for him.

White lace place mats brought home from Italy as a gift by

my son Colin were a treat to use for this wintery place setting, as were the vintage 

gold napkin holders I found with my husband while visiting the shops in Concord.

 A purple transferware bell was found at the wonderful Thoreauly Antiques shop

 in Concord center.  I always walk away with lots of goodies from that shop.  

 Matthew Mead made a delicious gingerbread cheesecake.

He is a wonder at so many things, baking and artful presentation included. 

 This cake was a scene stealer, and it was just perfect for a Christmas party.

We enjoyed French champagne while we dined and then began our crafting session

all around my dining room table after we finished eating.

A pretty pink ornament caught Matthew's eye...

 Some simple cut flowers from Costco were arranged by moi....

Silver balls and sparkly pine cones made it a little bit more special.

Now to the lanterns!

 Julia, my former Maison Decor shop manager, made this charming vignette out of

a lantern we used to sell at our store.  A reindeer in the snowy woods....with a red plaid bow

couldn't be more Christmassy!

 Matthew and his wife Jenny teamed up on their lantern, 

creating a snowy sparkly winter wonderland!

Our little holiday party was held for the second year in a row.

It has been determined to be an annual event. 

(I guess that makes it a success, and oh what fun!)

Make your own moments, big or small, and celebrate

this season without the stress and demands it can usually bring.

I know we all enjoyed ourselves, and each of us walked away

with a keepsake to remember this cold New England day with friends.

Snowy Sugarplum Teacup Tree

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there; The children were nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads....

 A sugarplum tree! 

A snowy sugarplum tree with tiny teacups!

 Come inside and let me share my vision and 

show off this magical and delightful snowy tree.

 Sugarplums and White Christmases go hand in hand of course. 

Don't you agree?

So when I got the chance to partner with the lovely 

Tree Classics, (The World's Best Artificial Christmas Tree Company)

I couldn't resist one of their snowy flocked trees and decided to put my 

own fairy tale spin on it, using my collection of pink and purple teacups.

Our french doors from the courtyard open into our dining room, and I thought it would

be wonderful to have a snow covered tree for a happy holiday greeting to our home.

Our dining room is decorated in neutral grey and white, and my collection of purple

transfer ware is hung on the walls and stacked in the cupboards.  So why not hang my teacups

on the tree, and then fluff it up even more with pink and purple ornaments.

This tree was a breeze to set up, and with the lights already wired on, all I had

to do was fluff out the branches a bit and start decorating.  There was very little white

flocking that came off the tree during the set up, and if you have ever tried to flock your

own tree, this is NOT like that at all.  No mess.  Just white wonderland goodness.

There is also a very clever foot pedal, so you just step on it 

with a tap and you can turn it on and off.  So convenient!

Our snowy  6.5' White Flocked Fir Deluxe Tree has the white lights.

When turned on, the tree gets a soft golden glow that plays up the pink tones.

Its just magical! 

A skein of lavender angora yarn made for a super skinny garland as was

some vintage looking purple metallic garland. 

More is more with a monochromatic tree scheme,

  so some white frosty garland was layered in for a sparkly accent.

Our dining room has touches of old European elegance, and so it made perfect

sense to add the Tree Classic Gold Sequin Skirt in a crumply rumply

 fashion around our sugar plum tree.  I opted for a smaller tree for 

the space, as you can see it is tucked into a corner.  It feels just right,

not to big, and not too small, at 6.5' in height.

Christmas Eve was a big deal in our family, with the five of us kids waiting to 

partake in a fancy dinner with mom and dad at the dining room table in our old English Tudor.

We all had to get dressed up and after dinner we presented our special "Kris Kringle" gifts

to one another.  My dad came up with the idea that on Thanksgiving we would pick names out of 

a hat for one another, and then get to work for the next month making something by hand.

Christmas Eve was the night you got to give your Kris Kringle to your recepient,

after dinner, and of course champagne was served~even to the children!

It was quite a special night, and often times my grandparents joined us around the table.

Our dining room had a grand fireplace and mahogany paneled walls, with stained glass windows and 

a big built in china cabinet for all of the dishes.  And there was even a bell ringer button on the floor under the table so you could call the servants in from the kitchen.  I told you it was a grand old house...but anyway I think now how perfect it would have been to have a second

tree in that room! Back in those days people didn't really do that kind of thing, second trees.

Unless you were a Rockefeller.  

Which we were not. 

So its a bit ironic to me that I get to have an extra tree in this home of ours now. 

It truly adds so much ambience, and I can't wait for Christmas Eve this year.

Christmas Eve is still the "big night" for us, yet we don't do the handmade gifts anymore.

 Old things have always had a special place in my heart.  Tales from 

days of yore, like the poem of "Twas the Night Before Christmas"

transport me back in time, and I love picturing it all in my mind.

My tabletop collections are often featuring old things used in unusual ways,

like putting antique French door knobs together with pink bottle brush trees.

Or a pink nantucket basket filled with roses and old shiny brites in 

pretty pastel colors.

 Flocked trees are so popular now as it brings to mind a snow covered

tree, a white Christmas and all the goodness that entails. 

Create the tree of your childhood dreams...

you will be glad you did!

I loved partnering with Tree Classics once again.

 I have had the pleasure of working with this wonderful company

 three years in a row, and created memorable and beautiful trees.

Sources for Tree Classics listed below:

• 6.5' Flocked White Fir Deluxe Tree with White Lights
• 60" Gold Sequin Tree Skirt
• Tree Classics Home Page

I am joining some talented blogger buddies on this Snowy Sunday to share our White Trees.

Please visit them and see just how wonderful a white tree can be!

Designthusiasm

Savvy Southern Style

Maison Decor

Pet Scribbles

A French Blue Christmas Tree

French Blue. 

French Blue, that pretty shade of medium blue that may have a touch of green....

Our living room tree this year is the slender Tree Classic Fir Kennedy Tree

 we had in our family room last year.  But we have had some changes in our space, 

like the addition of the portable baby crib I keep for granddaughter Reeve.

And an extra dog kennel in the family room for Piper. 

So no tree in the family room anymore, which is a bit sad.

I also couldn't shove the piano across the room and set up the big full tree in front of 

the window like we did last year, because there isn't enough room.

It was one of my most favorite trees ever. 

It had mostly pastel ornaments and it was simply breath taking.

It just looked wonderful and kind of grand next to the piano like that.

And when you drove up the street, you could see the tree out our front window,

sparkling away.  I love seeing trees in people's homes at night as I drive by.

This year I have added more lights outside, running with the tree lights we 

had strung for the wedding, and now there are even more.  Its so enchanting.

My favorite reading corner has its own little flocked tree on my french desk.

Its such an inviting spot.  You can create a little Christmas magic with a tiny

tree, if you aren't in the position to go all out with a big tree. This one was prestrung

with lights, and I bought it online from Hobby Lobby last year.

A tiny tree offers a big dose of cheer.

Bits of vintage looking trim with a bauble or two making

 anything cheery and fit for the holidays.

Decorating is more fun this year for some reason...

I think it has to do with a few things that include no longer having

to run off to open and work in my shop all day long.  And it might have

to do with being a grandmother to the most amazing and sweet baby ever.

I can't recall being more content.  Decorating is more fun when you are happy,

at  least I think so.  But maybe decorating can bring happiness, when

it comes to getting in the holiday spirit.

And this year I did a very special white snowy tree for little Reeve,

I call it my Snowy Sugar Plum Teacup Tree.

Hahah.  

It is fun to name Christmas trees.  I haven't really before.

Looking forward to our first snow of the season tomorrow,

and tonight we will be setting up the big tree I used to have in this room

at my mother-in-law's house.  Whilst wearing our Christmas pajamas.

Tomorrow we can shovel all the snow.

Merry Christmas!

Antique French Doorknobs and My Own Grey Gardens

Candy colored porcelain doorknobs from France.

Oh. My.

These beauties were spotted on an Instagram post by a woman who mostly sells

amazing antique garden furniture and ornaments.  She is also from 

Massachusetts, and I am constantly amazed at her incredible inventory.

I ooh and ahhh over the furniture, but when she posted these special hand painted

and gilded knobs, I knew I just had to have them!

Laurie of Plain and Elegant Antiques is someone to follow if you, like me, 

are into garden antiques.  I don't know where she finds the stuff. But I am glad she does.

Speaking of antiques, the famed Grey Gardens had an estate sale last weekend and

they sold off all of the furnishings, many of which were original to the time when 

Big and Little Edie Beale lived there.  You may recall when Matthew Mead and I 

took a side trip to visit the home and made a quick little video
 of our rainy day trip to the Hamptons. (Our video here)

Now that was one sale I would have LOVED to attend.

(image from Town and Country)

But since I am a bit busy these days with my grand daughter and the upcoming holidays,

I have had to settle for buying local furniture at yard sales that conjure up the Grey Gardens ambience,  I stumbled across the most amazing yard sale, by a woman who had some incredible stuff.

She was like a sister spirit to the Beales, in taste of furnishings before the years of decay set in.

A pair of wicker daybeds and a Bar Harbor style wicker sofa from this yard sale

were already in my husbands pick up truck.  I returned to her home later to pick up

more "stuff" as she inquired if I wanted to look at some more stuff in her cellar.

Heck yeah!! 

So what do French doorknobs have to do with old wicker lamps and couches?

Think summer....

and a tiny run down cottage on the shores of a New Hampshire lake.

Mr. Maison Decor and I stumbled upon a ramshackle cottage that just stole our hearts.

Its in terrible shape, but has quite a view.  And then I got this vision that the 
ramshackle cottage could be charming, even if rundown, 
if we just spruced it up with some white paint and wicker

and some floral bits here and there....

Our own little Grey Gardens.

With French doorknobs.  And perhaps a mouse or two...