CHRISTMAS: SIMPLY DONE, PART TWO...

 

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We left off here last time

when the sun was shining on

a cold winter's day.  Now it is raining 

and has warmed up a bit, but the Christmas spirit is still alive here in the Gold

Country as we continue on with

our simply done Christmas.

THE SITTING ROOM

I haven't gone to any great

lengths to decorate in the

sitting room.  To be honest, I am so disappointed that we didn't get

the room painted but, since it

is the room we spend the most

time in, I had to do a little something.

 The spine doctor that the Captain saw

after his bout with sciatica suggested he

 get an exercise bike so that went into the library.  We had to find room

for the chairs and the lamp

table then so they came into the

sitting room.  It is not a bad

fit so will stay here temporarily, 

at least until we paint.  In

the meantime it is a good place

for Santa to take a rest and spend

time with his number one 

reindeer.

That's all folks!!

THE DINING ROOM

Tried and true is always a good option.

If it isn't broke, don't fix it so I didn't do

too much.  Everything is pretty

much the same from year to

year in the dining room...

...the only real difference is this old

sweet fruit or produce box that we

found in our neighbor's junk pile.  With

his permission,  I found a place to set  

some smalls that otherwise sometimes

get lost in the shuffle. 

The old prim Santa rides his sled

on top of the table...

...along with a wooden salad bowl

filled with cedar boughs, holiday fruit

and veggies and a "welcome"

pineapple.  Most of them are dried

from year's past and I'm

hoping the pineapple will

dry over time also.

The usual suspects from holidays

past are gathered again and

Bitty Morsel has taken two

newbies in hand.  They are the

Kindness Twins, a thoughtful gift

from a cherished friend, just

because.  I love them.

A plain faux cedar garland hangs

over the settle bench, gussied

up with a shiny string of

Christmas ornaments.  Little

twinkle lights are added along

with vintage quilt squares.

THE KITCHEN

I didn't put a tree up in the 

kitchen this year, but placed

smaller trees around instead.

Not any of them with any

special ornaments, just the

usual wishing star, a few dried

orange slices and some sparkles.

Goatzie hauled a large snow

covered tree in his cart, to

the town square of Holly Farms...

...where all the villagers were

tucked inside their little red

cottages.

I found these charming plates on Antique Farmhouse...

...sorry, Santa, I'm hoping they will

hold real cookies soon.

I also added them to the table dish stack along with a variety of other

holiday colors.

I thought a red and white checked

tablecloth would give the

kitchen that extra Christmas

spirit.

I always put together the Captain''s

favorite candle of the season.

I hope you enjoyed our Christmas

Cottage this year.  I am putting

together one last post and it

should be coming your way in the

next couple of days.  In years

past I have featured the Cottage

by candlelight.  I will attempt

to do that again this year,

but it might look a little

different from a new 

perspective.  I am anxious to

see that myself.

 I was using Picasa

to edit my photos from the very

beginning of writing this blog.

When Google quit backing it, I was

still able to use it, until my computer

crashed.  I was so disappointed

to hear that I couldn't get

Picasa on my new computer.

I am now using Gimp and it is quite

different. (I heard from authority, my daughter, that she likes my photos better 

now) I don't know what Google had

in mind after not backing Picasa

because Google Photos can't compare

in my opinion.  So far Gimp is pretty

good, but after the holidays I will

check out some other sites for

comparison.  Any references

would be appreciated.  

This new

computer is taking way more time to 

figure out for me but it is

like a wonderful Christmas gift

when I can figure something

new out.  I still have to learn 

how to get my watermark back on

my photos and I would like to enlarge 

them back to how I did before.

However, I will not give up...  

...I will be making lemonade

out of lemons!

Have a wonderful time as we get 

closer to Christmas.

...xxoJudy...

 

CHRISTMAS: SIMPLY DONE, PART ONE...

 

While writing my last post,

I was thinking about the Garland's Christmases

and imagining them to be a little on the simpler side.

Maybe I'm wrong

as the Victorians were known for their excesses,

but in this little Cottage

I don't think that was the case.

WELCOME ONE AND ALL 
to our Christmas Cottage.

We are humbled that you are here

and hope you enjoy and experience

the same happiness

that we always feel whenever

we step over the threshold.

Listen carefully,

and you might hear long ago voices

from Christmases that

have come and gone.

THE ENTRY

Mr. T. Bear is the official greeter

this Christmas.  He is at the ready

with his Christmas book of facts

in case you might have

any questions.

  

Our guardian angels are in place

to assure that you have a

pleasant experience during

your time here.

THE PARLOR

After I got the tree up and decorated

with the red ornaments, strands of

popcorn and gold beads,

red velvet and satin ribbons

and the white anniversary roses,

the parlor walls practically screamed 

at me to stop.  That was when I

started to see the forest for the trees.

Of course, as you might expect,

that only stopped me for awhile.

After Christmas last year, 

I bought some copper ornaments

for the sitting room as I

wasn't too fond of red with

the new sofa.  I didn't know

exactly how I would use them

but thought I would give them a try.

I actually put one on the tree 

with all the red and was

pleasantly surprised at how

well it all went together.

It just gives a little more

warmth and depth to the over

all appearance. 

I just love the size and shape

of this little tree that

we got last year.  What

started out as an ugly

duckling turned into the

proverbial swan.

Perfection for this small

Cottage parlor.

A simple faux garland is hung 

by the chimney with care.

I added sprigs of real cedar

so it looks more realistic.

A small wreath with a red

velvet bow hangs in the center...

...boughs of cedar and holly

are placed on the mantel shelf

surrounding the quilt square

painting and three vintage carolers.

I added stenciled snowflakes

to the painting...

...that seem to reflect in the milkglass

 plates that belonged to my

 grandmother.  The white tapers 

are from Amazon and are the

most realistic battery operated 

candles that I have seen.

I pulled this little house out of the

cupboard and surrounded by tiny 

trees, it looks warm and welcoming

tucked back in the corner.

A small tea table is set before the

hearth.  This is a whimsical set

that I found in a catalog years ago

and never have taken it out to

show it off.  I did, and do,

think it is the cutest thing and finally

found a place for it.  It is

made of cardboard and perfect

for a simple Christmas setting...

...up close you can see how realistic

it is in every detail.

...in Victorian days the fireside

was so important as a symbol

of family life that magazine editors

were almost poetic in writing

about it.  The romance of the

hearth was a perfect place

for a cozy chat and exchange

of confidences or even a setting for

"eloquent silences" among those

gathered there, where castles

were built and half formed

plans were perfected.  To the

private home life of a family,

the hearth was almost a shrine.

Cherished fireside moments

were more than material comfort

for the Victorian family.

As one editor wrote, 

"charm for the spirit" that in

time became sacred memories.

Excerpts from Victorian Magazine, December 2001

  We were sitting in the parlor one

evening and dreaming outloud (me)

that maybe it would be nice to

get another heater stove like the

little red one in the kitchen

for the parlor.  Then we (me)

thought about the one in the

guest room that didn't heat up

any more but the flames still

worked.  The Captain very

graciously (??) said he would move

the stove and now it feels

so cozy in here...

 

...and even though the stove produces

no heat, the ambiance it adds

is warm indeed.

 

Next time will be the rest of the decorated

rooms.  Because of my computer 

problems I lost a lot of time so will

fit everything in when I can.  Check

your inboxes, if interested, because

I probably will post more than

once until then.  

In the meantime try to figure out

how reindeer can fly through

a field of orchids and butterflies.

It is possible if you believe

in the magic.

Hope everyone is enjoying

the holiday season.

...xxoJudy...

Sharing today at:

Love Your Creativity at Life and Linda

156 YEARS OF CHRISTMAS...

 

There is a celebration of great magnitude coming this year.

  A Grand Old Lady 

has picked herself up, brushed herself off, put her best face on 

and is getting ready to party 

and, no, it isn't me!

It is our sweet little Cottage. 

It is almost impossible to think back to how it must have been 

all those Christmases ago. 

 To my knowledge there is little known about how things were 

but just knowing this little house after living here so long, 

I can almost see it for real.

Here the Garland family lived and played. 

 The father, a hard working miner,

 the mother,  the keeper of the home, 

two daughters who grew up 

to become a nurse and a teacher, 

and a son who became a banker.  

They tended a beautiful garden that was

 the talk of the neighborhood,

 and from the broken shards of china

 and glass that were found 
buried in that garden, 

it would appear that Mrs. Garland 

set a very pretty table. 

Obviously,  love and good manners 

were plentiful.

I can almost hear

 the creaking of the old rocking chairs 

as the two of them,

 dressed in their Sunday best,

 greeted neighbors as they passed by

 on a weekend stroll.

As I am decorating for this

 156th  Christmas celebration, 

I feel all those facts to be true.

If these walls could talk.

Oh, but they do!

 

 After having lived within these walls

 for 34 of those years, 

we have had some 

enlightening conversations.

There are two

 large holly trees

 in the garden 

that were planted by Mr. Garland. 

 I would imagine that Mrs. Garland 

 gathered many armloads of branches 

for their Christmas celebrations 

over the years, 

as I have continued to do for ours.

This little Cottage has always been 
full of good feelings.  
We were aware of that,
 even before we owned her. 

 From the first moment

 that we stepped through the front door

 we felt it. 
 

Throughout some of those long years,

 she had not been 

thoughtfully taken care of

 but she still stood strong. 

 We knew that she could be loved into

 something special once again. 

 It is an amazing experience

 to be able to live surrounded by history. 

 Memories are everywhere 

and are wonderful to have. 

 Some of our most cherished 
Christmas memories 
are from another place and time 
but we feel so grateful and fortunate 
that this Grand Old Lady 

has helped us to make new ones 

and to share in all of hers.

 

"He said, you become.

 It takes a long time. 

 That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, 

or have sharp edges, or have to be carefully kept.  

Generally, by the time you are Real, 

most of your hair has been loved off,

 and your eyes drop out 

and you get loose in the joints

 and very shabby. 

 But these things don't matter at all,

 because once you are Real

 you can't be ugly, 

except to people who don't understand."

The Velveteen Rabbit

Margery Williams Bianco

1922

And, isn't that the way it often is?

Christmas:  Coming Soon.

...xxoJudy...

Sharing today with:

Love Your Creativity at Life and Linda

Just got the computer back yesterday.  Still a work in progress.  Can't figure out some aspects yet but not giving up.