Winter Peace

I am a crazy Christmas lover. I start listening to music around Halloween and secretly watch movies long before the snow flies. I'm like the stores everyone complains about.........."Christmas already?!". Every year I try to refrain from my early antics, but seem to fail. And, once again, I failed this year. The difference is, that this year, with three kids in basketball and four with recitals, we didn't spend too many nights at home. I missed the family time that leads up to the holidays. We didn't do the nightly Christmas movie as a family, the hot chocolate, or the Christmas crafties that are our usual activities - there was no time for it.

The other difference this year is that I am not sick of Christmas the day after. Because I start so early, I'm usually pretty anxious to take it all down and pack it away. This year, I am still enjoying my decorations and the down time that comes with the holidays. We've spent the day just hanging out together and enjoying the special gifts brought by Santa, his helpers, and family. So unlike many others who are finding relief in the putting away of the holidays, I'm still holding on and squeezing every little bit of pleasure I can from our break - before the craziness of our hectic schedule returns.

So grateful for time spent together as family, with extended family and dear friends. Thanks to you all for making our holiday season one filled with joy, happiness, and love. I wish it wouldn't end......

A Love/Hate Relationship

I'm the first to say, that I LOVE receiving Christmas cards. I love to see the family pictures that usually come with them - how each kid has changed, any new additions to the families, and all the creative ways people come up with to express their own family's personality. I love reading the family newsletters and hearing about all the fun and adventure that accompanies parenthood. It's nice to know that other parents are lamenting the loss of a child to college, celebrating a team championship, or any other rites of passage all kids seem to go through. I don't feel so alone in this big world, trying to figure it all out. It's nice to feel connected.

With the love of getting these cards, comes the realization that I too must send out the traditional Christmas card. With this realization comes many questions - Who to send to? What kind of card? Can I compete creatively? It seems so daunting. It just overwhelms me, so I tend to put it off for as long as possible.

I can confidently say, I will drop my cards in the mail first thing in the morning. I know I am late, but I found some Christmas cards that I adore! You see, I found a couple of vintage cards that are tiny little works of art! So instead of buying new cards, I decided to copy, embellish, and make some for myself. (Hope I'm not breaking any laws here?) I really enjoyed the time being creative, but it just took more effort than I had anticipated. Sadly, that seems to be the story of my life...........a little late to the party, but having a good time!

What's Old is New - for me at least!!

A few months back, I got real tired of my kitchen/dining room decor. It was mostly country colors and I wanted something a bit more bright. I have quite a bit of vintage knickknacks, so I traded country for vintage.

When it was time to break out the Christmas decor, I realized that all of my decorations for that room were still in the country colors - barn red, straw yellow, country blue, etc. It just didn't work at all. I gave quite a bit of it to our local thrift store and started scouring magazines for a look that would work, enchant, and use items that I already had.

I found an idea to use old vintage hankies to make an mantel scarf. The hankies were cut in half (which was hard for me to do!), backed by white fabric edged with bright red rick rack. It was perfect. I tried to mimic what I had seen with items on hand, and since it was Sunday, I had to pull from my stash any red and white fabric I had. I wish I would have had something a little less mundane as the red/white stripe, but it works! I also figured out that instead of cutting and sewing the edges of the white background fabric, I could use cheap white cloth napkins cut in half. These worked so well and I didn't have to hem them. Yay!!

I haven't quite figured out the actual decorations on top of the mantel yet, but there's always next year. For now, it works!

*Just a closer view

Pipe cleaner Poinsettias

During the 1940's, it became fashionable to adorn packages with tiny trinkets. Often times, these festive bobbles were constructed out of tinsel and chenille pipe cleaners. These items were readily available and for pennies, a gift could be made glorious. Wreaths, candy canes, trees, and even Santa s were constructed out of the cheap, bendable and brightly colored stems.

Now, even though these stems have stood the test of time, the construction of package tie-ons have fallen out of fashion. It's too bad, since these little creations are fun, festive and easy to make. With a handful of pipe cleaners and a little imagination, many creations can be made. Plus - if you don't get it exactly right, you can simply unbend it and try again!

So, my first attempt was fashioning some poinsettias out of bump red chenille stems. It only took four stems, a few twists and bends to make one. The centers are made of some deconstructed vintage icicles. So easy. So fun. So cheap. So cute!

I made so many that I've just thrown them here and there in hopes that it will make my house and packages more festive!

Even the Mundane can be Festive!

As the holiday season approached, I was lucky enough to find this vintage sugar sack. I fell in love with it the moment I saw it. I adore the pastel blue lettering and the overall design. Most of all, I love the fact that even the most everyday, mundane item can take on a new festive look - plain and simple, all dressed up for the holidays!! Now the challenge is to figure out what exactly to do with it. Any ideas.......?

Recipes, Fads, and Fancies.......Oh My!!!

As Christmas approaches, I'm constantly looking for new books/magazines that will inspire me creatively. Anyone who knows me beyond a casual hello, knows that I love anything antique or vintage, so I thought I would share a few of my favorite finds to incorporate everyday vintage items into your Christmas splendor.

Last year, I found The Farm Chicks Christmas book. It is filled with recipes, creative inspiration, and festive party ideas for the season. The colors are bright and cheery - just like the holiday season should be!

This year, I found a few choices at my local Sam's Club - not where I was expecting to find any kind of inspiration besides the frozen, fatty kind! They carried a handful of Christmas books by Susan Waggoner. I picked the two that spoke to me most. One is entitled Christmas Memories. This charming book takes a look at the gifts, activities, and fads that were most popular from the 1920's - 1960's. This book is more informational than instructional. It's a fun look back at the trends of the day from toys to attire - a really fun read.

The other one that I found fun is called Have Yourself a Very Vintage Christmas. It covers the same time period, but takes each decade separately and talks about the crafts, decorating tips and recipes from each era. I LOVE this book. Some of the treasures that I've picked up, actually make an appearance in this fun book. For me, the best part is found in the back. There is found time period clipart that you can use in any crafty way you see fit - from cards to ornaments. The book is filled with inspirational instruction on many ways to use these tidbits, but with a little creativity, many fun holiday projects could be produced.

I've never considered myself very original, so I love books, like these, that help me find that tiny creative being living inside me!

I hope you find yours too! Enjoy!!

Making it the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I've been wanting to post for a quite a few days now. I've been so busy getting ready for Christmas and having fun with family and friends that I haven't had time. Some years I seem to get so bogged down with the logistics of Christmas, that I just end up feeling tired. This year I've been trying to focus less on having/making everything perfect and more on the beauty that can come from spontaneity and celebration. It feels good to make time for friends, eat things and more of those things than I should, or even to admire my beautiful Christmas tree.

So for the next little while, I will try to take time every day to post about something that inspires me to truly feel the Christmas spirit. I will start with my tree. It's a compilation of old ornaments found at thrift and antique stores for next to nothing. My collection started when my Grandma and Grandpa Fonnesbeck passed away and I acquired a few of their old Christmas ornaments. They are fragile, yet beautiful - just like so many of us. They need to be treated with care and respect - just like many of us. And, separately they might not be too impressive, but when put together, they are glorious - just like when we come together, glorious things can happen. That is what is so wonderful about this time of year, when we focus less on what differences we have and more on the good we can see and bring out in ourselves and others! It is truly the most wonderful time of the year!

Isn't she a beauty?

While gazing at my tree, I can't help but think of all of the wonderful memories made with my Fonnesbeck grandparents. I really love and miss them. Here's some of the ornaments that I was lucky enough to inherit!