Decor – Ornaments Used In Unusual Ways

Posted on December 10, 2013 by barbara

When decorating the home for the holidays consider using Christmas ornaments in unusual ways. Christmas ornaments are not just for the Christmas tree, there are so many different ways to incorporate them into holiday decorations. Listed below are several suggestions –

(Please check out this month’s Craft post, Christmas Ornament Displays, for additional ideas on how to display Christmas ornaments with supply lists and instructions to create one of a kind Christmas decorations for your home)

Chandelier Decorations

Several years ago I was trying to think of a creative idea to decorate the chandelier in our dining room. It was a beautiful bronze multiple light fixture with lovely curved arms. Inspired by seeing other chandeliers with hanging crystals, I thought for the holiday season I would hang small ornaments to add a festive look. I found some small glass pinecones and acorns at a local retail store and I thought they would be perfect. I hung them from the chandelier’s arms with small ornament hooks. Another way to hang them would be to use ribbons or silk cord. So, during the holiday season look for smaller ornaments that fit your holiday decorating theme – maybe candy or gingerbread ornaments, small porcelain or glass snowflakes, small ball ornaments in red and green or silver and gold. The retail and craft stores have a wide selection of ornaments – shop the sales to keep the cost down – be creative with style and color!!

Window Decorations

I had purchased several beautiful ivory porcelain ornaments for an unbelievable price at an “After Christmas” sale one year but I didn’t know exactly how I was going to use them. I had them in my Christmas storage box for a couple of years, just waiting for the perfect idea. Finally, I was trying to find a way to decorate our windows and I thought the ornaments would add just the right festive touch. With the curtain pulled slightly back and creating a beautiful frame for the windows, I hung the ornaments from the curtain rods at various lengths with thin ribbon in a matching ivory color. It was the perfect holiday decoration for the windows!

Ornament Shadowbox

Years ago my Mother gave me several old ornaments from our family Christmas tree. I never knew what to do with these ornaments because they were very old, made of vintage glass and I didn’t want them to break. Since my Mother passed away this year, I decided I wanted to do something very special with them. An ornament shadow box seemed like the perfect way to showcase and keep them protected. If you have a family heirloom ornament or an ornament too fragile or valuable to hang on the Christmas tree, or a unique hand-painted, one of a kind ornament – consider displaying it in a shadow box.

Some ornaments are so beautiful or have such special meaning – why only display them for such a short time at Christmas when you could enjoy them throughout the entire year! Sentimental ornaments would also be wonderful in a shadow box. Consider these ways to display them year-round. – a baby’s first Christmas ornament could be hung in the nursery – a baby blanket could be used as the background and cut to fit the size of the frame.

A special shadow box ornament would also make a wonderful gift to celebrate life’s special occasions, like a first Christmas ornament for the newlyweds, or to celebrate a new home, or a special milestone anniversary. There is usually such a nice selection of ornaments available for the holidays, so when you are out doing your Christmas shopping look for unique one of a kind ornaments to give as a special gift.

Tabletop ornament hanger

Another alternative to showcase a special ornament is with a tabletop ornament hanger. These are usually sold during the holiday season and feature a long curved hook to hand the ornament from and come in a variety of finishes – metal, glass, etc. I use something a little out of the ordinary, pocket watch display domes – a glass dome with hook at the top and a wood base. They work perfectly as an ornament hanger.

Wreath decorations

Hallmark and Enesco creates wonderful ornaments every year. Some of those ornaments are very collectible and available in different themed series. Every year another ornament in the series is available and soon you can have a collection of several wonderful themed ornaments. If you display the collection on the Christmas tree separately, they could get lost with all the other ornaments. Consider highlighting the collection and displaying them together on a themed Christmas wreath.

(Please see the Craft post, Christmas Wreaths and More Christmas Wreaths, for ideas and instructions on creating unique wreaths using a collection of themed ornaments – two different Department 56 wreaths using small ornament houses from the Dickens and North Pole collections and also a Disney character wreath. In addition, there is a lovely Nutcracker Ballet wreath using ornaments found in a local craft store and also a collection of Boyd’s Bears ornaments used in another themed wreath)

OTHER USES FOR ORNAMENTS

Tied to a luncheon or dinner napkin, use as a party favor for guests to take home.
Use as a gift wrap accessory and tie to a present for the perfect finishing touch.
Hang from the under a kitchen cabinet as simple holiday decorations.

NOTE: don’t hang too low to interfere with working on the kitchen counters.

Hang from a pine garland to add an extra festive touch to a fire place mantel.
Hang ornaments from garlands draped on top of the bathroom mirrors.

There are so many different ideas for using Christmas ornaments in unexpected ways and you are only limited by your imagination and creativity!! Please send your comments and suggestions; I would love to hear your ideas of other uses for Christmas Ornaments.

Decor – Setting up a Department 56 Village

Posted on December 3, 2013 by barbara

Just like this month’s other Décor post, Setting up a Fontanini Nativity, another one of the highlights of our Christmas home decorations is our Department 56 North Pole Village. When I worked in a retail store during the 1990s, we carried the collection of Department 56 villages and the North Pole one was my favorite … and of course, I began collecting pieces for our home. Soon after, my husband and I were blessed with a beautiful daughter. I enjoyed setting up the North Pole Village every year for her to imagine Santa and his elves getting ready for Christmas Eve when Santa would get into his sleigh pulled by eight tiny reindeer to deliver presents to the good little boys and girls. (somehow, my husband always seems to end up with a lump of coal in his Christmas stocking!)

Usually, months before Christmas, I search the internet for ideas for my Department 56 display but most of the websites only show finished displays and never go into much detail and only have very limited instructions on how to make those displays. For this post, I thought it would be interesting to show step by step how I set up this year’s North Pole Village Display.

The North Pole display base

The first step to setting up the North Pole Village is always the base or foundation for the display. As you can see in the photos at the end of this post, over the years in our different houses in California and the Midwest, the display location and layout of the North Pole Village has changed several times.

For this year’s display, I used a base with three interlocking sections that can be used as one long flat surface or can be stacked in a variety of positions to achieve different looks for the display. I like the flexibility of the sections because I’m always changing the location of the display into different rooms of our home or adding more accessories. A few years ago, I had purchased the base at a local craft store at an after Christmas clearance sale for a greatly reduced price. (This one is very similar to the other one that I used for this year’s Fontanini Nativity Display)

The display base that I am using has a white top surface so it is great for the North Pole Village; it gives the illusion of snow. I set all three of the sections flat on the fireplace mantel and it fits perfectly with the depth of the space. Next, I position three “sky panels behind the base, I used three sections of Styrofoam painted a beautiful blue with an overcoat of clear sparkle paint to add a wonderful twinkle when the overhead lights shine on the display. Later I will attach our Christmas Stockings on hidden hooks under the fireplace mantel. As I mentioned before, I sometimes change my home seasonal decorations from year to year, and as an example, if I were to display the North Pole Village in our family room bookshelves instead of the fireplace mantel I would stack one section on top of the other to fit the narrower space of the shelf.

A SPECIAL CRAFT NOTE: One of the reason’s that I displayed the North Pole Village on the fireplace mantel was because I had made a special Christmas sign last year to hang over the fireplace instead of the English landscape painting that is normally hung there during most of the year. The seasonal sign uses a Christmas window/wall decal and the wording, “Santa Claus is coming to town”, is perfect to hang above the North Pole Village. The sign is made from a painted wood board cut specifically to fit the space requirements of the decal with a margin of a couple of inches for me to add about 30 bronze jingle bells for just the right decorative touch, I was very happy with the results of this Craft project! (The sign was very easy to make, please see the instructions for similar seasonal signs in the Craft post – Halloween signs. The steps are almost the same as the ones I used to create the Christmas sign but with different window/wall decals and accessories)

The North Pole main display pieces – the buildings

25 years ago I purchased three Department 56 North Pole Village buildings; they were the “Route 1 North Pole” the home of Santa & Mrs. Claus, the “Elf Bunkhouse” and the “Reindeer Barn”. Later I added “Santa’s Woodworks” and the “North Pole Gate”. These are the only buildings in my collection so, compared with other Department 45 collectors, my display is very small. I like the idea of a smaller display for several reasons, the first is that there is relatively less money spent and the second reason is that the display has more flexibility to set up in any room or location in our house. I appreciate the idea of the more elaborate displays but I prefer my set up time to be only a few hours as opposed to a process of long hours sometimes over a period of several days.

Almost every time I set up the North Pole Village, I always position “Route 1” near the center of the display because it is the largest piece and also because I think it should be the focal point. To the left, I placed the “Elf Bunkhouse” and the “Reindeer Barn”. To the right, I placed the “Santa’s Woodworks” building and further to the right, off the display base, I place the “North Pole Gate”. (These building positions are almost identical to the previous year’s display)

When I am placing the buildings in the display, I will sometimes position them at different angles because I think it adds more interest to the display instead of having everything perfectly lined up in a straight row. I will also raise the height of the different buildings to also create levels that will give additional interest to the display. I use white Styrofoam about one inch thick and cut it to fit the dimension of the buildings with an extra one or two inches around the base allowing space to set the display’s figurines or accessories, if I want a higher platform I will stack two pieces of Styrofoam. The white color of the Styrofoam matches the white surface of the base for an uninterrupted look that doesn’t break the illusion of a snow covered ground.

The North Pole display landscape

The next items that I add to the North Pole display are three sets of 7”, 8” and 9” pine trees for a total of nine trees that I scatter across the display. I usually position the taller trees to the back and the shorter trees to the front of the display. These trees were purchased at Walmart several years ago for a great price, they were less expensive than the Department 56 trees and I was able to purchase almost twice as many trees for about half the price of the name brand ones. Buying from other sources assures I am not limited to the selection only available through Department 56 and my display accessories will be unique.

On either side of the display base I set up several sections of rock wall, this is another example of buying from another source. If you keep your eyes open while shopping in the stores right after the Christmas items go on sale it is a great opportunity to add to the items for your display. By positioning the rock walls off the base and onto the fireplace mantel it helps to continue the display with additional items that did not fit onto the base. One example is the North Pole Gate is positioned off to the right of the base but becomes an extension of the scene with the rock wall behind.

Also added to the North Pole display are several Department 56 “Candy Cane Lamposts” that are positioned between the buildings. To complete the landscape, and even though the top of the base is white to give the illusion of snow, I add more artificial snow to the display to make it even more of a winter wonderland!

The North Pole display accessories – people and animals

The last items that I add to the North Pole display are Santa and Mrs. Claus, the elves and set of reindeer with the sleigh loaded with presents. Santa is positioned near the sleigh checking his list of naughty or nice boys and girls. It is set to the left of the base and on the fireplace mantel in front of the rock wall. Mrs. Claus is standing in front of the Claus home waving to goodbye to Santa. Scattered throughout the display are several elves, some are carrying packages of toys, having fun on sleds, sitting around the North Pole and some are training the reindeer. One special group of elves, “Proud Papa and Mamma”, represents our little family.

Finally, as previously mentioned, I don’t have any problem incorporating non- Department 56 items to our North Pole display. Sometimes these pieces and unusual elements can add interest to a display. An example of non-Department 56 figurines are several miniature ornaments that I found in a local retail store of the characters from the classic animated 1964 Christmas special, “Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer”. Of course, there are Rudolph and Clarice the reindeers, Hermey the elf that would rather be a dentist than make toys, Yukon Cornelius the boisterous prospector and the gigantic Abominable Snow Monster. The scale of these miniature ornaments is perfect and using them is a wonderful way to incorporate the characters from one of my favorite childhood Christmas specials into our North Pole display!

Shown below are photos from past Christmas North Pole displays, as you can see items have been added or changed over the years and the display has been set up in various rooms of our home.

Decor – Setting up a Fontanini Nativity Display

Posted on December 2, 2013 by barbara

As I mentioned in a previous Décor post last December, Fontanini Nativity Display, one of the highlights of our home decoration during the holiday season is our nativity set. Over the years, in both our California home and in our Midwest home, I added more figurines and accessories. Months before Christmas, I search the internet for ideas for my nativity display but most of the websites only show finished displays and never go into much detail or have instructions on how to make those displays. For this post, I thought it would be interesting to show step by step how I set up this year’s Fontanini Nativity Display.

The nativity display base

The first step is laying down a base or foundation for the display. This particular base that I am using for this year’s nativity display was recently bought at a local craft store after Halloween on a clearance sale for very little money. I think the three part sections with a moss surface work wonderfully for the nativity set display; the three sections interlink for one flat surface or can be stacked in a variety of positions. I like the flexibility because every year I’m always thinking of different ways to display or change my Christmas decorations and I can also use the bases for different holidays, such as my Haunted Mansion display for Halloween.

This year, the place I choose to display the nativity set was on a table in front of the window in the library of our home. First, I start by covering the table with a large piece of brown fabric. Next, I positioned the three sections of the base to lay flat across the entire top surface of the table.

The nativity display main pieces – the stable and the background accessories

For this year’s nativity display, I set the nativity stable in the left corner of the base at a slight angle. Then, across the back of the display, I positioned two resin sections of a “rock” fence and in the middle a “rock” resin piece in the shape of an arch. I have a catalog which lists all the figurines and display pieces available but the Fontanini pieces are very expensive to purchase. The three display accessories that I am using for my nativity display background are an example of using non-Fontanini pieces that coordinate beautifully but are available at a much lower price. During the year I always keep my eye out for accessories that would work with our Nativity set and these three pieces were bought at a minimal piece during a summer clearance sale at a local craft store. This is a great example of buying smart and keeping the cost down!

The nativity display landscape – the trees and plants

The next step when creating a nativity display is adding trees and plants for a more natural setting or scenery. For this year’s display, I used two sets of palm trees and you may notice in the nativity photos from the previous years that the palm trees look very different. After last Christmas, I decided the palm trees were starting to show some wear and need repairs since I had been using these same trees for over 30+ years.

To the start the repair process for the palm trees; I purchased artificial cactus plants from a local craft store that resembled a more realistic palm tree shape. I removed the leaves and wrapped the palm tree trunks with brown floral tape. I choose this method to repair the palm tree trunks because, even though paint would have worked to repair the damage, the floral tape added more support to hold the slightly heavier cactus plants which weighed more than the previous plastic palm leaves. After using the floral tape, I hot glued the cactus plant to the top of the tree trunk. The refurbished palm trees were positioned behind the nativity stable and I think the finished look is more realistic then the previous version!

Next, I wanted to add more plants to the nativity scene because in previous years the display was a little too sparse. Once again, in the floral section of a local craft store, I found artificial cactus plants and these were placed along the back of the display along the “rock” wall. Then, to finish the landscape of the display, I had purchased a small bag of rocks and these were added to the base of the back wall and in front of the stable; I also used several rocks to cover the seam of the display base.

The nativity display accessories

Over the years, I keep adding to the nativity display and have purchased several accessories pieces during after Christmas clearance sales or from ebay at discounted prices during the off season. I added these items to the display to create a more realistic look to the nativity scene. Several of those pieces included food item figurines, such as clay pots filled with grain or baskets filled with olives or fish. I also added a campfire for the three wise men and a well for the villagers. To add more substance to the well created a base. I used a piece of Styrofoam which was cut and then given a rounded contour to resemble a rock foundation or platform for the well. To further the illusion, I carved grooves into the Styrofoam to simulate the individual rocks and then painted it with several different colors and adding green paint to appear as if moss was growing along the base of the well.

One of the most important nativity display accessories is the star above the stable that announces to the world that Jesus has been born in the little town of Bethlehem to his mother Mary and her husband Joseph. The star is attached to a long wired holder that gives the illusion that the star is suspended over the humble stable and is calling the villagers, shepherds and three wise men to come and see the newborn child of God. (The Star of Bethlehem can be seen in the photo in step 6)

The nativity display animals

During the 30+ years that we have had our Fontanini Nativity on display during the Christmas season, I have added several new animal figurines. I have purchased some at regular price but most of the pieces have been bought during after Christmas clearance sales or from ebay at discounted prices throughout the year. These animals included several ox and donkeys, a couple of goats, almost a dozen sheep, a shepherd’s dog and three camels for the wise men to travel to Bethlehem to see the baby Jesus. All these animal figurines are scattered across the display creating a sense of movement and activity that adds life to the scene.
The nativity display people

As stated in an earlier Décor post, Fontanini Nativity Display from December 2012, after years of searching I finally found my perfect nativity set that I wanted at Jule Hus in Solvang, CA. I bought a beautiful Fontanini “starter” set that included a stable, Gloria the angel, Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus in a manger. So, this initial purchase included the most important main pieces to my nativity display.

Since that time, and over the next 30+ years, I have added several figurines. Some of those early purchases included several shepherds to tend the herd of sheep. Other figurines were added to the display, including several villagers of various occupations. Another important group of figurines are the three wise men who have traveled from far to honor the newly born Jesus and bring him gifts of frankincense, myrrh and gold. All these nativity characters are scattered across the display telling the story of the birth of Jesus.

Every year I try and keep our family’s interest by display the nativity set in different rooms or creating different displays from year to year, it is constantly changing location of new figurine or accessories are added each year. At our house in California, I have had the nativity set displayed in the hallway on an antique sewing machine and on top of a chest of drawers in our living room. One year, I displayed the nativity set inside an antique trunk with a large flat rock as the background for the scene. In our house in the Midwest, I have displayed it on the top of an old piano and a few years ago the nativity set was displayed on an antique table that my husband’s Grandmother kindly gave to us before she passed away last year. This heirloom table is very special because it has been in her family for a very long time. For the last two years the nativity set has been displayed on a table in the library of our home … who knows where the Fontanini Nativity Display will be shown next year!

One last special note:

One of our family traditions every year during the holiday season is that the manger in the nativity display stays empty until Christmas Eve. On that evening we read from a beautifully illustrated book that tells the story of the birth of Jesus. After we are done reading, my daughter will put baby Jesus in the manger and we say a prayer. It is a lovely moment to remind us of the true meaning of Christmas.

Decor – Thanksgiving Table Decorations

Posted on November 11, 2013 by barbara

This season while shopping at the local craft stores I noticed that many home decorations featured different uses of burlap material. So, this year I decided on a very different style of table for our Thanksgiving dinner. Normally, I would set the table in a very formal style with our beautiful china, silver, crystal and lovely linens. This year the table will be set in a more casual way with rustic decorations incorporating burlap materials and softer colors, such as pale blue, sage green, ivory and brown.

The first of several layers of table linens was an inexpensive ivory tablecloth. Next, I added an overlay of burlap material in a lovely pale blue. This unexpected color for the fall season goes beautifully with the chair pillows and other decorations in our dining room. I was also creating a table centerpiece with artificial hydrangeas in a similar blue color which coordinated with the color of the burlap. To finish the table linens, and too add a touch of softness, I added a vintage crocheted doily in ecru color.

The main decoration of our Thanksgiving table will be one of this month’s craft posts. During the spring my husband/father-in-law were clearing out some of the trees in the forest next to our home and I had them save one of the logs for me. I wanted to use the log as a base for a floral decoration and I thought Thanksgiving would be a great opportunity. I used blue, gold hydrangeas and greenery to create the floral decoration and I found some inexpensive artificial mushrooms at the local craft store and scattered them among several candles placed on either side of the centerpiece. I think the colors I used complement the table linens beautifully! (Please check out the Craft Post, Rustic Table Centerpiece, for a supply list and instructions for the floral decoration)

Next, I set each place setting with an ivory dinner plate, another smaller green plate, green salad bowl, silverware and glassware. I used an ivory napkin with a green leaf napkin ring and placed a small burlap bag filled with candy into the salad bowl for a party favor. It is always a good idea to have something special for your guests to take home after a luncheon or dinner party … of course for Thanksgiving our guests will also be taking home containers filled with leftover turkey, etc.!

To finish the table decorations I tied two colors of burlap “ribbon” to the dining room table chair backs. I used the traditional brown color of burlap and a sage green color of burlap “ribbon” tied with green string. This was the perfect way to finish the table decorations while adding another rustic element and also another way to incorporate burlap material into the table design.

The other decorations in the room included several glass acorn ornaments hanging from the chandelier on brown ribbons and the gold floral arrangement that is usually displayed on the dining room table throughout most of the year was place on the tea table across the room. In the china cabinet, is a display of three Currier and Ives porcelain houses, small artificial pine trees and figurines set on a silver mirrored tray.

Finally, I would like to mention three craft projects – the first two craft posts are Framed Floral Decorations and Glass Dome Arrangement which were posted in the month of August and one October craft post Jeweled Pumpkins. The Framed Floral Decorations are hung above the side chairs on either side of the china cabinet, the gold roses and autumn leaves are the perfect decorative accent for the holiday. The Glass Dome Arrangement now sits on the tall cabinet across the room and the rustic elements coordinate with the dining room table decorations. The Jeweled Pumpkins are on display in the china cabinet.

Classic Jeweled Pumpkin on display in china cabinet

Decor – Fall decorations

Posted on November 5, 2013 by barbara

For this post I am going to give everyone a glimpse of the fall decorations that we had used in our house in California several years ago. When I start my seasonal decorations, I always begin with a door wreath to set the mood for the decorations that our guests will find in the interior of the home. Our California house was no exception and for the front door I used a very unusual wreath, instead of a circular one it was an artificial pine teardrop shape wreath with several sunflowers and a festive matching ribbon. Although this door decoration is very traditional sometimes going with the unexpected form or style can spark some creative ideas.

In the living room of our California home there was a large oak entertainment center that is now in the basement of our Midwest home. On the top of the entertainment center I used a long pine garland intertwined with lights that would remain for both the Fall and Christmas seasons. I had planned on keeping the pine garland in place on the entertainment center and switching out the Fall decorations for Christmas decorations after Thanksgiving, so that is the reason the lights were pre-strung onto the pine garland. For the Fall season, I decorated the garland with autumn leaves, berries and golden roses.

Adjacent to our living room in California was the dining room, which was separated by the staircase leading to the upper floor and beneath the staircase was a space with an oak curio cabinet. In keeping with my design concept of changing my seasonal decorations from year to year, the floral decoration on the curio cabinet in our California house changed from year to year. One year, I used a floral decoration which started with a layer of greenery and I added red roses, blue flowers and turkey feathers. The next year, I used two wooden pumpkins and autumn leaves. (If you look at last month’s Décor post, Halloween decorations, you will see the same pumpkins used in the family room bookshelves of our Midwest home … just another example of re-purposing holiday decorations!)

In the dining room is a lovely oak china cabinet with a beautiful still life painting hanging above. On the top of the china cabinet, I used a long pine garland intertwined with lights the same way that I did in the living room. I layered autumn leaves and gold berries onto the garland and added artificial fruits such as red apples, green pears, oranges and lemons. I think the fruit garland compliments the still life painting beautifully!

The final room I had decorated in our California house was the family room which adjoins the kitchen. Above the fireplace are three wildlife prints, the large one is of mallard ducks and the other smaller ones are a pheasant and quail. On the fireplace mantel, I used another long pine garland intertwined with a string of amber pinecone lights. Next, I layered an autumn ribbon throughout the garland and added small artificial pears and apples clusters. For a finishing touch, I added several artificial quails to keep with the wildlife theme used in the framed prints.

The Enchanted Manor

a lifestyle blog by Barbara Jones

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