Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays!

The Christmas spirit came late to our house this year, but now it finally has arrived! Here are a few scenes from my Christmas decoration. I wanted it to be plain and simple, a little bit like the Nordic Style.

I didn't buy anything new this year, but made use of what I already had, which I consider a good thing. The decorated silver plated plate will be our center piece for the Christmas dinner table tomorrow.

When I was decorating I realized that each of the items holds a story and wonderful memories for me. This little bell for example was used by my parents each Christmas when I was a child at the time when the unwrapping of the Christmas presents was due on Christmas Eve. They locked me out of the living room where the Christmas tree was already lit and my mom was secretly putting the presents for the whole family under the tree. Then she rang the bell (which I couldn't see, but only hear) and said that Santa Claus was here, brought presents for all of us, and rang the bell as he left. After that I was allowed to come into the living room and mom, dad and I all unwrapped our presents alternating. You can imagine the excitement that I felt each year when I heard the bell ring. Of course, this little bell is still very dear to me and my husband and I started our own new tradition and ring it before we begin our Christmas dinner.

Here is a detail shot of the metal cone. It is from Berlin, Germany where my husband and I lived a long time. You put a simple tea light under it and voila, Christmas atmosphere.

I love the white flowers made out of biscuit porcelain. They are so delicate. I got them from a wonderful florist shop, which was part of an exquisite nursery in the Bay Area, close by San Francisco, where we lived some years ago.

The candle holders are made for Christmas trees, but I decided to clip them to the plate. It works like a charm.

The photo above shows our fireplace mantle this year.

The Christmas angels are originally elves, but I think for Christmas I get away with re-purposing them as angels.

The other elf/angel can even fly, if you tie a ribbon to the little hook between her wings.

 This cast iron planter is a well loved flea market find from many years ago.

If you want to see more Christmas photos from the previous two years at our place please click here:

Christmas 2012
Christmas 2011

Wishing all of you a Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays wherever you are and however you celebrate! I hope you spend some wonderful, joyous, quiet, and peaceful days surrounded by your loved ones!

Christina

Happy Holidays!

Just want to pause for a moment and sent out my warmest holiday wishes to everyone, who is reading my blog!

And if you are celebrating Christmas, of course, Merry Christmas to you! I hope you have a wonderful time with friends and family. May there be lots of moments of peace, joy, happiness, and love, which I feel it is all about.

My husband and I we are celebrating Christmas today on Christmas Eve already as it is the tradition in Germany. It will be an intimate afternoon and evening with an English Afternoon Tea follow by a cozy dinner later at night.

 As you can easily see in our home today it is all about good food and spending quality time together!

I better finish this post now, since the tea sandwiches on the photos were from yesterday and are long gone! Today we will be having a special kind of scone, which I baked already, but the sandwiches and other little palate teasers still must be prepared (my husband's specialty) and the table needs to be set up nicely (my job)!

One more thing I would like to share with you. I am most excited about my early Christmas gift: Eight 3' x 2' holes and three more areas, where sprinklers have been put in. Yay! One hole is already filled with a hydrangea, which we planted yesterday. I hope to show you photos very soon.

The rose that you can see in today's photos is 'Madame Alfred Carriere'. I potted her up into a big terracotta container lately, fertilized her, and she is blooming like in spring.

See you in the garden!

Christina

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays...

...is what I want to wish you one more time!

I assumed I wouldn't post before Christmas anymore, but my husband and I had a spontaneous photo session today trying to catch with the camera a little bit of what the holiday spirit is like in our Southern California home and garden. We had so much fun and I thought I would like to let you participate in this. So without any further comments some pictures from today. Hope you enjoy!

 

 

See you in the garden!

Christina