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Perhaps I'll even expand on this scene in a story someday. Wouldn't that be fun? from Home of the Heart, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
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We have no fireplace, and consequently no mantle at our house. I'd love to have a fireplace, but we simply don't have room. But in truth, we rarely used the one we had in our previous home. What I missed most was a mantle for display. My solution is to treat the top of this china cabinet as a mantle. It even allows a place to hang our stockings. I change the display according to the seasons. |
If you too are missing a mantle, open your mind to a piece of furniture or a shelf that might do just as well.
from Home of the Heart, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
Linda
from Home of the Heart, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
Linda
starting with the holy family. Over the years I've added other animals, people, and angels to the scene, never knowing where I'm going to find another one. I've used rocks to elevate many of the figures and have the scene on permanent display. I s;how it off with rope lighting.
Do you have a collection that you put on display all year or for special occasions? Please share if you believe you have something my readers would enjoy.
from Home of the Heart, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
Linda
from Home of the Heart, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
Linda
from Home of the Heart, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
Linda
Truth be told, our family would probably be happy eating off paper plates, but I believe a beautiful table elevates the occasion to something extra special. But who says all your china has to match? Jackie Kennedy was famous for mixing old pieces together at state dinners, and I subscribe to the practice for my Christmas tables. |
My husband had eight Christmas dish settings when we married. To accomdate our expanded family, I found similar pieces at a thrift store. Likewise, my first Frosty Pines stemware pieces came from buying Arby's sandwiches. The rest? Thrift stores. All combined, they make up what I call my "Family Christmas Table."
surrounded with angel hair and papery silver dollar stems. The cloth napkins are tied with gold-colored rope I purchased by the yard at the fabric store..Some nice china pieces had been passed down to me, but I was missing dinner plates. I found inexpensive gold-rimmed plates at...say it with me...a thrift shop. (Just once I had a guest turn her plate over to inspect its maker. Need I explain why she will not be invited back?) The gold rims on the Frosty Pines stemware coordinate beautifully too.
My point is, if you take what you have and display it as if it's something special, you'll be pleased and surprised at the results, and so will your guests.
from Home of the Heart, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
Linda
Over the years I've collected several boxes of decorations, and gained even more when I married. The challenge was how to display them in a coherent fashion. The key has been to develop a theme for each scene, much like I develop a scene in my writings.
Take this scene for example. The little wooden trees on the back of the piano echo the tree cutouts of the railing. If you were facing the piano, you would see Santa as a fisherman surrounded by wooden woodland animals. There's even a moose in a canoe! If you take a moment, I bet you could come up with a little story about their adventures. Hmm, that might make a good picture book. So on it goes. You'll find story ideas throughout my house.
Do you enjoy creating scenes at Christmas? Feel free to share.
from Home of the Heart, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
Linda
Over the years I've collected several boxes of decorations, and gained even more when I married. The challenge was how to display them in a coherent fashion. The key has been to develop a theme for each scene, much like I develop a scene in my writings.
Home of the Heart Hint: I've discovered the easiest and best method of creating individuality is using names for the rooms in my house that reflect the theme and style I'm envisioning.
I even have name plaques for some of the rooms. As you can see from my kitchen photo above, I love the idea of being in my grandmother role, cooking for the grandkids and even teaching them a few cooking skills. Their photos on the fridge is a daily reminder of these dear ones. My collection of vintage cookware harkens back to my grandmothers' kitchens, reminding me that I'm carrying on their legacies.
To emphasize the beachy theme, I attached beach glass knobs on the vanity drawers and glued beach glass around the mirror frame. The white vintage-looking wainscot brightens and freshens up the room. |
I've posted a couple of other photos here of objects that hint at the theme of other rooms. Can you guess what these themes are?
from Home of the Heart, my best to you.
Linda
Author
I loved writing about Meg Cary's interior design career in my romance, Home of the Heart. Meg worked on some pretty spectacular projects that I've only dreamed of. But my greatest pleasure has been exploring what's involved in creating one's personal Home of the Heart, both helping others as well as the evolution of my own home design. I'll be sharing with you what I've learned over the years as an interior designer.