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Wednesday, December 22, 2010

A Christmas Welcome

When you think about it our homes porch is the first “Welcome” our guest will receive from us.

My porch is pretty small, but that does not stop me from trying to make it welcoming for my guest and myself.

Are you ready for a little more black and white?

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Instead of my Spring pink I add bright Christmas red and lime green.


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The little lamp light is always on. I love it at night time,you can see the reverse pattern through the shade. For a night shot you can go to the post I did on my porch earlier in the year,here.



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When it is warm enough I sit in this little corner and enjoy my morning coffee.



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This wrought iron planter hangs on the side of my door and it has been a lot of fun over the years filling it with a variety of plants.



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I hung three wreaths on my door. I used all fresh greenery and pinecones and of course I had to add one touch of black and white with a satin ribbon at the top.



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A Little Peek Inside!

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Welcome to my home!!! Wishing You and Yours a very Merry, Merry Christmas!

Kathysue

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

My 2010 Family Christmas Tree

The title of this post says, Family Christmas Tree because this tree is full and I do mean full of so many Christmas memories.

 As I unwrap the precious ornaments each year I wind up crying bitter-sweet tears without fail. Oh the wonderful Christmas Eves and mornings that have been spent around this very tree.

I do have a little disclaimer that I need to mention. I have been done with the tree for over two weeks, but I had a few problems getting this post up.

I struggled so much this year getting the lighting right in my photos. I have finally given up!

 After all Christmas is only six day away!! So without further dialog, here is my Christmas tree. Shall we start at the top and work our way down?!!!

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This shows the ribbon that I made to repeat the element of black and white stripes that are in my Kitchen dinette. Oh no! I just noticed I don’t like the way the tail on the ribbon is looking stiff. I better get a step stool and fix that.



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I love a little whimsy so you will find candy-like ornaments on my tree.


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Notice how Santa’s arm is broken? He fell off his skateboard.

Actually this is one of my son’s ornaments and as a little guy he use to play by the hour with this ornament. Even though it is broken it holds special memories and will always be on my tree.

You will also see a Christmas Spider web on our tree. Have you read the legend of the Christmas Spider, you can read it here.



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The ornament on the left is one that was on my parent’s first tree.
We added snow on the branches. I love the look, it is so frosty looking.



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For my packages I  use my black and white stripe signature wrap mixed with red and lime green and one other multi-colored stripe.

I keep it whimsical by adding polka dot ribbon and sparkly curly ribbon to the packages.


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My 2010 Family Christmas Tree



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So my dear sweet friends there you have it!!!  I hope you have enjoyed sitting around my tree with me?!

Merry, Merry Christmas to Each and Everyone of YOU!!!!


Kathysue

Monday, December 20, 2010

My Christmas Kitchen

You all have seen my kitchen dinette with its black and white color scheme.

 I also carried it into the kitchen  with just one little touch of red. I used red in the adjacent family room so it was a perfect little tie-in!!

Here is a picture of my dining room just for a reminder of the direction I am taking this year.

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Right across from this table you will see this….


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Here are a few close-ups


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Now you can see just a small touch of the red that I will be introducing into the family room.


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A few more tiny red touches. I have my silver Revere bowl full of scented pinecones and pomanders made out of limes. This bowl smells delicious!!


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I put my crystal bottle stoppers in some of my glassware. I loved the repetition of the black stripes!!! Plus they look so sparkly and I do love sparkle at Christmas time.


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I purchased two of these balls at Pier I. I thought they might work on the table, but they just said too much for that setting. I think they are perfect inside my cupboard.


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How about some Jingle bells for your cupboards. I used napkin rings around my knobs for a festive little touch.

One last picture of my mini cypress trees with just a very small dash of sparkly glitter………


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The kitchen is a warm place to be at Christmas time. Mulling spices in the Crockpot and the red lacquered tray ready for tea or coffee.

Candles are lit on the window sills. I have my crystal chandelier dimmed so it looks like candlelight. I just enjoy being in there so much.

Even washing dishes is fun this time of year!!! Boy I wish that feeling would last all year long!!

Merry,Merry Christmas from My Kitchen to YOURS!!

Kathysue