Smith Avenue Annual Tree Lighting

Back in the 1990's when my husband and I were first married, we lived on a small dead end street, in an adorable Dutch Colonial. We became part of an ongoing neighborhood tradition where neighbors would gather at the end of our street, and decorate a Christmas tree for all to enjoy. It was a fun time shared by both the kids, and the adults in the neighborhood.

At some point, I took over the planning of the event, and added some small personal touches. Prior to home computers, here is a sample of a "crude" handmade invitation of mine. I recently found it filed under "Laura," and thought it would be fun to share. I was fortunate at the time, because my parents owned a typewriter that had the ability to store typed documents. After typing the invitation, I could feed in the paper of my choice, and print the number of invitations needed. Good old construction paper to the rescue. Things have certainly changed.

One year, my husband and I decided to purchase a permanent evergreen, to be planted at the end of the street. It seemed a bit wasteful to purchase a pre-cut tree every year that would then have to be thrown away. We were thinking "green" even back then. We asked for donations, and purchased a small evergreen from Mahoney's Garden Center in Winchester. I don't know if the tree still stands today, but I think I will plan a visit for curiosity sake.

One of the personal touches I added was to serve Hot Cider Glogg to kick things up a notch (literally), for the adults. Glogg is traditionally a mulled wine served in the Nordic countries, but this version using cider is called White Glogg. A compilation of Mom's suggestions, and a few additions/suggestions from my recipe books, and I was good to go. It was a great way to stay warm while the kids decorated the tree.

Hot Cider Glogg

2 quarts sweet cider
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 sticks cinnamon
1/2 tsp. allspice
6 whole cloves
1 lemon sliced
1 cup applejack or apple brandy
raisins (soaked in brandy)
nutmeg

Combine all; cider, sugar, lemon, spices in saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes. Remove from heat , add brandy if desired. Strain into warmed mugs and add a dash of nutmeg to each.

Although it feels like eons ago, since we shared Glogg with our Smith Avenue neighbors, the memories remain fresh in our minds.




Until next time...L.

Gifts of Boxwood

Sarah's Tree

I have been helping out at Eric's Flower Emporium in Reading, during the Christmas season. Much time has been spent making boxwood trees, I even think of them in my sleep. As I am not the shop designer, I have not had the pleasure of adorning the trees after they are made. I decided to make some of my own, and adorn them in my own style. I will be giving these trees as gifts, to some of the ladies that I love.  

Beth's Tree

In keeping with a natural theme, I selected my adornments appropriately. The birch, birch branches, hydrangea, and arborvitae branches are all from my yard. A trip to Jacobsons and the Boston Flower Market helped me with the remaining details. I absolutely adore satin ribbon, so off to Michaels.

A close up of an Arborvitae branch sprayed with silver metallic paint, and dusted with some glitter. This adds a subtle texture contrast to the boxwood.

Alison's Tree

A tree for my sister Alison's freshly painted dinning room was the inspiration behind this design. Not pictured is her beautiful chocolate brown hallway leading off of her dinning room. The color combinations she chose for her new home are outstanding.  

Mom's Tree

My Mom lives on the ocean in Manchester-by-the-Sea, therefore a tree with sand dollars collected from her beach, made sense.  I sprayed them with gold metallic paint, and added a dusting of glitter for some bling.

I especially like the striking combination of colors I used for this tree. It will be beautifully placed against an ocean backdrop. 

Cara's Tree

A tree for my bestie...need I say more.

Boxwood Tree Recipe:

Boxwood
Oasis
Containers
Floral Picks

Pheasant Feathers

Dried Orange Slices

Arborvitae

Silver and Gold Metallic Spray Paint

Glitter Sprinkles

Satin Ribbon
Plaid Flannel Ribbon

Reindeer Moss

Birch and Birch Branches

Mushrooms
Crab apples
Sand dollars
Lotus Pods
Winter berry

My Tree

The great thing about these trees is that you can create your own recipe using your imagination. 

Until next time...L.

Christmas Vignettes

The fun for me in decorating for Christmas, is in creating vignettes with my collected treasures. As I try to keep in mind the color and style of a room, it helps me decide where to place things. My living room is a shade of cherry red with touches of gold which makes it a great place to display all my Byers Choice dolls. My grandmothers vintage drop leaf table is the perfect landing spot. These dolls have great meaning to me, as they have been given to me by my children over the last twenty one years. The kids like to reminisce about the details behind every doll.

My dinning room with its gray paneled walls, and touches of pewter make an ideal backdrop for birch, pine cones, moss and all things natural. I like to use animals as my daughter is an animal freak, and the buri animal ornaments are in style right now. Martha had a collection featured at Macy's, this year. Apparently they are sold out quickly, which i guess is no big surprise.

My son is crazy about penguins, or used to be. This guy tucks in nicely against a piece of birch. My daughter and I made paper snowflakes to add a personal touch to this tree. It had been a while since I had made paper snowflakes but, a little online search provided the how-to we needed to get started. We glued pieces of twine onto the snowflakes, so that they could be hung from the tree. We also made twine bows, and a twine tree topper in keeping with our natural theme.  I love twine because, it is one of those multi-purpose items that you should always have on-hand. Great for gift wrapping any time of year.

Needlepoint stockings where hung by the chimney with care, thanks to my little elf. Brick, birch, pine- cones, mercury glass, greens, and a old beam are music to my ears.

I am lucky to have lots of birch trees growing in my yard, so there is never a shortage of available birch to work with. I can often be seen peeling a piece here and there, for the sake of a design. The large birch log was once home to a bird. As the tree began to weaken and eventually fall, I went out to claim my prize.

A little bling, bling for the dining room with the addition of mercury glass. It sparkles, and brightens the muted gray walls nicely. The fabulous birch candle holders were handmade by my friend Maura Quinn.

Thanks Maura, I love them!

A little vignette for the back hallway, which is where I usually set up my party cocktails. The black hutch is from my days at Pottery Barn. It opens up, and is a perfect spot for serving some holiday cheer. Nothing like a brick floor to deal with spills.

My family room which is the heart of the house, and the perfect place for several snowmen vignettes. These sparkly guys are some of my favs. My daughter is of the philosophy; if you have it, you must display it. I would have to agree in this case.

Until next time...L.

Burlap Christmas, part deux

This will be the second year that we have cut down a tree at Durkee Trees in Littleton, Mass.  I am happy to report that this tree has been up since Thanksgiving weekend, and is still drinking water. It appears that we are in luck again this year.

As you know, I will be incorporating burlap into some of my Christmas designs this year. I added burlap ribbon to the tree to create a backdrop for my sparkly red berry strands. The burlap ribbon was purchased at my new favorite online craft store, Save on Crafts. A little elf is pictured off to the left, fixing the Christmas tree lights. This is the same little elf that had to have a Christmas tree two days after Thanksgiving. I guess we know who is in charge around here.

This picture was taken by my little elf, and insisted that it be used for the blog. This fish ornament was chosen by my son while on a shopping excursion with his Mimi at Jordan Marsh, many moons ago. He is now twenty one, so that gives you an idea of the time frame. It is funny how certain ornaments become favorites, and how they hold special memories for those who chose them. I remember being horrified at the sight of this fish when it arrived home. Back then, my tree was decorated in shades of pink which I know sounds quite frightening but at the time is seemed fine. It was the 90's, what can I say.

This is about the best picture that I could get of the tree. I only took about 300 pictures, but found it tough to work with the glare of the lights. I want to thank my little elf, because she helps to remind me about the true meaning of Christmas. THE PRESENTS!!!!




Until next time...L.

You Had Me At Cookie, part deux

This year my daughter decided to make Chocolate Snowflake cookies aka Chocolate Crinkles for her cookie swap. Either name describes the beautiful appearance of these cookies, which make a perfect holiday presentation. As the resident baker in my house during my tweens, this was a family favorite. The recipe is simple, and the results are delicious. Martha had a mint version of this cookie in the December 2011 issue of Living magazine. We decided to stick with the recipe we already had, no need to complicate matters. Did I actually say that?

An executive decision was made to double the recipe as my daughter needed four dozen cookies to bring, and swap. We obviously wanted to have extra cookies, as Dad was counting on it. We talked through the recipe about the proper way to measure dry ingredients vs. wet ingredients, etc. I am hopeful that my daughter will develop a love of baking like her Mom, so she can take over the job.

A little something for the Cookie Swap hostess.  A must have "crackle" nail polish to adorn her nails for the Christmas season.

The final presentation before heading off to the party.  I'm not referring to Mommy's enormous necklace of course, but the cookies.

Chocolate Snowflake Cookie Recipe:

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup veg. oil

4 (1ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate, melted

4 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

3/4 cups sifted powdered sugar

Combine first three ingredients in a large bowl; beat at medium speed of an electric mixer until blended. Add eggs, and vanilla mixing well.

Combine flour, baking powder and salt.  Add about one/fourth dry mixture at a time to chocolate mixture, mixing after each addition. Cover and chill dough for at least two hours.

Shape dough into one-inch balls and roll in powdered sugar. place cookies two inches apart on cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes.  Cool on wire racks. 

ENJOY!!!!


Until next time...L.

You Had Me At Cookie

cookbook

It is the cookie swap time of year as we begin the Christmas countdown. This will be the second year that my daughter has been invited to a friend's Christmas cookie swap. We will be spending time together on Sunday cooking up a storm, as she will need to make four dozen cookies to bring to the swap.

Last year she chose a somewhat non-traditional type of cookie to make for the swap. Black and whites, which happen to be her favorite. We bedazzled them with silver dragees to make them look a bit more festive. As the baker grew weary it was Mommy to the rescue, to make the fondant frosting. With their beautiful gloss like finish, these cookies look like they are fabulous, and party ready. Or, was that the baker?  The taste was out of this world, and we were lucky to have some leftovers; or unlucky depending on how you look at it.

Pictured here is the baker in all her glory, and not too tired for a sample. Check back on Monday for this year's cookie extravaganza.

Until next time...L.

I'll Have A Burlap Christmas

Since the Boxford Holiday Homes Tour, I have decided to keep the burlap theme running.  As I did not have a lot of burlap ribbon leftover from the show, I created this wreath using what I had left. I love the natural appeal of the berries and burlap, on an evergreen wreath.

An urn filled with greens from my yard is the backdrop for my winter berry branches. I decided to group the winter berry branches close together vs. distributing them throughout the design. The branches were on the short side, and they looked a bit lost spread out among the greens. I like the way this gives a punch of color, and is visually pleasing from the street.

This is just a sneak peak, at my Christmas burlap theme. Make sure to stop by to see more.



Until next time...L.