Favourite festive china on the sideboard ....

 I have postponed changing the conservatory sideboard for a bit because I know that the festive favourites need to make an appearance. 

We use things off that all the time & having them out, means they are in easy reach & are enjoyed year after year. There is nothing new there, much of it was gifted to me & so it is something I enjoy using. 

This was some previous ones - 2018,  2019, 2021,  2022,  2023 with the house decorated. 

The classic Christmas Tree by Spode sets the tone because it is very well loved & used.  I added the nutcrackers a few years ago when we stopped at their factory & I couldn't resist them because of my Teutonic heritage. 

The Emma Bridgwater mince pie & robin plates, bowl & jug compliment the other items very well with the same colours. 

The little red Holly & Ivy side plates are by Portmeirion & are much used for cake or mince pies & they were a gift from Ms M, my sister in law when she visited the potteries with me. 

The red flower plates & little bowls are often used for (pancake) breakfasts - they are a pattern called Christmas Rose by Emma Bridgwater too. Their festive colours are perfect over this time & they happily go with everything else. 

A small similar Christmas tree mug with whiter glaze is a vintage one I found by Kaiser (W Germany) and it hold the red spoons & forks so they are handy on the side. Kaiser porcelain

I love that there are similar patterns across cultures & how this German pattern is so similar to our Spode one, we share so much …

I know I will suddenly find things that should be on there - I am already thinking of where the nutcrackers (ones for shelled nuts) are as I always buy nuts in their shells, a tradition from my childhood. 

It is relaxing to know you have favourites at hand & that they are nice to look at too, which is a bonus. I feel slightly more festive but it is always that season of bittersweet for those who will not be around my  table, particularly my Mother who was a Christmas baby .... 

Do tell how you are preparing for the festive season, I am always inspired by the stories others share. 

Dee 🎄🌲🥮

Sew this is Christmas (trees)

It has been a few years since I managed to fit in the beautiful trees at the National Trust property near us.  One of their previous years they did the 1940's mansion 

This year the theme was All that Glitters / what is precious to you 

This maids room would have had a tiny bed, which according to the info board, would have been up in the day & only made up  (late) at night. The tree was creatively done with handsewn items relating to this. TIME was the most precious thing when you worked as a servant, the moments you could snatch to breathe without demands, the precious time you could get to your family .... 

Simple felt items & ribbons give this a pleasing simplicity 

The butlers / housekeepers space would have been a hive of activity with hand machines repairing items. Familiar things on the table like the darning mushrooms, a well stocked sewing box & threads ... 

Green & whites are always elegant together but as you get closer, you see they are made from sewing related items ... 

I love sewing & making things by hand & there was a section in the "under the stairs" part of the house (servants) with a tree dedicated to various sewing things. The ladies maid / dresser / maids would have had to turn their hands to most things, including sewing, mending & making outfits. 

The other downstairs room where they would have had their meals & time to do some hobbies at the table - knitting, sewing, music, reading, painting ... 

I love the garland by the mirror with little outfits hanging on it, so sweet 

Doilies, clothes & crochet items imaginatively displayed, some in embroidery hoops, others with ribbons sewn on ... 

Beautifully made items for this tree ... 

This is some of the tree decorations about the house that took my fancy. The legion of volunteers spend months on the planning about the mansion, a theme decided in January already then everyone sets to work on the various things. It is a wonderful place to visit each year as it gets one in the Christmas spirit .... 

The upstairs trees were very grand - all gold, sparkly & opulent; they were meant to be impressive, to make guests feel that they had arrived somewhere special. A great contrast between upstairs & downstairs ... 

Thank you for stopping by & spending some of your time here. I hope you have enjoyed this visit with me, your visits are always appreciated. 

Dee 🌲🪡🧵🎄

Decorations & a glistening tree ...

Night comes early in Winter & the little lights go on in the kitchen windows & everything is cosier with the coloured glass lit by the lights. The bowl of Christmas cookie cutters are ready too. 

The little nutcrackers are in position above one of the clocks, these ones are not as frightening as some. 

 There is nothing more lovely than the decorated Christmas tree twinkling away in the dark of our winter nights. The nights draw in now before 4pm & the lights from our tree & the inglenook fireplace garland are welcoming, warm & set the scene to relax & enjoy the run up to Christmas. 

Our tree is in shades of gold again - white, old, rose, yellow gold & it glistens amid the lights. 

I used this white dove of peace felt topper as the crowning glory this year. I have had it for several years but not used it. However, with the world being so agitated, it is appropriate to seek peace. 

This is one of several decorations throughout the house. The white twig tree (Hobbycraft) is once again decorated with my hand beaded South African ornaments- a reminder that my heritage stretches far & wide. My late mother, grandmother & great-grandmother used beads in their crochet & embroidery work, especially when making the essential beaded doilies to cover jugs of all sizes at home. I still have some of theirs & they are a reminder of the talented line I come from. 

The sideboard is redone with the lovely, mainly gifted Christmas china that is well used for the next few weeks until Epiphany in January.  We use things from the sideboard & because they are out, they will be used & enjoyed. 

I hope you have found time to surround yourself with the things that have meaning & are special to you as we mark the time of the festive season. 

Thank you for your company, do tell how your planning is going or how you will be spending the festive season. 

Dee 

Preparing our home for Christmas ....

Hi everyone,

I hope that everyone is ready for Christmas.  I love the tradition of preparing the home for the season; we all used to do it together when the girls lived at home - mince pies, sherry & boxes of decorations to choose from which was always a lovely together time.

One of my lovely students baked traditional mince pies with me & that got me thinking that I should get out the tree on a damp Monday morning when students called in ill ...

Several trips in to our loft to bring out some of the many boxes; I always go up first to rummage around the boxes & decide what might come down ...

I loved our berry colours of the year before so I decided to keep the colours again this year - the berry hues are so calming & the soft white whites just make it all glow. This corner has a cardinal painting that came to me as I was the only one who liked it ...

I love these vibrant glass decorations / baubles but they are heavy & yet quite fragile so they went on last. Don’t you just love how the light shimmers through them?

More of the stunning glass ornaments that go on last ...

The fireplace always looks ready once the large garland is attached to it. The lights which worked perfectly last year, refused to light this year so I had to replace them - I went bold with a lot of soft white ones to adorn the garland so it shimmers at night  ... 

I love these little traditional village houses, they are on a side table in the living room with some of my trees which you will remember from previous years , they are pretty this time of the year ... 

The living room looking a lot more festive so the next room to be done was the dining room which we pass through all the time so it needs to be decorated too. Its heavy pure wool purple tartan curtains have gone up again for Winter so the berry colours continue through to there ...

The sideboard holds my two statue ladies & so they have a festive hat on. I always do a tree with my hand beaded South African ornaments. They were handmade in Kwa Zulu Natal where beadwork is their speciality & I have collected these over many years, some bought by my parents & the little painted ones were gifted to me by the girls last year when they visited before Christmas. This tree is just a faux Ikea one that I use about the house regularly.

Don’t you just love these ladies of mine? They look fine now with their hats ... 

 My very talented neighbour made me this robin as a gift last year so it is joining the other bead work.

 The unusual tree that reminds me of home ...

A bright tartan inspired cloth, a traditional painting, clocks & orchids as well as both sets of maternal great grandparents - I love this room ...

 We love eating in the conservatory which joins both the living & dining room so it is a space we use a lot, being light, bright & spacious.  The starting point is always the sideboard / dresser - look over all the previous ones in the link.  These favourite bits will be used straight off the shelves & they are favourites too.

Don’t you just love the traditional colours yet the modern china of Emma Bridgewater & the Spode Christmas tree pattern which epitomise Christmas.

The main drinks trays are in the living room but some things we might need is brought to the sideboard, ready to be used. The sideboard contains all manner of glasses so it is a good place.

 A smaller table is also readied for use - a new botanical gin is my gift to myself, all lit up with some cheerful little drink inspired decorations that you have seen before ...

I love coloured glass so a selection of vintage glasses is ready by the water jug & the shaker ...

Greenery is essential so the vintage carriage light on the wall is adorned with some greenery ...

To welcome guests in to the home, I always love a fresh wreath on our front door. As I was not gifted one this year, I modified a bought one by adding additional greenery from our garden - lovely spotted laurel gives it more shape & the red twigs from the garden looks interesting. I added some wired gold wire with its little stars - a simple, inexpensive wreath which now looked rather lovely ...

It is hung on the door knocker ...

I always use some battery lights on the plants on the front porch ...

 The lights come on for 6 hours each night & just look welcoming with their warm light ...

I feel that our home is looking festive & welcoming for the family who will pop home to familiar things ...

I hope you are ready too. When I grew up in Southern Africa, our Christmas fell in mid summer with traditions suited to that climate so I have had to adjust my home & my decorating to suit this hemisphere. The dark nights lend themselves to lights & glistening trees; we also do way more preparation than they do because it is often spent around a pool with friends  ...

Thank you for stopping by in this busy season, may you have a blessed time as you prepare for Christmas.
Dee ~💕~