Christmas in a funny OLDE House.

 Welcome to Christmas in the Hollow

 Our old house was made for Christmas. There is just something Scrooge -like about creaking stairways. Nothing reflects twinkling lights quite as nicely as wavy window glass and ceilings tall enough to accommodate a 10 foot tree, if you so desire, are ideal.

 Christmas is all around the house.

The first  Christmas tree you will see at this old house, is on the porch.

This is what I call a Charlie Brown tree. I bought it 20 years ago at a folk-art show. It was made to look very wiry and wild, crooked and primitive.

 

 I've adorned it  in birds, nests, fruits and feathers. The dozens of peacock feathers dropped by the boys this year, were perfect for this tree.

Even the chickens are in the Christmas spirit when confronted with their very own tree!

Jolly good!

No need to peek in the window..

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 Just turn the crank and ring the doorbell .It is loud enough to wake Jacob Marley!

Welcome, to Ochre Moon Manor.

 See the little bells above the window? They are "shop bells" and sound the sweetest little "tinkle, tinkle", when you open the door.

The warm pine woodwork has the perfect patina.

Please step into my parlor...

 Our house was built in the late 1890's. I have never been able to ascertain the exact date, although I have given it a thorough study.

I know that in 1899, Sears Catalog began selling "house parts".  I have  a copy of the catalog and in it are the exact window sashes, mantles, doors, stairway spindles , finials and balusters, as in this house. This is most certainly a house built with parts from the Sears Company.

 There are two fireplaces, and mantles are perfect for adding seasonal frills, but not too many.

The one above is in the parlor.

Ever since childhood, I wanted to live in an OLD house and fill it with old things.

I love our old house. It is very simple, a box really. It is a Square house with a hipped roof, large bedrooms and tall ceilings.

I'm not a purist when it comes to a particular period style. I like warm, old, worn and comfortable.  This is our  Americana room.... it is Red, White, and Blue. 

  I have stenciled the entire room and the walls all the way up the stairway, to the top of the ceiling

I can't remember if this was a Ralph Lauren Stencil or a Raymond Waites... it was one of those guys.

. ( That was a scary job, standing atop that ladder which was perched on the stairs)

  My tree of choice for this Early American room is my "Appalachia" tree, cut from our woods, it is a scrawny cedar. It is tall and skinny, just like Bob Crachet.

It is bedecked the old- fashioned way...

.

with

Dried oranges,

 (Slice them 1/4 inch, bake on greased cookie sheet at 200 for about 3 hours,

and German folded paper stars, fun and easy to make, especially for children!

 Directions abound on YouTube.

We added

Cranberries for the COLOR RED!

The tree is set upon a table near the stairway, it is so tall, that it pokes up past the parlor ceiling and up to the landing.

Little old dolls and bears make their yearly appearance neath this tree.

Toys, toys and toys, from a bygone era. No video games allowed.

 Beeswax bunnies, cloth hearts and dozens of rusty sleigh bells hang from the branches.

 

 Some one under that tree is wearing Fiona's bonnet!

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 The "Southern belles" admire the tree from their shoefly rocker.

 

Do you love snow balls?  A BEAR,  PENGUINS AND A CARDINAL, and little puzzle blocks too.

The paper mache nativity is very old,  and is a combination of sets. We have 2 Marys, 5 wise men and 2 baby Jesus! I let them take turns every other year.

 There's always an over abundance of animals as I pull them from  collections all over the house.

 I had to empty the entire bottom shelf just to get my donkeys and cows.

 You can never have too many sheep!

    Golly, I hope I am not BORING you to death!! It's just that I reallllly like to decorate for this holiday, and I have to show  SOMEBODY!

     Up the stairs and into the bathroom, we've  created a more Edwardian look, early 1900's. On the dresser is a Feather tree with Blown glass ornaments. Feather trees were the first artificial Christmas trees. They are made from turkey and goose feathers, dyed green, and wrapped round wire boughs. These were produced after the Civil War. They came in sizes from 5" to 8 feet tall.

 IF you are still with me.... and I know you have things to do, but IF you are still here, please come into my Keeping room, where we have been making POMANDERS.

 

  I had a marvelous 3rd grade teacher, who taught us how to make these in class. That classroom smelled so good!

I hope you feel as though you've stepped back in time, our home is for the nostalgic hearted folk.

         This tabletop tree is a Frasier fir, and it has my very BEST ornaments on it. Some have memories of childhood, mine and my children, others are simply delicate old beauties I have gathered from here and there. You know how it is with ornaments... they hold memories, they have meaning.

 The tree is sitting upon an antique "washing Machine"(hand cranked and made of wood and tin)

         The first candle holders to appear on trees had  a long wire and a weighted ball on the end, these appeared in the 1870's, followed by the little tin "clip-ons". Both types are clinging to these branches. Of course, we are not crazy enough to actually light the candles. I love authenticity, but I am not taking any chances.

The use of candles on Christmas trees ended in the 1920's, with the advent of ELECTRIC Christmas lights!

YOWZA!

This set still works!

 Our little tour ends with the rocking horse above a cupboard, even though I could show you 2 more trees, I will relent.

  And since you have been good enough to keep me company all through this tour, I would like to reward one of you. If you are a READER of this blog, you needn't be a follower, you can even be a lurker, but to thank those of you who read my Gazette throughout the year, I have a Christmas gift for one of you.

This is a very special gift,

 one of my paper gardens.

On Christmas day, someone will win this "Hopalong Garden under Glass".

Leave a comment, let yourself be known.

On Christmas day I will pluck a name from our 5th Christmas tree, the one I DIDN'T show you.

 In the meantime, As Tasha Tudor would say, "Take Peace, Take Joy!"