Tag: Christmas decor

The Murphy ‘Halls Are Officially Decked!’

Carol 17 Comments

Photos today are courtesy of my nephew James.

As many of you know, I am selling my house and buying a condo. I just have a few Christmas items in the living room to keep me happy, but I won’t be putting up a tree and doing all the decorating I normally do. Right now there are 2 stacks of packed boxes in the living room with more to come. Each stack is as tall as me. Same in the dining room. An inspector came last Monday at 12:45. Last Tuesday an appraisor came at noon. Sigh! I’ll be so happy when this is all over. I move to Lakeland on January 10th. Today’s photos are courtesy of my nephew James up in Michigan. Thank you James!

Read More

The Nativity Vignette

Carol 9 Comments

For to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. —Isaiah 9:6-7

Christmas, the day we remember the birth of Jesus, is almost here. A baby placed in a feeder holding food for animals because his parents did not have money. Now the word Nativity brings to mind pretty sets of Mary, Joseph, and Jesus with animals. You had to be poor to sleep in the structure with the animals. Today I’m sharing a beautiful vintage nativity I discovered at a thrift store.

Read More

Adding Winter Wonderland With Vignettes

Carol 15 Comments

No matter the size of your home, a lot of Christmas decorating can be achieved with vignettes.  I’ve lived in small apartments and condos  as well as a larger home. Whether you have room for a big Christmas tree or just a small table top tree, much of your decorations can be achieved with small arrangements on tables, bookcases, and shelves. I love using small scenes to fill a room. This holiday season my living room is a blue and silver Winter Wonderland.

Read More

Poinsettia & Angel Centerpiece

Carol 15 Comments

The poinsettia was brought to the United States from Mexico around 1828 by Joel Roberts Poinsett. An avid gardener and amateur botanist, Poinsett was appointed as the first US Minister to Mexico in 1825. While in Mexico, Poinsett observed this species flowering and sent plants back to his greenhouse in Charleston. Until that time, this species was unknown outside of its native range of Mexico and Guatemala, where it was referred to as flor de nochebuena (Christmas Eve flower). Once introduced to the U.S., it quickly gained the common name poinsettia, but is also known by many other common names including Christmas flower, Christmas star, lobster plant, painted leaf, and Mexican flame leaf.

This species has a reputation for being extremely poisonous. While there is little doubt that the milky latex of poinsettias can cause irritation to the skin, eyes, mucus membranes, or when consumed, to the digestive system, poinsettia is apparently one of the less toxic species of Euphorbia. Of reported human exposure, there were no fatalities.

Source:  The Neighborhood Gardner, University of Florida

Poinsettia is toxic to cats and dogs and causes gastric distress.

For the last few days, I’ve been adding vignettes to my home. Yesterday I arranged a poinsettia plant, a vintage light, and a cloth angel on the dining room table. It’s a farmhouse poinsettia & angel centerpiece.

Read More