Our Christmas *hOmE*…..{the BIG tour}…...

** If you are visiting from Unskinny Boppy, WELCOME!**

Welcome to our Forever*Cottage

Christmas home 2013.

Our home is located beautiful Portland, Oregon.

We are lucky to be able to have the opportunity

to get a Forest Service permit each year to go

and cut a natural Christmas tree.  This year, however,
our girls really wanted the experience of picking out a more

manicured tree at a tree lot.  So the tree you 

see below is the natural tree I insisted we get

for our dining room and the fuller tree in our

living room you will see is our tree lot tree.

For the most part I really keep it pretty simple when

decorating for the holidays - I love using natural elements -

paperwhites, poinsettias, boxwood wreaths and natural garland.

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The 'star' of our dining room this year is the new dining

table that my very handy dad made for me!

It is made from knotty alder and finished with both

a mix of stain and watered down chalk paint to

give it the perfect aged patina!

I kept the decorations on our dining room tree very simple -

glittered pinecone ornaments I found at 

World Market and snow flakes I picked up at

Target a few years ago.  The vintage olive

bucket was bought with this use in mind - I love

using it as a tree stand {I had to get very creative

in order to make it work!}.

Our home is 'great room' style so the kitchen/family room/dining room

are all one large space.  I do have a formal living room

where we have our family tree and where we will 

open Christmas gifts on Christmas Eve - as has been

our family tradition since I was a little girl.

{Santa leaves gifts for Christmas morning.}

I am always a sucker for interesting poinsettias - I love these

cream and pink ones!

This vintage bench in our kitchen is a favorite spot

for my girls to do homework or talk to me when

I am working in the kitchen - I recently had a 

custom cushion made for it which makes it even

more cozy!

Our mantle is a bit busy but festive…...

The glittered vintage Santa's I have had for years.  I paired them

with other stuff I have - vintage brass candlesticks, a vintage box and books.

The grain sack stockings are new this year - I added my girls' initials when I found these

at Target - of all places!  

My greens are real - the boxwood wreath is getting a little dry

and the greens on the mantle were just added today - I am hoping

they make it through the holidays - I just can't do the faux greenery!

My gold stocking holders were formerly red Pottery Barn Kids

holders from YEARS ago - they were meant to hold a photo

but I sprayed them gold this year and then the glass

with chalkboard paint and used a chalk marker to

write my girls' names instead.

Amen…….

I also used the same chalk marker to write a message

on my vintage French bamboo mirror in our entry….

The pom pom garland is from West Elm.

And of course, paperwhites add the perfect 

amount of holiday cheer!

Ah…here's our lovely tree lot tree.

Looks like a Christmas tree should look -

my 11 year old is happy cause 'it is so embarrassing

to have a sparse Charlie Brown tree, mom".

My manger scene got tucked into my table top greenhouse - replacing

the dying sedum that were there before the holidays…..

Along with the mantle greenery, the coffee table in the great room has

also been decked out in some holiday greens. Love these

mini-cypress trees that you can pop into vintage

vases or inexpensive Ikea pots.

I keep my kitchen simple….I am OCD that way….

It is likely that if you come to our home you will be 

greeted by these two knuckleheads - they sort of like

to hang out on the front porch watching the world go by….

Thanks a bunch for visiting!  

MeRry ChIsTmAs to YoU aNd yOuRs!