One of the reasons I just love the Christmas season is that everything is just so festive. Lots of bright colors and lots of wonderful color. Add beautiful handmade Christmas decorations and you have a perfect season.
In my house we have three fireplaces that I have loved decorating for over 20 years. I used to decorate all three of them, but that got to be a bit much so I scaled it back to the family room fireplace and mantle and the dining room fireplace and mantle.
Here's what the Christmas decorations in the dining room look like this year.
The focal point of the dining room is the large Rumsfeld fireplace and mantle. In front of the fireplace I placed the following Christmas decorations:
1) On the left side is a tall silk floral Christmas arrangement I made several years ago.
2) Next to this floral is the handmade wood rocking doggie that my brother made me years ago and sitting on top of her is Adrienne, who is one of my vinyl dolls.
3) In the center of the fireplace sits "Theo" who is the grand-master of all our holiday events.
4) To the left of Theo is the large Mrs. Clause wood doll that hubby and I made years ago.
5) To the right of Theo is the large Santa wood doll that hubby and I made years ago.
The large Santa and Mrs. Claus wood and cloth dolls were actually made to decorate the area just outside my mother's apartment. They were both created based on Shari's Country Classic patterns by Shari Johnson. Santa was supposed to be holding a bear and a list and Mrs. Claus was supposed to be holding a doll and small bear in the pocket of her apron. I opted to have my Mrs. Claus holding a basket filled with Christmas cookie molds and Santa just holding a "naughty or nice" list.
When my mother lived in an apartment building for senior citizens each and every year she and I would decorate an area just outside her apartment for Christmas. She loved it as did all her neighbors. Many of them commented to her about how much they loved our display.
Because Mrs. Claus never knows when she has to drop everything she's doing to bake Christmas cookies for the elves she is carrying the cookie molds around with her.
Santa and Mrs. Clause have had their place in our dining room at Christmas time for over 20 years. Once in awhile Mrs. Claus would even help my mother and I bake Christmas cookies. Santa never helped. He was always too tired .....
6) In the front of Theo are three silk floral poinsettia arrangements I made years ago.
For the dining room mantle this year I decided to hang three of the Christmas stockings I made several years ago for myself, hubby, and my "beloved" Bud. They've been stored in containers in the basement for close to a decade but this year I decided they should take their place where they always were years ago: hanging from the dining room mantle pegs.
In between the stockings are two wired ribbon bows I made years ago because the ribbons said "Joy."
Placed above the mantle and in the center of the brick wall is a silk floral spray I made over twenty years ago.
I placed the red/green metal trees with glitter that I found years ago at a Michaels store to the left and right of the silk floral spray on the center of the mantle. In between those two trees are the "Home For Christmas" cross-stitch picture I made, the artificial Christmas tree I re-made several years ago and my new custom designed Christmas wood block sign decoration.
My Mill Hill Buttons & Beads Home For Christmas Cross-Stitch
Why Throw Something Out When You Can Re-Design It! - My Artificial Christmas Tree How-To
Why Throw Something Out When You Can Re-Design It! - My Artificial Christmas Tree How-To
On the left side of the mantle are the mixed media Lady Snow Belle snow-lady art doll I made this past summer, the snowman nutcracker decorations hubby and I bought years ago, one of the Wee Winter Whimsies angel art doll I made from the Artful Gathering class by Hally Levesque, and the gold nutcracker hubby and bought years ago.
On the right side of the mantle are the mixed media Lady Maisy snow-lady art doll I made this past summer, one of the Winter Whimsies angel art doll I made from the Artful Gathering class by Hally Levesque, one of the mixed media Santa art dolls I made this past summer - Santa Sam, and the white nutcracker hubby and I bought years ago.
On the other side of the dining room I decided to place the "North Pole" wood sign hubby made decades ago, the wood reindeer planter that hubby and I found at a local craft show decades ago, the large silk floral arrangement that I made for outside my farmer's porch years ago, and the Olde St. Nick and Mrs. St. Nicholas cloth dolls I made years ago and designed e-patterns for.
Over on the other side of the dining room I placed two of the Pine-cone Baskets I had made years ago, the "Yikes! Santa" doll I made years ago and designed an e-pattern for, one of the needle felted Santa's I made during my needle felting adventure - Richard The Red Santa, and the The Scottish Santa I made years ago.
I was pleased with the way the Christmas decorations in the dining room came out this year and hope you liked seeing them.
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