DecorBook Classic : Christmas, 2023

Happy Holidays! Are you all "decorated?" I finally have my rooms in their holiday cheer. Before we look, I'd like to reintroduce Flora, one of my angels, decked out in Aunt Ethel's rhinestones. She's hanging out in my entryway this Christmas. But Flora's not the main story this year. Let's take a look.

This time, I took a180 degree turn in my usual decorating. Why not? You only get so many holidays. My decorating was inspired by this puddle of silk ribbon. Do you know about sari ribon? It's inexpensive, a fair trade product handsewn in India and comes from the silk leftovers of sari fabric. The color I chose was inspired by Ruthann's Thanksgiving yams and a long admiration for the classic Hermes gift box. Let's take a look.

My two reindeer (Fred Meyer, mid 1970's) needed to dress up. I first had to unwind 40+ yards of ribbon (Etsy, $13.95), press and cut in 8" lengths.

I wrapped each reindeer to create a suit of silk.

Here they are on the living room mantel. I added some faux olive tree branches and bought a bag of Cutie tangerines for more orangeness.

With some pinecones, including some from Sisters, OR, my mantel was complete.

The only new Christmas decoration is the angel (on the left) in my study. She is one of twin angels Bobby gave Ruthann and I when I was visiting over Thanksgiving.

This Italian angel rarely gets out of my study, but he's got a good spot in the guest bathroom this year.

As for a Christmas tree, my plan was to use this sweet rosemary tree but I had such an allergic reaction, it had to be returned. The tinsel tree I ended up using is on the back left.

It's an old 32" tall tinsel tree, filled with inexpensive ornaments and sari ribbons. It's going to stay on the kitchen table where I can move it around when dining. The afternoon light hits the tree just right.

I filled the base of the brass tray with pinecones. I wished I'd picked up more when I was in Sisters. Since I didn't, I had to forage in my neighborhood. Turns out, at nearby Merritt College, there's big pine trees producing beautiful cones. I walked over with two empty shopping bags and helped myself. After I brushed them off, I laid them on parchment lined cookie sheets in a 250 degree oven for an hour. Bug free!

I found a 24" tinsel tree in the basement and gave it the same sari treatment. It fit perfectly on this little end table in the living room. Do you have a tradition when decorating? I always have Shirley Temple's1937 Heidi playing in the background. Christmas snow in the Alps, the miracle of a young girl walking again, a wicked aunt and a kind grandfather. What's not to love?

In the entryway, lots of tangerines, moss and olive tree branches. This year, I added gold foil paper doilies to each mirror pane.

The gold doilies change color as the day goes on.

On the other side of entry is another mirror with foil "snowflakes" too.

That's all this year. Easy Peasy. Maybe next year, I'll get out my Santa collection and the tree with hundreds of ornaments. This year it seemed right for my rooms to have a different take on all that's "Merry&Bright." So have a happy Sunday - I hope you crank up the holiday music and enjoy your day (& Go Niners).

PS ~ I'd love to post your Christmas decor photos if you're willing to share. Please email them to me at kathleen@decorbook.com. I'll add to my annual Christmas Among Friends post, coming December 24.

(Please send photos in a minumum format of 1 mb. Otherwise, they're blurry when published.)

PPS ~ About recycled sari ribbon ~ "First and most importantly....it is RECYCLED... and it isn't perfect. There can be little knots, sometimes it has a loose end, that can easily be sewn or retied. The materials are different widths and textures...or shredded, or lots of threads...nothing is uniform, or even makes sense.

So...what is good about that, you ask?

Well, it's fun, exotic, not very expensive, and it helps the planet. It gives us a peek into another world of colors and textures, and it sparks the imagination.

Most of us shop on Etsy for unique one of a kind things, things we would never find in a big box store.

Recycled sari silk ribbon will always be one of a kind...sometimes frustratingly so...lol. But it's recycled, provides jobs for the women in India and Nepal, it's a fair trade product, there is no child labor. "

~ FeltBetter on Etsy