A Little Bit of Winter Sparkle

     I'm not actually working on any major projects this time of year. I think many of us are just trying to keep up and get things done in time for the holiday. Any little "tweeks" I'm doing are simply taking down one season and putting up the next. Our house doesn't have a fireplace...therefore no mantel. We've had fireplaces in our homes since the late 70's, so we not only miss the cozy fire, I miss the mantel to decorate. I tend to use the top of my china cabinet and my library tables to display seasonal things.

Hand-carved wooden trees from a little shop in Nashville, TN.

A Crate and Barrel moose that my

husband just "had to have" a few years ago.

Surprise! What I thought were white lights on

the little brush trees...aren't!

A silly little snow angel.

A sparkly sea urchin.

A snowy white church.

Much loved Christmas stories.

All tucked among fresh greens.

Welcome to my Winter Wonderland!

Please don't forget to enter my Tate's Bakeshop

Cookbook and Cookies Giveaway.

Click Here!

I am joining Susan @ Between Naps on the Porch for Deck The Halls

If you have never visited her blog, you are really missing something!

I'm also joining Mary @ Little Red House for Mosaic Monday

The Lighting of the Tree and a Winner!

     Yesterday I showed you a hint of the color theme I'm using in my home this Christmas. Today, I will show you the tree! My hope for the tree this year was that it would almost have that "wedding cake" look to it. I decided to use silver, white and hints of gold plus lots of sparkle to capture the feeling I wanted. I started with my 7 foot tree and 1300 white lights (yes, it took hours to get them on the tree). Of course I had to create a new topper for the tree. A complete tutorial on how I make my "strange" toppers can be found in my sidebar.

I was waiting for the sun to shine so I could get

some good daytime shots of the tree, but there

 is no sun in my part of the country this week.

     The bows are double layers of two different wired silver ribbons. I use four bows to surround the tree topper for a more complete look. This year I didn't use long streamers on my bows as I wanted that "cake topper" look. There is a tutorial for making "florist" bows on my sidebar.

The gifts are wrapped in silver and gold,

with ribbon in the reverse color.

I used two of these silver and gold poinsettias

in the topper and then, I just stuck one

in the tree for added interest.

     I love to add sprigs of something each year. This year I loaded the tree with ice crystals. For a tree skirt I used shimmery silver and gold fabric, which you can no longer see because the gifts are covering them.

I am joining Susan @ A Southern Daydreamer for

Outdoor Wednesday (we can go indoors during Dec.)

I am also joining Kathleen @ Faded Charm for White Wednesday

Please take time to visit our hostesses today.

As for the winner in the Progresso Soup Giveaway

was number Sherry @ Country Wings in Phoenix!

Congratulations Sherry!

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree...

I love a decorated Christmas tree. I don't really love decorating it, but I do love picking out the color combinations, the "stuff" that will make up the look I'm going for and the finished product. In a recent post, I gave a step by step on tree decorating...so, I won't do that again here.

We aren't actually here for Christmas, so we just put up one tree these days. It is about 7-7 1/2 feet tall. This year, I put on 1200 white lights. That is a lot of lights, but it really makes the tree look pretty. It almost didn't need ornaments. I decided to use a brown, bronze and aqua theme this year, with hints of gold. I actually have expresso leather sofas, and use aqua pillows and accent pieces...so for once, the tree matches the rest of my things.

I always put things on the tree in layers. The aqua icicles went on first, then the glittery brown snowflakes. I added lots of "ice" frosted twigs and then I started putting on the actual ornaments.

I love the bronze glittered twig/stick things (that is a technical term) which went on after the ornaments. I just put them randomly throughout the tree, along with some golden poinsettias.

I wouldn't want anyone to think that I wasn't sentimental. While the ornaments that the kids made are all nicely boxed in the basement, I did add a few hints of my Disney daughter, who doesn't get to come home during the holidays.

I explained in my other tree post that I like my tree topper to be a bit strange. I like things to stick up and out every which way. I think I accomplished that this year.

Overall, I'm happy with the way it turned out. The brown/bronze was a new color for me this year. I had to start from scratch and I would have liked about another 50 pieces of stuff to add to the look. I do notice that the browns don't show up against the green as well as some colors I've used, but I still like the look. What do you think?

I am participating in Tuesday's Deck The Halls this week. Susan @ thoughtsfromovertherainbow is our hostess. Please check out her site for links to the other participants. I'm sure we will see some wonderful decorations.