Holiday Decorating Ideas

luvsginger · 11-25-2008, 12:54 PM

I thought it would be nice to share our decorating ideas and tips.
I love candles and love to have them throughout the house on special days including Christmas. One thing I do is place a bag of fresh cranberries in a glass bowl filled with water and floating candles. It is simple, elegant and festive.

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myrosiedog · 11-25-2008, 01:27 PM

I have a magnolia tree and I see the leaves featured in a lot of decorations and hope to do that this year. I also have holly this year with berries. How long do you think these things will last in the house? If I don't put them in water? Or do I need to buy something where they will go in water?

doxie · 11-25-2008, 08:02 PM

MRD: My mother always decorates the mantle with magnolia leaves and holly from her yard. I'd guess that she does it about 2 weeks ahead of Christmas and everything stays green with no water. She also lightly coats the magnolia leaves with vegetable oil (using a paper towel) - I think that helps to keep them shiny.

We always get a real tree and a live fir wreath for the front door. I also plant a bowl of narcissus or "paperwhites" bulbs because I LOVE the way that they smell.

luvsginger · 11-25-2008, 09:36 PM

Doxie, I love fragrant flowers!! What do you mean by "planting" a bowl of bulbs? Do you plant them indoors? I am in northern California, are they seasonal?

livin4reality · 11-25-2008, 10:31 PM

OH I know the answer to planting bulbs. Actually it is called "forcing bulbs"

So you go to a place that sells flower bulbs. I put mine in a shallow dish (think pie plate) and fill that with pea gravel. Then tuck the bulbs into the gravel. Keep water on the gravel andd in about 6 weeks you should have flowers. They make fancy vases for forcing bulbs but this is the way I do it.

luvsginger-your candle/cranberry combo sounds lovely. I'm going to copy it.

doxie · 11-26-2008, 10:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by livin4reality

OH I know the answer to planting bulbs. Actually it is called "forcing bulbs"

So you go to a place that sells flower bulbs. I put mine in a shallow dish (think pie plate) and fill that with pea gravel. Then tuck the bulbs into the gravel. Keep water on the gravel andd in about 6 weeks you should have flowers. They make fancy vases for forcing bulbs but this is the way I do it.

luvsginger-your candle/cranberry combo sounds lovely. I'm going to copy it.

That's exactly what I do too.

And - a lot of places sell "kits" that have bulbs/gravel/cute bowl/everything you need. I've given those as gifts before. I bought one for myself several years ago (I think at Restoration Hardware) and the bowl is square, beveled glass. Now, I just buy the bulbs every year and plant them in that. Two years ago, I was deathly ill during the holidays and my husband surprised me by going out and buying the bulbs and planting them in my bowl. Very nice of him and I WAS very surprised when pink tulips started blooming instead of paperwhites.

Those are now planted in the yard.

livin4reality · 11-29-2008, 04:42 PM

Ah that is cute Doxie. Sounds like you have a good guy there.

In our cul-de-sac (about 9 houses) someone left everyone a metal cutout sign that says "merry" on it. They stuck them in front of everyone's mailbox as a surprise. Kind of quirky...but we're all putting them out again this year.

Harmony2000 · 11-29-2008, 05:33 PM

I've been watching HGTV alot lately and they are doing all sorts of specials on holiday decorating. Some of them are really interesting.

One I found funny. Last year we put up a white tree and decorated it in shades of blue - lights, balls, birds, feathers - (we are avid birders and my 5 year old son loves the color blue so it was a very personal tree to us). My sister in law (who is a you know what) looked at it and started laughing and called it a "Charlie Brown" tree because it wasn't real and it wasn't green. I thought it was beautiful lol.

So I felt rather vindicated when on HGTV they said that the trend this year is trees painted white, black, or even metallic with contrasting (all one color) decorations. And that feathers are huge. HA! We were ahead of the trend.

So far we are the only ones with any decorations up, I think the economy is affecting everybody because for Halloween there was nothing up other than ours. Normally the whole neighborhood is done up. Hopefully Christmas will be different and more people will decorate.

HGTV also said that teal and copper together are big this year, I thought that tree actually looked really pretty and might try that out.

myrosiedog · 11-30-2008, 01:08 AM

I saw a pink feather tree last year at Michael's. I wanted to buy it so badly. But it was $40 for a 2 1/2 foot tree and I just couldn't justify it.

I collect Flamingos and I have a lot of Flamingo stuff and a LOT of Flamingo ornaments, to that pink feather tree would have been fabulous.

I used to do theme trees, but we've collected so many different ornaments over the years through vacations, friends, child making them, etc. that our theme is eclectic now.

I do do a 3 foot Wizard of Oz tree. But right now I don't know if I will put it up or not. I got the big tree up, but it's still naked as I'm not allowed to do the lights or garland. So I decorated the rest of the house, finished up the unpacking (still had a few boxes of things that needed hanging and stuff). I dont think we'll do much outside. I hung garland and wreaths on the porch, but our outdoor lights are not all working and we can't really do the icicle lights this year as we don't have a ladder tall enough to reach the roof in this house.

I think that having just moved in Mid. Oct. is affecting my mood about decorating much. I feel like I just got the house pulled somewhat together and then had to get out Christmas. I just went through my stuff and pulled out the old favorites. But it still looks nice, even if it's not all my usual stuff.

I saw a gold tree in Target yesterday and have saw the black ones last year. I think a black one with one color on it would be stunning.

Missyboxers · 11-30-2008, 01:23 AM

My dad and I did the outside lights today. We added a new tree to the repertoire. We have two pine trees which are probably about 5-6 years old, and we had to get a little bit creative to get the lights on there last year. This year, we used a telescoping boat hook to reach the top. Took some patience and some time, but it looks great, and my dad joked that he was glad to finally get some use out of the boat hook.

I'm buying my tree for my apartment tomorrow-- it'll cost half as much here as it would in the city, so I'm pretty excited about that. And I can't wait to get it up- I love when the apartment smells all pine-y.

11-25-2008, 12:54 PM	#1
luvsginger Happy New Year!!! Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Party Land Posts: 1,298	Holiday Decorating Ideas I thought it would be nice to share our decorating ideas and tips. I love candles and love to have them throughout the house on special days including Christmas. One thing I do is place a bag of fresh cranberries in a glass bowl filled with water and floating candles. It is simple, elegant and festive. __________________ I should have known you'd know where to find the boys and the booze.

11-25-2008, 01:27 PM	#2
myrosiedog FORT Fogey Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Nat'l Championship bowl bound. Go Gators! Age: 46 Posts: 12,060 Blog Entries: 7	Re: Holiday Decorating Ideas I have a magnolia tree and I see the leaves featured in a lot of decorations and hope to do that this year. I also have holly this year with berries. How long do you think these things will last in the house? If I don't put them in water? Or do I need to buy something where they will go in water? __________________ Emancipate yourself from mental slavery; none but ourselves can free our minds. - Bob Marley Que me amat, amet et canem meum (Who loves me will love my dog also)

11-25-2008, 08:02 PM	#3
doxie Hammin' it up Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Walking in a Wiener Wonderland Posts: 881	Re: Holiday Decorating Ideas MRD: My mother always decorates the mantle with magnolia leaves and holly from her yard. I'd guess that she does it about 2 weeks ahead of Christmas and everything stays green with no water. She also lightly coats the magnolia leaves with vegetable oil (using a paper towel) - I think that helps to keep them shiny. We always get a real tree and a live fir wreath for the front door. I also plant a bowl of narcissus or "paperwhites" bulbs because I LOVE the way that they smell. __________________ Click here to automatically donate FREE kibble to homeless dogs and cats in shelters.

11-25-2008, 09:36 PM	#4
luvsginger Happy New Year!!! Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Party Land Posts: 1,298	Re: Holiday Decorating Ideas Doxie, I love fragrant flowers!! What do you mean by "planting" a bowl of bulbs? Do you plant them indoors? I am in northern California, are they seasonal? __________________ I should have known you'd know where to find the boys and the booze.

11-25-2008, 10:31 PM	#5
livin4reality smooshy face! Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: jayhawk land Posts: 1,765	Re: Holiday Decorating Ideas OH I know the answer to planting bulbs. Actually it is called "forcing bulbs" So you go to a place that sells flower bulbs. I put mine in a shallow dish (think pie plate) and fill that with pea gravel. Then tuck the bulbs into the gravel. Keep water on the gravel andd in about 6 weeks you should have flowers. They make fancy vases for forcing bulbs but this is the way I do it. luvsginger-your candle/cranberry combo sounds lovely. I'm going to copy it. __________________ "The food I encountered every time we went to eat at someone else's house instilled a deep and insurmountable neurosis regarding what horror I might encounter at an unfamiliar dinner table. I still tense up just thinking about the assorted lard infused or boiled to mush atrocities doled out by the Shakespearean-quality trio of Cockney belles." __________________

11-29-2008, 04:42 PM	#7
livin4reality smooshy face! Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: jayhawk land Posts: 1,765	Re: Holiday Decorating Ideas Ah that is cute Doxie. Sounds like you have a good guy there. In our cul-de-sac (about 9 houses) someone left everyone a metal cutout sign that says "merry" on it. They stuck them in front of everyone's mailbox as a surprise. Kind of quirky...but we're all putting them out again this year. __________________ "The food I encountered every time we went to eat at someone else's house instilled a deep and insurmountable neurosis regarding what horror I might encounter at an unfamiliar dinner table. I still tense up just thinking about the assorted lard infused or boiled to mush atrocities doled out by the Shakespearean-quality trio of Cockney belles." __________________

11-29-2008, 05:33 PM	#8
Harmony2000 Crazy Shutterbug Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 1,817	Re: Holiday Decorating Ideas I've been watching HGTV alot lately and they are doing all sorts of specials on holiday decorating. Some of them are really interesting. One I found funny. Last year we put up a white tree and decorated it in shades of blue - lights, balls, birds, feathers - (we are avid birders and my 5 year old son loves the color blue so it was a very personal tree to us). My sister in law (who is a you know what) looked at it and started laughing and called it a "Charlie Brown" tree because it wasn't real and it wasn't green. I thought it was beautiful lol. So I felt rather vindicated when on HGTV they said that the trend this year is trees painted white, black, or even metallic with contrasting (all one color) decorations. And that feathers are huge. HA! We were ahead of the trend. So far we are the only ones with any decorations up, I think the economy is affecting everybody because for Halloween there was nothing up other than ours. Normally the whole neighborhood is done up. Hopefully Christmas will be different and more people will decorate. HGTV also said that teal and copper together are big this year, I thought that tree actually looked really pretty and might try that out.

11-30-2008, 01:08 AM	#9
myrosiedog FORT Fogey Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Nat'l Championship bowl bound. Go Gators! Age: 46 Posts: 12,060 Blog Entries: 7	Re: Holiday Decorating Ideas I saw a pink feather tree last year at Michael's. I wanted to buy it so badly. But it was $40 for a 2 1/2 foot tree and I just couldn't justify it. I collect Flamingos and I have a lot of Flamingo stuff and a LOT of Flamingo ornaments, to that pink feather tree would have been fabulous. I used to do theme trees, but we've collected so many different ornaments over the years through vacations, friends, child making them, etc. that our theme is eclectic now. I do do a 3 foot Wizard of Oz tree. But right now I don't know if I will put it up or not. I got the big tree up, but it's still naked as I'm not allowed to do the lights or garland. So I decorated the rest of the house, finished up the unpacking (still had a few boxes of things that needed hanging and stuff). I dont think we'll do much outside. I hung garland and wreaths on the porch, but our outdoor lights are not all working and we can't really do the icicle lights this year as we don't have a ladder tall enough to reach the roof in this house. I think that having just moved in Mid. Oct. is affecting my mood about decorating much. I feel like I just got the house pulled somewhat together and then had to get out Christmas. I just went through my stuff and pulled out the old favorites. But it still looks nice, even if it's not all my usual stuff. I saw a gold tree in Target yesterday and have saw the black ones last year. I think a black one with one color on it would be stunning. __________________ Emancipate yourself from mental slavery; none but ourselves can free our minds. - Bob Marley Que me amat, amet et canem meum (Who loves me will love my dog also)

11-30-2008, 01:23 AM	#10
Missyboxers FORT Fogey Join Date: May 2004 Location: NYC Age: 25 Posts: 2,119	Re: Holiday Decorating Ideas My dad and I did the outside lights today. We added a new tree to the repertoire. We have two pine trees which are probably about 5-6 years old, and we had to get a little bit creative to get the lights on there last year. This year, we used a telescoping boat hook to reach the top. Took some patience and some time, but it looks great, and my dad joked that he was glad to finally get some use out of the boat hook. I'm buying my tree for my apartment tomorrow-- it'll cost half as much here as it would in the city, so I'm pretty excited about that. And I can't wait to get it up- I love when the apartment smells all pine-y.