Peony

Peony
Taken May 2009 by KH

Rinascimento

Rinascimento is Italian for renaissance and literally means to be reborn. In a historical context it refers to the revival of art, music, culture and learning in Europe from the 14th through the 17th centuries.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

The whimisical tree

We started off the Christmas decorating by trying to decide on a tree. Did we use our 9' artificial tree? Did we get a smaller artificial? Did we cut a fresh one?  Last summer after James attended a eco-friendly camp he went on and one about which kind of tree is more ecologically responsible.  Gotta give the boy credit for paying attention.

After much discussion on the pros and cons, we did decide on a fresh cut tree. As a family, we traipsed off to Urquharts for a fresh tree.  John was determined that we not come home with some 10' behemoth and of course James wanted every Charlie Brown tree he saw.  At one point James picked out what looked like a 5' tall round shrub. I nearly let him talk us into that tree. But in the end, we chose a 6' Canaan Fir.

Now how to decorate it? I have enough ornaments to decorate a number of trees. They're all in plastic tubs and organized by color. You know I'm OCD right? LOL. I have blues, reds, white and the proverbially popular, silver and gold. I also have tons of pine cones, fruits, gingerbread ornaments, silver metal stars, silver Wilton Armetale ornaments, mittens and whatnot that have made it into my trees over the year.

I decided to eschew with my traditional Martha Stewart-esque tree and do something more natural. Maybe natural isn't the right word. Maybe outdoorsy. I used pine cones, glittered fruits, gingerbread ornaments and a variety of mittens--some knit and some wood.  It's light and whimsical and as a found out later--tasty for dogs!
On top of the tree I put my red-headed, porcelain angel. I've never found another angel with red hair. The angel belonged to my Grandma Berwald and came to me when she passed 20 years ago. I know she purchased it in Grand Haven, MI at Lakeside Floral. The price tag reads $29.95. When did she buy it? Who knows. Did she know how special it would be to me? Probably not.  In any event, I cherish my red-headed angel and look forward to passing her on to James.

The tree held up beautifully, despite Tilly catching her tail in the lights and then attacking and dismembering one of the gingerbread boys on the tree!  Who knows what kind of tree we'll have for 2011.

1 comment:

  1. We've gone to the artificial tree because of allergies, but I miss the real tree--the smell and the idiosyncrasies. I love how you decorated your tree and the angel is beyond special.

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