This year's Christmas decor follows my tried and true formula: silver trees, vintage ornaments, and lots of greenery.
I jokingly told a friend I was going with "a California Christmas"—meaning no conifers and an excuse to drop some cash on cut flowers and bromeliads.
First the mantel, left to right. The large leaves are from my loquat tree. There are also some purchased eucalyptus stems and trimmings from the Stachyurus salicifolius.
In the tarnished silver goblet are Leucadendron galpinii stems, the short mercury glass cups hold candles. As I mentioned in last week's post on
the wreaths, this small one is made of stems from one of my Mahonia x media 'Marvel'.
Close-up of the leucadendron.
No new tillandsia were purchased for the making of this holiday mantel, these were all ones I had in my collection.
There are more mahonia leaves tucked in near the wall, I am really impressed with how well they're holding up with no water.
A banksia bloom, doesn't it look like a holiday ornament?
Over on the dining table there are fuzzy white protea with more eucalyptus and Leucadendron galpinii stems. There's also a small mossy "log" that Andrew and I have been jokingly calling our "bûche de Noël" (yule log).
Vintage blue ornaments scattered about.
These protea blooms are so crazy cool with their fuzzy tips.
I scored enough of them to do a few vase arrangements (remember, it's a California Christmas).
Can you make out the red glitter snowflakes in the hallway? (thru the doorway) They hang from a piece of chartreuse velvet ribbon that I've had for 25+ years. I'm so glad I saved a long piece of it.
Red bromeliad blooms instead of red poinsettia.
And with that we're back to the tree...
I love reusing the same trees and ornaments year after year, but with a slight twist, so it's never exactly the same thing twice.
Plus since I'm not buying a cut tree, or expensive swags or wreaths, I can easily rationalize the cut stems and bromeliads—or so I tell myself.
All material © 2009-2023 by Loree L Bohl. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.
Absolutely magazine-worthy! I love it! Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteYou are kind, Merry Christmas to you and your family!
DeleteUnique and lovely but I wouldn't have expected otherwise. I can't give up my cut trees - it's the closest I generally get to that lovely pine smell.
ReplyDeleteI read yesterday about how much the price of Christmas trees is going up. It's insane!
DeleteSeriously, someone need to call the good folks at Better Homes and Gardens...
ReplyDeleteI always gush over your design as well as appreciate many of the vintage and mid-century modern items you have in the house (floor lamp!!!).
Love your interpretation of a yule log!
Chavli
Ha, thank you Chavli! That floor lamp came from a Value Village in Lynnwood YEARS ago. It's been with me through apartments and houses in three cities...
DeleteVery festive. I love how you use unusual plants, greenery and bits-and-bobs to make your displays. I have followed your trend and used my tillandsias on the mantle and as a table decoration. Quite like it.
ReplyDeleteThe only difficult part of using tillandsia that way is watering them, but I find a good spraying every week keeps them happy until I can take the time to extract them and give them a soak.
DeleteBeautiful, Loree. Merry Christmas to you and Andrew!
ReplyDeleteThank you Dana, and the same to you. I plan to finally get around to sharing more of the gardens from last June's Study Weekend in the New Year!
DeleteForgot to change the anonymous to Elaine
ReplyDeleteThanks for the fyi, and I'm sorry it's such a pain to comment. I really appreciate that you do!
DeleteEvery year I look forward to seeing how you decorate for the holidays. I love the greenery and the understated beauty of it all! Happy Holidays to you!
ReplyDeleteHappy Holidays Nancy! "Understated beauty" is such a wonderful descriptor. And I really appreciate you saying you look forward to the post. It feels a little self-indulgent, so it's nice to know that someone else enjoys it.
DeleteOh, I do… believe me!
DeleteBeautiful Loree! Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteJim N. Tabor
Thank you Jim, Merry Christmas to you!
DeleteIt all looks as beautiful as I would expect from everything I've seen you do. Having a personal style makes it a lot easier to create an overall look where everything complements its neighbors. I like too many different things and am still trying to pare my holiday decor back.
ReplyDeleteI really like it, Loree. You always have a magical touch in your designs. Very festive and very classy! Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteCreativity = thinking outside of the box in my old mind. Year after year, my friend, you create thoughtful magic! Thank you... your visions always make me smile!
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to see your vision of next years gardens!!! Hugs