Category: Holidays

Eleanor’s First Valentine’s Day Cards

A word of warning: you’re probably not going to pin these on Pinterest. They are a three-year-old girl’s first Valentine’s Day cards and they are simple, but she and her mother are over the moon about them.

I suppose I could have staged an elaborate table full of supplies, given a step-by-step tutorial, and taken beautiful photos in the early afternoon when the daylight is best. Maybe I should have gathered polished river stones (“You rock, Valentine!”) or done something clever with paint chips. Instead, my girl and I got together over the little side table in the living room and I helped her write her name a dozen times on paper hearts. Midway through, I asked Brandon to grab my phone and take a few pictures. It was real life.

Happy Valentine’s Day, from your friend, Eleanor. (And from me, too.)

February 14, 2013
Happy Life Day

And other assorted winter holidays.

(You can thank Brandon for this one.)

December 26, 2012
Christmas Decorations (Part 2: Downstairs)

Yesterday, I showed you the upstairs, as it is decorated for Christmas. Today is all about the main floor.

I did find a better place for my DIY Colorblock Christmas trees than the dining room hutch. I split them into two groups and put half on a side table, along with a snow globe, little brass tree, and tiny deer. I have a lot of deer in the house right now. I put the others on the coffee table. I added a poinsettia (~~poisonous!~~ [oops, they’re not]) and my Eames bird (sharp little spike feet!) for the photo shoot, but those are both now safely out of reach. The kids play on the coffee table everyday, so I usually keep it completely cleared.

Fa la la la la, pink Christmas tree.

So, the pink bulbs. They’re not my favorite. I love (LOVE) my pink Christmas tree, but I’ve always wished the bulbs were clear. Well over a third of them were burnt out, and we’ve tried many times to find replacements. Last year, I called Treetopia (the company I bought the tree from) to ask about replacements, and they said that they couldn’t help. This year, I tried again because we had the magazine shoot scheduled, and I didn’t want a bunch of dark spots on the tree (since I’m sure the pink tree is what they were most interested in). Apparently you can now buy replacement bulbs, and the “lightbulb specialist” I talked to said that they were available in clear with a pink base. Huzzah! Two weeks went by, and I received my bulbs. I ordered 250 clear bulbs, I received 50 pink ones. Better than nothing, but not what I was hoping for. Thus, the onslaught of hot pink lighting. Supposedly replacements will be on their way, probably sometime in January. I like pink as much as the next person (OK, way more), but I want those clear bulbs.

That was a fun tree-light diatribe. Onward, to the dining room!

I picked up all of the mercury glass on sale from west elm, and the banner across the window is from Minted and Alt Summit. The rest of the table setting was done with what we already had on hand.

There are a couple of kid-friendly flameless candles in the corner, and a few twee vignettes in the hutch. Our stockings are hanging by the built-in, and that area has also been de-coned, as noted. There was just too much going on over there. Related: Oh look, more deer!

This is what the table will look like when we host a family brunch on Christmas Eve. Except, you know, with food. I’m angling for Chilaquiles. That’s sort of festive, with some red and green, right?

I’m looking forward to seeing all of our decorations as photographed by a pro. I’m not sure if I’ll get a sneak peek, or if I have to wait until next year when the magazine comes out. I’m eager to see it though! When I was contacted for a possible shoot, I responded “you know our tree is pink, right?”

Seriously, those clear bulbs need to get here.

December 21, 2012
Christmas Decorations (Part 1: Upstairs)

I know — it’s a little late in the game to finally be sharing our Christmas decorations! The house was photographed this year for the Christmas issue of a magazine (to come out next year, obviously), so I was focused on getting the little details right. Today I’ll share the upstairs decorations, and tomorrow the living and dining rooms.

First, here’s Eleanor’s room.

She picked out her little white tree last year, and she was happy to see its return. She decorated it herself (she really likes those spiky glitter ornaments), and was adamant about there being a star on top. We didn’t have one, so I bought a glittery star-shaped ornament to use and all was well. I probably wouldn’t have draped her bed with garland, but we had the magazine shoot and I was feeling a little extra pressure to really Christmas it up. E likes it, because “now her bed looks like a sleigh.”

(And I stand by my love for all the weird deer in my house.)

August’s room was decorated too. The little Christmas tree is usually on top of his dresser, but his room is so small and hard to photograph that I moved it over to the table (temporarily) to fit it all in one shot with the wreath and reindeer in the window. It looks really nice there — it just wouldn’t survive very long!

The library has had the silver tree for the last few years — mostly because we already own it and I figure we might as well use it. We already had the birds, and the red yarn balls are new (from IKEA). I was slightly freaking out (oh, just slightly) about there needing to be something else up there, so I invited Kathryn over for a second opinion. She suggested the white feather wreaths from west elm, and I like how they tie in to the white feather birds on the tree.

The other side of the library has had those brass deer up all year. I guess that’s strange? I added some garland and ornaments, white Christmas lights, and my giant sequin disco ball ornament things.

I think of these as the ancillary decorations. The pink tree is the real star of the house, and no doubt why we were chosen for the magazine. I’ll share the downstairs photos tomorrow!

December 20, 2012
DIY Colorblock Christmas Trees
Here’s a cute DIY project to add a little sparkle and shine to your holiday! These colorblock Christmas trees took a few hours to create, but if you simplified the palette (and skipped the glitter paint), you could finish them in about an hour. Here’s what you’ll need.

Supplies
- Kraft Paper Cones
- ScotchBlue Painter’s Tape
- Paint Brush
- Martha Stewart Crafts Paint
  Light Pink Trees: Pink Carnation (Satin), Rose Chrome (Metallic), Sugar Cube (Glitter)
  
  Dark Pink Trees: Peppermint Bark (Satin), Rose Copper (Metallic), Florentine Gold (Glitter)
  
  Green Trees: Artichoke (Satin), Citrine Gold (Metallic), Peridot (Glitter)
The smaller cones were to be glittered on one side, so I first painted the entire cone in a solid color. The larger cones were each going to be painted one one side with metallic paint (which I knew to have good coverage), so I started by taping them off and painting just half in a solid color. It’s easier to tape a cone vertically, though I’m sure these would look fantastic done horizontally if you’re up for the challenge.

Acrylic paint dries quickly. I found that by the time I was done painting the last of my six cones, the first would be ready for another coat (I did three on each). After the last coat had dried, I removed the old tape from the larger cones and retaped them to paint the other sides. The metallic paints I used looked good after just one coat, but I still did three — because I am weird and like to keep things even.

Adding the glitter… there went the whole ‘keeping things even’ idea. I lost count of how many coats of glitter paint I used! I knew they would take a while to build coverage, and I think I may have put 10-12 coats of paint on each cone. Early on in the process, I considered ditching the paint and just using glitter, but it was my hope that by using the glitter paint, each Christmas tree would be less likely to flake and leave a sparkly trail wherever she may go.

So far, so good. The glitter is staying put, and I love the two-tone effect.

I’m not sure if I’ve found the perfect place for these yet though. I like the effect of the mirror, doubling them and showing off both sides, but there’s already a lot going on in the hutch above, and with the stockings below. What do you think?

This post is a collaboration with ScotchBlue™ Painter’s Tape. To join the creative community, visit www.facebook.com/ScotchBlue.
December 18, 2012
Gingerbread Cake
This post is sponsored by Safeway stores-Safeway, Dominicks, Tom Thumb, Vons, Randalls. Tastier for the holidays!

I usually make something with chocolate when I want to bake, but yesterday I wanted something with a little more spice. Something that seemed right for the holiday season. I turned to one of my favorite cookbooks, Little Cakes by Susan Waggoner, and found a recipe for gingerbread cake. Perfect.

As I was measuring the ingredients and setting up a little mise en place, I had it in my head that I was “pretty baking.” Turns out it’s actually quite nice to make a cake that way! My assistant helped.

(She makes faces for the camera now.)

I was hoping to link to the flour scoop below for you, but I can’t find it anywhere. It’s the best measuring cup ever. The shape is perfect, and if you turn it around, you can mix with the handle. I also have matching a 1/4 cup spoon that’s labeled “sugar”.

It was easy for Eleanor to help, since everything was already measured out.

My second assistant came in just as the first was leaving. August is super into anything mechanical, so he was enthralled with the beaters. I told him we were making Mickey cake; he liked that a lot.

We baked that batter up to make a delicious gingerbread cake.

I’ve transcribed the recipe for gingerbread cake below, since Little Cakes is out of print. (It’s still available in low quantities as a remnant or used book though, so grab one while you can!)

Gingerbread Cake

From Little Cakes, by Susan Waggoner
2 cups sifted cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 large egg
2/3 cup dark molasses
3/4 cup buttermilk
PAN: 8 or 9 inch square pan, greased [I used an 8″ round springform pan with good results]
1. Combine the sifted flour, baking powder, baking soda, ginger, allspice, and salt in a bowl. Stir to combine and set aside.
2. Cream the butter. Gradually add the sugar, creaming until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the egg, then the molasses.
4. Add one-quarter flour-spice mixture, then one-third of the milk, beating until smooth after each addition. Repeat twice, ending with the last quarter of the flour-spice mixture.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula to make it level.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes.
December 13, 2012