It's beginning to look...

...a lot like a white Christmas!  I'm linking to White Wednesday for the first time and it's exciting to see all the beautiful links out there to white wonderland. 
I've started decorating for Christmas, but it's slow going.  I'm always telling my husband 'W.I.P.' (work in progress) when he's trying to figure out what's going on.  He's a good sport about it all, and says that the Jeanne d'Arc Living magazine style is amenable to him.  I try to limit the Shabby Chic style to our daughter's room for his sake.
But Christmas is a special time, so I may get a bit carried away (?)...

(Pay no attention to the surround-sound speaker above the mirror.  At least it's white, right?)

Inspired by the December Jeanne D'Arc Living magazine last year, I made these numbered labels for 4 candles.  These are now our Advent candles.  The Madonna and Child statue was a purchase from HomeGoods.  It was gold, so I painted it white.  I got the idea from a post of Tracey's at French Larkspur.

Here's a small decorated tree on a console in our living room, next to a York, ME barn window decked out.
I made the 'NOEL' banner this year.

Santa and his friends agreed to fill in the empty corner where our live tree will reside starting this coming weekend.  They are good sports and are being so patient...

Lastly, here is one of a pair of chairs next to our fireplace.  I covered the pillows using an old sweater and decided to glam them up this year with rhinestone buckles laced with ticking fabric.  I couldn't resist the teddy bears from Ballard Designs.

Happy decorating to all!  To be continued...

Thanksgiving Table

I hope you all enjoyed your Thanksgiving celebrations.  We had a small gathering here with family.  There's a lot to be thankful for.  Hosting can be hectic, so I stayed up (too late) setting the table the evening before.  I used a simple white background for our elegant wedding china, and dried hydrangeas and fall leaves from our garden.  Fleur-de-lys punchouts from Petite Michelle Louise made the table festive.  My Dad asked if I cut those out by hand.  Ahhh...no. 
I also added Michelle's 'Merci' tag to the centerpiece as a simple message for the day. 

The sparkling cider on the buffet was wrapped in some vintage Belgium ribbon and white burlap.  I mixed the burlap, lace and a vintage striped fabric from Brimfield Flea Market as the runner.  The mirror is a Brimfield treasure from several years ago.  It was fun mixing the elegant and rustic pieces.

Now on to Christmas decor ...the happiest season of all!

Aging a Tree

Here's a quick post on a recent project I did.  I couldn't resist three cute artificial Christmas trees at the craft store A.C. Moore (99 cents each!), although they were a little too bright for my taste.  It's hard to find trees with a vintage look, and  I knew I could transform them at home.  I mixed some gold antique glaze with a little water, then brushed it on the trees with a small paintbrush.  I used a light touch, trying not to overload the branches in order to keep some silver color.  I like the result, and plan to cover the less attractive stand with a lace doily as a tree skirt.  A la 'Curious Sofa' look.  I'll show you how they end up in my Christmas decor in the next few weeks.

Here's a garish tree before its' transformation:

The difference may be subtle in these photos, but definitely noticeable in reality.  Happy decorating!

Decorating with Etsy

Recently I've decorated with some lovely Etsy finds from fellow bloggers.  Here are some pretty paper roses made by Angela Harris at her Etsy store YourAngil.

I've also used her Paris Eiffel Tower tags, hanging on an old barn window with vintage French vocabulary words from Petite Michelle Louise.

I plan to use Michelle's Fleur De Lys punch-outs scattered on my Thanksgiving table.  Thank you, Angela and Michelle!

Hello

I've been so inspired reading all of your lovely blogs out there that I just had to join in the fun.  I'm looking forward to sharing decorating and crafting ideas with you, as well as a few laughs along the way.  I may start off a bit timidly, but with hope.  It's time to join the party!

I've named this blog in honor of my talented grandmother Evelyn and great-grandmother Rose Labossiere.  They were the original seamstresses, knitters, crocheters in my family and have inspired me in so many ways.  I miss them both.

Let me just start by saying I've been planning my Christmas decor since October.  Yup, I'm one of you.  We're hosting Thanksgiving here this year, so the full-on decorating will commence after Thursday.  Until then, here are some pics from last year.

I've got a small Christmas tree project to show you for a future post.  Thanks for stopping by and Happy Thanksgiving!