~simple enamelware centrepiece~

Well I'm back online after 3 days of computer woes, I was able to visit my bloggy friends from my ipad, but have all my photos stored on our main computer.

So with just five sleeps to go I wanted to show you the really simple centrepiece I put together for our kitchen table.

I picked up this awesome enamelware sometime this past year, and when it came to market time I pulled it out of my stash, knowing it would be awesome to use on the table. It's a shallow rectangular shape and just perfect as a centrepiece.

Filled it with a bunch of cut greens, just regular fir clippings. I'll probably have to refresh them before Christmas, they dry out really fast inside the house. Oh, and a few sprigs of fresh holly of course!

Tucked in some shiny red ornaments I've had for years, as well as some cute white pinecone ornaments. I'm noticing a few touches of red popping up in my Christmas decor this year. We have the kid's uber-colorful tree next to this table, so the red fits in just fine here!

We started that tradition some years ago, the kids just have SO many decorations so we put up a fake tree in early December and they get to decorate it however they want. Then later in December we cut a family tree for the living room, which Mamma has a bit more say in decorating:-)

{This year I have been really big on family involvement however, so decorating it was a combined effort....}

Anyway, back to the centrepiece!

Tucked in some candles!

I like these plain white candles from Target, they are truly white, fragrance-free and reasonably priced. They come in a set of 3.

And there you have it, simple but christmasy.

linking up to Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

Tracey

~christmas decorating on the porch 101 - christmas wreath~

next exciting installment on my porch christmas decor!!

~keeping it super simple and natural this year~

here's my wreath ~ okay i admit i cheated

i bought the fresh wreath at costco

 and cut off the awful fake berries (sorry if you liked them!)

then I added my own fresh fir clippings to fill it out

tucked in some holly here and there

and voila!

~a christmasy welcome~

Tracey

PS. see my previous posts for the full series of ~christmas decorating on the porch 101~

~christmas decorating on the porch 101 - decorating with greenery~

i have this old mailbox that lives on my porch year round, i simply adore it

you might think i'm strange but we don't have these mailboxes where i live

so this year i opened it up and have greenery and holly spilling out

see the cute red flag

and my vintage tin picnic hamper peeking in the background

it has black numbers on the other side

now this wasn't my own idea, saw it somewhere else (can't remember where...)

anyway, decorating with greenery 101:

~ i always carry garden clippers in my car, i carry them year round, you never know when or where inspiration will strike

~bring garden gloves - for the cold and it can be prickly

~ cut more than you think you will need, i always think i have tons and use it all!

~ ask permisson if you plan to cut from someone else's property - i'm usually too chicken to do this so i just find random trees on open land, which is getting harder each year as the area i live in is being rapidly developed

~ take a moment to smell the crisp air, notice the birds and squirrels and yes, even the sticky sap on your hands! this year a little robin sat watching me the whole time i cut holly, so cute

~ a small stepladder is handy, sometimes I see a great tree but by the time i've navigated ditches etc. i just can't reach the good stuff. i usually drag someone along for the ladder part, like i said, i'm chicken!

~don't cut from the lower branches, you know, like at dog's level....

~ my outside greenery lasts the whole season, inside i have to refresh a couple of times

~finally, smile sweetly when your family roll their eyes at you!!

Tracey

PS. see my previous posts for the full series of ~christmas decorating on the porch 101~