my little tree...

My little tree has always greeted family and friends at the top of the stairs when you enter my nest.  It has seen many different themes over the years and this year it holds my small collection of vintage pink and aqua ornaments...

This morning I added some vintage looking tinsel garland and took a few close ups of the ornaments...

They are all in really good condition and I did not pay more than $3 for any of them...

I also have some vintage looking Belsnickle Santas in pink and aqua...

However I think the cutest part are my two little ones under the tree...

I got this wreath years ago on sale from Pottery Barn...

My little collection of faux mercury glass that I picked up at Marshalls, TJ Maxx or Homegoods is just perfect to add some extra sparkle...

Sorry for the glare but I am not complaining about the sunshine!!  Every day, as soon as it starts to get dark, my little tree is the first to shine it's lights for me...

I think it is the perfect way to welcome my family home at the end of their day!  I am sharing today with Linda of Coastal Charm over at Nifty Thrifty Tuesday!  Have a wonderful day!

joyeux noel...

I hope you all enjoyed your weekend!  Mine was spent making my nest merry and bright for the holidays!  As I opened each tote full of decorations I realized how much my style has changed in the last year.  I also realized that I can not and do not want to keep everything that is not me any more.  I am not going to save it either just in case the kids might want it.  A few of their favorites have already been saved for their first nest so I did a major purge.  Less is more.  Of course after looking through the Jeanne d'Arc Living Christmas special edition over and over again and not wanting to spend a lot of money at this time of the year I think I did pretty good.  So today I am going to share with you my Paris Hotel Suite.  I started by going outside and gathering some pine branches and making a few small vignettes...

I simply put a few sprigs in this sweet little shoe and added one of my Nana's vintage pins.  For the table next to my big comfy white chair I went through a few tries before I ended up with this...

I picked up a couple of these petite baskets at the shop.  I keep the heart ornament on the lamp year round so I just added a little pine sprig...

This next vignette holds a little something special...

Remember my Dad's certificat de bapteme that I shared with you?  Well I found another special piece with it...

My Nana's rosary beads which I thought would be perfect with my little french catechism book.  It is so pretty ~ just look at the detail...

I also filled my little french etched glass with some petite sparkly ornaments...

This next vignette holds two little wrapped balsam sachets that were my Mom's.  You know, they still smell wonderful...

A few years ago I bought some teal bottle brush wreaths that I put on my mirrors.  I would prefer the vintage white ones but these are fine for now...

I also have a sparkly "Noel" from Wendy Addison...

The patina gets better every year with age.  I also have a pre-lit tree that I do not decorate.  I love sitting in my big comfy white chair at night, relaxing with a book and just enjoy the glowing lights...

Now I am sure there will be a few small changes here and there.  I need to find a little skirt for my tree (hopefully burlap) and I would like to fill the little basket next to it with some brown paper packages tied up with string as well as a bit more greenery.  I hope you enjoyed this first peek at the holidays in my home (as well as the song I just left in your head for the day)!!  It was during the holiday season last year, looking at every one's beautiful photos they were sharing of their homes that sealed the deal for me to start blogging myself.  I know my photography skills need....who am I kidding I don't have any photography skills...I hope to work on taking better photos this year.  Thanks so much for visiting today!  I will be sharing more of my holiday nest all week and hope you can come again!!  Joyeux Noel!!

P.S.  I forgot to mention that I am having a little sale in my Etsy shop today and tomorrow ~ 15% off everything!  

it's time...

I hope you all enjoyed your Thanksgiving!!  My day was just perfect!!  However, today is THE day...I get to start decorating for Christmas!!  Today is also Vintage Inspiration Friday over at Common Ground and I thought I would share this old mirror I bought for my mantle...

 I think you might remember I had that old rose painting there to warm up my room for the fall and winter but it really was too dark for me.  You know I love vintage white mirrors and I just love the shape of this one.  Look at all the detail and curves...

 I always start my holiday decorating with my mantle and I think this will be a beautiful backdrop this year...

We usually do not light fires in the fireplace but I always have it full of candles to light for special occasions...

Thank you Debra for hosting today ~ I am off to see some more vintage inspiration then it's time to deck the halls!  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! 

my advent calender...

Last year when I found the world of blogging and began hopping from one blog to another, I would write down some favorite projects I found hoping to recreate them some day.  When I found a blog that I really loved I would take the time to read each and every one of their archived posts.  When I found A Thing for Roses and read all the way back to 2007, I saw this beautiful advent calender that Lisa made... 

She also showed the one that her friend Joy made as well...

I just fell in love with this idea and knew I could do that too!  So, here is the one that I made...

 Let's take a closer look...

I tea stained the tags and had been collecting petite treasures to adorn each one...

I think that the vintage pin looks like a snowflake!  See the crown punched sheet music ~ it says "Jingle all the way"!

How sweet is that little face!  As you can see I kept the palette neutral using creams, whites with some sparkle...

The snowflake on day 19 was from a vintage felt hat, so cute!

I even put a Santa image on the 24th...

I had a lot of fun making this and I just love the way it came out!!  I made this one for my booth and I made another set of tags for myself that I am going to attach to the cork board over my computer.  I also have one more vintage screen to make another in case the one at the shop sells. I want to thank Lisa from A Thing for Roses for letting me share her inspiring photos.  I also want to thank Kathleen for hosting another wonderful White Wednesday!  At this time of the year when we all gather with family and friends to give thanks I want to say a big thank you, right from my heart, to all my followers, people who drop by now and then and to all the dear friends I have made on my blog adventure.  I am very thankful and happy to be part of such an amazing place!  Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!