Christmas Browsing

As part of my planning for Christmas, and to the actual run up to Christmas itself, I visit You Tube.  This happens more often at this time of year to see what Christmas items are available in the shops both here in the UK and in the USA.  A lot of the time I cannot afford items, but it is nice to browse and if at all possible to buy one or two things new in a year, which are then added to my Christmas stash both decorative and practical. There are lots of lovely things available and you cannot always have everything. 

From what I perceive in the States the current trend is a Ralph Lauren styling theme this year for Christmas decorating.  This styling seems to be based on more of what we would call a traditional Christmas theme here in the UK incorporating greens, golds, lovely dark reds and cream colourways as well as plaids, crystal and vintage items.

For many of us here in the UK, our decorations are long-lived and well used, built up a little at a time, year by year.  Many of them have sentimental reasons and many of them have special memories attached to them.  Some of the decorations have been inherited, some of the decorations are unique.  Many of mine are Mercury glass both new and vintage and very much part of a larger collection.  Christmas baubles and decorations were "Treasures" in our family that were bought out year in year out and bought a bit of magic to the holiday season.  My parents always made Christmas "fun", full of magic and love.  Putting up the tree was a celebration in itself, making the Christmas cake and Christmas pudding and stirring the pudding or cake mix and making a wish.  Finding the silver threepenny bits in the Christmas pudding, pulling crackers and the chocolate ornaments in tinsel foils all part of family traditions.  We could not help ourselves to these, we had to wait to be given them.

I think when it comes to Christmas decorating my style is "Traditional", built up of many layers and different items and different textures which have been accumulated over a long period of time.

One of the brands that I am interested in from the USA is the Pottery Barn brand, especially for the "holiday season" which covers a multitude of home elements.  I have been particularly taken with their Christmas quilts for the past couple of years as they have had some beauties.  Also with the Gingerbread collection of celebration pieces; I particularly love the Santa Sleigh and Reindeer ornament.  I have found each year's Christmas collections to be gorgeous.

I am pleased to see that Pottery Barn have opened a branch in the UK and that they have some of their Christmas collection available in the UK. Their items although beautiful would be a considered purchase, as they are expensive but visually they are stunning.  I do like to look though as it often inspires creative projects for me at home.

Their website link is here:

Pottery Barn Website

They are also on Instagram.

Pottery Barn Instagram Link

There are also lots of other You Tubers who regularly post on their Christmas decorating projects and show simple ways of making suitable decorations for the home that are easy but look stunning from some very unlikely items as well.  A lot of us are visual learners (myself included) and to see someone actually create something for their home for Christmas makes me want to play and often simplifies the techniques needed to produce something like it for yourself at home.

However, a lot of the reason I actually look at these posts is more for inspiration.  We all do things differently and it is nice to introduce new ideas, new ways of doing things, or indeed different types of decorations.  It is also nice to get an idea and then craft or create something at home.  For me that is where a lot of the pleasure is in Christmas these days.  It is where you put your heart into making something different for my home, something that is not mass produced.  Crafting soothes me and helps me to relax.  I am also being present in the moment when I craft and actually producing something for my Christmas home when I can down tools and actually play and enjoy myself.

Over the next few weeks I hope to be able to get down to some serious crafting for the Christmas season preparing a little at a time although in reality I will not be able to achieve everything that I would like to. A lot of that will happen during the coming year.  However, I will do what little I can for my own self-preservation and peace of mind.  This first week in November seems to have got here so quickly this year or perhaps it is me feeling my bones a little more than usual.

In the UK though we also have some very good providers for Christmas items whether that be practical items for the home, decorations, candles etc.  These range from stores like Sainsburys, George at Asda, Home Bargains, Poundland, Sostrene Grene,  Hobbycraft, Dunhelm, M & S, B & M, TK Max to name but a few and there are also a multitude of other excellent providers available on the Internet.   Where I can these days I also use the Charity shops for new to me items as well. Over the years I have managed to pick up many lovely items from Charity shops which have also benefited the relevant charities as well.  Some of those items have also been re-purposed.  For instance I have found a couple of casserole/soup tureen pottery items without their lids.  One of them is a blue stoneware casserole which has been turned into a fruit dish and the second is a white ribbed vintage soup tureen minus the lid, which has with the aid of some sellotape to form a grid (to put the flower stems through) been turned into a flower vase.

I do have lots of things waiting in the wings to make eventually when I get to them including Christmas stockings, wreaths, table cloths, napkins etc.  A while back I purchased a couple of beautiful full sized tablecloths to embroider, as well as a whole host of items to sew.  

I am hoping to find the foot pedal to my sewing machine in the next few weeks as I really want to get started with getting the machine sewing done and out of the way with. I believe I popped them in a bag with a couple of patchwork projects and some fabrics which I need to locate in any event as they are needed for finishing off as well.  It is just a matter of locating them.  

Over the coming Christmas period though I do hope to be able to get stuck back into my Cross stitch quilt that I have been embroidering for a while.  It needs completing and then I can choose backing fabric, batting etc. to finish it off.  It would be good to get this quilt sorted out and ready to use for next Christmas. I had made quite good progress on it until I was taken off track. 

I also have some jelly rolls of Christmas fabrics for making quilts from as well.  They will just be simple ones as I am a novice when it comes to patchwork.  It will very much be a learning curve, but I have wanted to have a real go at this at home for quite some time.  

Come the New Year, I think I may well be focusing on trying to get Christmas crafting projects back on track again.  Ideally I would like to get them all completed in the early part of next year to actually be able to use them next Christmas.  That really would be lovely.  I am also planning on making some "forever" re-usable Christmas crackers from linen and printed fabric with a touch of embroidery.   I also want to be able to pick up my hand worked Hexie patchwork as well.  That will be an ongoing project but it would be good to get more of this worked.  I also want to get back to some beading and work up some more  beaded baubles for the Christmas tree..

I also have linen for making embroidered table mats, coasters and other items.

I am fortunate that I do have my own crafting Library consisting of a lot of books and a lot of crafting magazines of different genres with lots of charts in for cross stitch, crochet, embroidery, sewing etc.  Some of those patterns are years old but I will not relinquish them as they are very much a source of inspiration; with tutorials and instructions.  They make up a lovely treasury of potential creative items in their own right as well as providing inspiration for creating something original as well.  

There are a lot of plans I hope to put in place from the New year when things have calmed down a bit and I can start making and doing and be able to focus.

In the interim though, I am going to play just a little bit, not as much as I had hoped, but play I will.

Are you going to be hand crafting some items for your home (if you have not already done so) in the next few weeks or are you content to just buy items.  In reality I do a very varied mixture incorporating various sources.

I hope everyone has a lovely evening.

Catch you soon.

Pattypan

x

#potterybarn