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Surprise! It’s Christmas. I know. It happens every year.
Nothing … nothing … nothing … hmm … Christmas is coming in the sort of far off, can’t be bothered to think about it, distant future.
BAM!! CHRISTMAS IS HERE OUT OF NOWHERE! WHO COULD HAVE SEEN THIS COMING?
What’s next? UFOs? Parachute Pants? Easter? God only knows what’s lurking around the corner.
To get you into the mood in case Christmas snuk … wow … that’s not spelled right is it … snuck up on you this year and you missed out on your local Christmas House Tour or even putting up your own decorations outside, …. behold … Christmas. From me to you.
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lauren b
I think out of everything, I’m most impressed with your work on the chalkboard in the last picture for some odd reason. The rest is fantastic, but that lettering is just impressive.
Shannon V.
Love it Karen. I may have come and steal your Hudson’s Bay Blanket though
JK!
Karen
LOL. Yeah … that comes off the porch at night.
~ karen
Lindsay @ Off For the Season
Gah! Please tell me where you got that blanket. I NEED one! Like a chicken needs a coop. Or let’s be honest…..like a suburban gal needs a decorative throw, I guess.
Karen
Hi Lindsay. That would be a Hudson’s Bay blanket which I got for Christmas from my niece a few years ago. They don’t have that particular blanket in stock right now though but there are some others. My particular blanket is wool and cost $150. They have Hudsons Bay patterned throws and blankets ranging from $40 to $3,000! ~ karen
Lindsay @ Off For the Season
Is there a way of getting on your niece’s Christmas list? That seem like the easiest solution. Easiest for me and easiest for my couch that needs a decorative Hudson’s Bay blanket.
Gale
It seems like just last week you were harvesting your garden. Now you have SNOW!! Beautiful decorating. I love all the greenery. It must smell so nice around your house. Merry Christmas! Thank you for all you’ve taught us this year.
Five Monkeys and a Chick
Everything looks fabulous. Shocker, not! You do have a definite eye for decor. Love it! I was going to tease you about having a light out. Then I realized you really did. How did that happen?
Julie Beer
I think I am quickly becoming one of your biggest fans……I am totally impressed and jealous…..plus I have used quite a few of your ideas recently….I really like them!! Plus you are hilarious!!!
Karen
Well thanks Julie. I don’t know where you came from, but I like ya. ~ karen!
Leena
The coop is so cute!
April
How did you make those amazing wreaths with the candles?! What a gorgeous home.
Karen
April – The wreaths are actually fake wreaths from Ikea. Best fake wreaths I’ve ever seen. And I just attached the candles to the back of the wreath with wire. They have a tiny timer built into them so they come on at 5 and go off, 5 hours later. ~ karen!
Nancy Blue Moon
Very homey and deck the halls and fa la la stuff..You did good lady..Also I need your blanket..I sold mine on Ebay..I just have one question..What the hell am I doing up at 2:45 in the morning?? zzzzzz
Karen
LOL. Cripes. I don’t know. You probably should have been sleeping at that time. Just a wild guess though. ~ karen
Nancy Blue Moon
Yeah..sorry about that..First I couldn’t sleep..then I was starting to fall asleep at the table..You always do a great job of decorating for Christmas..The girls did a great job on their coop too..Such talented little ladies..lol
Jen
Wow! I have to say I usually hate all the Christmas mess… I wrote last-year about needing $10 gifts for everyone (the replies sparked a chain of inspiration that led to gifts my sisters still have on display in their houses). Our family has had our share of hardships around Christmas, as I’m sure many people have, and it takes something special to get me in that holly-jolly mood. So Karen, thanks! Thanks for making it simple and beautiful. Thanks for making us aspire to have your backyard, blurry front porch
, cute chickens, strategically placed dollar store crafts, and a tree on which we can use our shoe to open our wine. Let there be wine and celebrate!!!
Karen
Thanks Jen. Glad to hear the presents worked out last year! Yup. You sure kicked off a flurry of responses. You can do a lot with $10 if you’re smart about it! ~ karen
Angie
Ooohhh, that’s just beautiful! Your evergreen drapes so nicely, mine just sticks up and looks all awkward. I’ve been trying to catch up on reading your back posts and I’m wondering….could those possibly be the same birch logs from the Christmas of 2010? I’m guessing not because these look more bendy, but if they do happen to hold up that good in storage then maybe it’s worth tromping through the woods to find me some!
Karen
Hi Angie – Yes, those are the very same birch logs. One of them rotted this year but the rest are fine. I leave them outside all year long but they’re fairly sheltered, stuck behind some bushes, and up off the ground. They’ll last several years! ~ karen
Pilar
Hi Karen! Your decoration is so Chrysmalycious! Very charming and inviting. I wish you a Merry Christmas!
Could I suggest you an idea for any of your january postings? We are all cooking and baking a lot of delicious foods and sweets for our family and friends. How can we resist all of the good tastings and smells? We will need some cool ideas to lose those few pounds accumulated after all those calorie excesses. It would be great at least to read how other people deal with it.
Rebecca
Ah… my fellow Canadian girl and her Hudson’s Bay blanket. It’s just not Christmas/winter without one! Beautiful!
Karen
Rebeccanadian – I have a REAL soft spot for anything Hudson’s Bay. Love it. ~ karen!
Cindy Marlow
Wow! Makes me wish I could go back in time about three weeks and have a do over so I could do it over like yours!
Any chance that this is a dream and you are the Spirit of Christmas Present?
Bonnie
Everything is gorgeous! It’s as though you have a magazine household. Thank you for sharing!
Janie Farmer
Gee….I think I have to stop reading your blog until after Christmas…..or next year….or tomorrow. It reminds me what I can’t do. This was going to be the year that I was going to feel well enough to decorate. It will have to be next year, again. My incision still hurts, the sewer backed up twice (the neighbor flushed tampons, baby wipes, etc) so the basement floor has to be disinfected. Had 2 more NES (non epileptic seizures) so I won’t get to drive next year either. I can see why people go away this time of year.
Candice
Everything is just lovely. I am aching to have chickens of my own, right now timing is not right…but one day, sigh…
ev
Very nice, very welcoming, even the coop! The girls must feel festive! Thanks, Karen!
gogothrift
Love all of your outside decorating and I’m sure the inside of your house looks just as spectacular.
You rock, lady!!
Sherry (BTLover2)
Breathtaking!
qtpuh2tme
So lovingly and festively inviting! ~:)
Reg
Beautiful decorations Karen. It’s nice that the chickens have pretty and festive decor too.
I have a Hudson’s Bay blanket given to me as a wedding present 47 years ago. They’re wonderful. After many many cleanings it finally got mangy looking so I cut it up and covered some pillows.
SuzyM
Birch branches in a keg= Holiday genius!
Ashley
I kind of hate you for how awesome all of this is.
Karen
Ashley – Understandable. LOL. ~ karen
Maureen
Merry Christmas, Karen. Thank you for a year of wonderful ideas and freakin’ hilarious posts.
Elen Grey
I’m thinkin’ I need a Christmas chicken coop! I love all the burlap you used. Gorgeous. Joy to you and your family, Karen!
Karen
Elen – I meant to mention that my best decorating investment this year was burlap. Yards and yards of burlap. It’s about 0.39 a foot. I used it for swags and cut it into strips for making bows. ~ karen
cred
Hey, do you still have snow there? We are in the Barrie area and have had nothing for a few weeks.
We’re dreaming of a white christmas here. Here’s hoping that with the snow, falls from the sky lovely fresh green garlands, wreaths, twinkle lights and red bows that distribute themselves as pleasingly as your festive outdoor decorations.
AmieM
Karen! When did you get snow? I’m not far away, in Guelph, and we haven’t seen any of the wonderful white stuff in 3 weeks!
Elizabeth Downie
I LOVE it! It’s so classy looking. You have a great eye.
Barbie
I love the touches of magnolia leaves you have dotted around.
Barbie
….and the coop literally takes my breath away!
Diana
Hi Karen….
I confess… I`ve copied your winebarrel-decoration!It`s sooo
fantastic!!! Since I saw it (ähm last year?) I wanted to get it!
Yesterday I have completed it…
WWWWOOOOWWWW and thanx
Diana
Debbie
I too love your chalk sign. It’s a cutie. However my evil Christmas childs says in the ribbon at the bottom you should write in small letters NOT.
Olequiltbat
Eons ago we had a Hudson Bay Blanket, and for Christmas I made our 7 year old daughter a lovely winter coat (with hood) out of it. I know…bad mommy…right? But we were a young family with not
much money at that time…& it did look lovely on her. And years before that, when our son was 2 years old…I made him a whole winter outfit out of my husbands large kilt. Yep..if I see any lovely pieces of clothing or fabric…it gets swept up & used for other purposes if it hasn’t been worn or used for awhile.
Marion
Absolutely beautiful! I’m sure your chickens really enjoy knowing their feed an is decorated for the holidays. Love the front porch barrel too! Ingenious. Merry Christmas to you and yours!
Lori
I wish I could decorate like this!!! you do such a great job,and make it look so easy! Thanks for sharing
May you and yours have a Merry Christmas!!
Linda
FANTABULOUS!!!! Karen, where did you get those amazing candles in the wreaths? Are they from Ikea as well?
Karen
Linda – Thanks! I actually ordered the candles online years ago. I bought them for the house but they look wayyyy too fake and stupid for the house. So, I tried using them outside like this and they’re workin’ out perfectly. ~ karen!
Linda
oh! and what are you displaying in the plexiglass boxes? the girls?
Larita
Oh, you and your dribbles of wet snow are so adorable.
-woman from North-eastern BC with FIVE FEET OF SNOW IN MY YARD.
Carol-Anne
Everything looks beautiful as always Karen! As an fyi – I was at The Bay @ Burlington Mall this afternoon and they have several of the Hudson’s Bay wool blankets if anyone local is looking for one. Merry Christmas!
Jeanette
With all those beautiful decorations you probably get double the eggs from the girls… (Eggnog?!)
Bols
Karen,
I have to say that your house and back yard are far more impressive than 99% of the home featured in Style At Home and/or in The Canadian House and Home.
Sinking 60 into a kitchen renovation does not inspire me – but you and your house always do.
All the photos in this post are charming but the very first one doubly so. I just love seeing the chickies behind the “dowel gate” (is there official name for it)? – I bet you whip it up using you left hand only when you had 20 minutes to spare.
Your blog and Apartment Therapy are my most favourite sites on the internet and even though I don’t comment often, I look almost every day.
Thank you for all the joy and inspiration that you provide and best wishes of Merry Christmas (and plentiful postings) in 2012 from Kitchener.
Karen
Thanks Bols! You know I was featured in Style at Home, right?
Never Canadian House and Home though. Or The Ladies home Journal. Or even Backyard Poultry. Hmm. Glad to inspire! Don’t think for a minute when I start making millions that I won’t be doing a kitchen renovation myself. I will. I’ll probably just do it myself. ~ karen
Bols
Hi Karen,
Of course I know your house was in Style At Home. That’s one of the issues that I hang on to (in order to get the piles of magines under control, I give old issues [or those that I feel are uninspiring] to one of the girls working in our cafeteria. She is young and as a kitchen help, she probably buy magazines so I gladly pass on what I am done with]). But the issue with your house is not going anywhere!
Karen
Hah! Fingers crossed for Dwell. That’s the next one I’d like to be in. My coop at least.
~ karen
Deb
I, too, was gasping at that blanket, although here in the Pacific Northwest, we refer to all of them as Pendleton blankets…doesn’t matter who actually makes them. I’m definitely in the spirit, but have yet to decorate anything at all as I’m sewing sewing sewing. Everything is simply lovely.
Bonnie
Bah, Humbug! I don’t get into Christmas. I wish we could have it no more than every other year. I would think of moving to a country that doesn’t celebrate Christmas, but I don’t think there are any. I was in Beijing a couple of years ago in December, and they had Christmas decorations everywhere! I asked about it and was told that they don’t really understand it or know what it is about, but they have gotten into the commercial aspects and kitsch. But, I know that even if I did find such a place, they would probably have some other equally irritating holiday.
BUT… your decorations are very pretty, and I agree with Lauren that the lettering is tres cool.
Nancyeileen
As always, LUV it!
You’re a true inspiration.
Lovely to see the chickens enjoying the Christmas season, too!
Merry Christmas, Karen!
Pax et bonum!
nancy
oh my!!! headed to Ikea later this morning!
yea I barely like Christmas so this decor works for me. so beautiful.
but…….I don’t mean to complain but I don’t see a lighted orb anywhere? Last year mine inspired (kept the ground warm) for a huge recurrent bout of purple petunias. It was so interesting to see them coming up out of the snow. It did snow quite a bit… Ok, even if it is Seattle……I had petunias blooming in March. So shut up, it was snow for weeks, about 2 weeks. Kinda interfered with the orbness. But it was all good.
Karen
LOL. No orbs this year Nancy. I change things up and I’ve had the orbs for many years now. So they’re retired for the time being. ~ karen!
Anemone
There is just something so warm about the way you decorated. I love it all. That chalkboard art is way too cool. I want to sit on your chair. Your logs and garlands are perfect.
judy
blanket…great, but getting all those trees in the barrel was the real work of art! how many times did the barrel tip and they all fall on your toe! great job!