Welcome to my annual Christmas House Tour. I've fallen deep into the wrinkles of Victorian gramma house vibes.
Typically my house tours don't have a ton of writing to them. It's mainly photos of the house at Christmas and not much needs to be said.
This year there are just a couple of new things but for some reason the house, the decorations, everything looks entirely different.
A big part of that is due to the fact that I've been able to move my tree from my foyer into my living room.
There's a case to be had for having the tree in the foyer - it's what I get to look at from my seat on the sofa every night.
The way the tree is now, in the living room, it's behind where my head is so I never really get to see it. That sentence will make more sense to you when you see the photo.
So let's go down the hall, and through the doors into the dining room, where my second tree is, shall we?
New this year: red balls and blue satin ribbon bows hanging off the tree to match the gifts underneath. Otherwise, the decorations on this tree are the same as they've been for the past decade.
Also new this year ... a train set. I'd prefer the look of an antique one buttttttt this one does something fun. Plus it uses a rechargeable battery.
It lights up and has train sounds. It has a red headlight and the cabin lights are warm white.
But that's not the best part. This is.
It has actual steam.
Thank you for joining me in the happiest moment of my life.
Buy the steam engine train on Amazon US.
Buy the steam engine train on Amazon Canada.
Also I decided that my beautiful wrapping needed some random gift wrap around them. It was too matchy matchy. Perfect is poison. So I wrapped a few in unexpected paper.
Let's do a U-turn and head back into the foyer.
Nothing here is new this year. Same old stuff arranged in a different way.
Except for the ceramic Christmas tree on the bench above. That's new. I had to. It's a classic.
Check out the velvet curtains on Amazon US.
Check out the velvet curtains on Amazon Canada.
Just a bunch of trees.
If you'd be so kind as to turn around and face the opposite direction, you will be ready to walk into the living room.
Welcome.
Ta DA. Tree in the living room. Any of the design hawk eyes among you probably noticed the random bright yellow present. Perfect is poison.
I just made that up so I'm going to use it a lot.
New this year are the blue velvet curtains and the red and blue silk ribbon bows on the tree. All the other decorations are the same. Antique glass ornaments, and dried orange slices. I also shoved a Santa sitting in chair decoration into the tree.
Yup. My whole life changed when I threw half of that sofa out.
Here's a funny end to the story. I took these photos yesterday - and I've already moved things around.
At the moment the train tracks on the dining room table are bigger and more rectangular. In the centre are all the trees from the marble foyer table. I've moved the ceramic tree into ...
You know what? If I haven't changed it back again in the next couple of days, I'll just take more photos and do another Christmas House Tour.
But I think I'm going to change it back so don't start looking forward to it or anything. In fact push that idea right out of your mind because at the rate I change things up I'd be doing a new Christmas House Tour post every day until January 3rd or 4th.
Merry Christmas
Look for a package on the 29th.I put everything you sent me on the shipping label, p o box and street address both, I hope that's right, the fedx kid was as clueless as I am.
That is right! I'll keep an eye out. So exciting! ~ karen
Your blue velvet curtains were the push I needed to hit the buy now button on 5 pair of golden brown velvet drapes I'd been lusting after. I'm swanning around my living room in a vintage kimono like some smoldering Latin lover is pouring the wine by firelight....nope it's just the cat and an overdose of eggnog and imagination. But the curtains are a start
THAT'S what I'm missing! A vintage kimono! ~ karen
Send me an address
I did some overseas shopping at 3:00 a.m. last Christmas and somehow ended up with nine vintage kimonos. Send me an address and one of them is yours. It would make me very happy to have someone who would enjoy wearing it
No! You're kidding! How did you get 9 vintage kimonos?? Where do you even buy vintage kimonos from? I'm not even going to pretend to be coy. Yes, I'd love a vintage kimono. But I won't hold you to it because I know that packing something up and taking it to the post office is a pain.
The Art of Doing Stuff
P.O. Box 65518,
133 King Street West
Dundas, Ontario, ON L9H 1Y6
Canada
Hi, did you get the kimono? It was supposed to arrive on 12/29. Isent it to the address you posted
Marlana! It did! But there was some confusion with the driver and the address for some reason so it came a day or so late. It's beautiful, I love it! All the hand stitching. I'm fully prepared to elegantly roam my house in the wee hours now. Thank you so much. ~ karen!
Karen, Your home looks beautiful as always. You had my dream tree in your foyer in 2021. It was tall, slender and lots of hanging room to see the ornaments. I suppose some would call it sparse. Please tell me what it was. Thanks!
I loved that tree as well! My sister thought it was hilarious and pathetic. 😆 ~ karen!
Looks beautiful. Love the way you placed everything. So homey.
Just beautiful as usual, Karen. I love the long-tailed ribbons. 😊 I get hives thinking about having to put everything away, after the holidays, so I stopped putting out inside the house. I don’t have my Christmas wreath on the front door, yet, and I’ll string lights around my “poles in a pyramid/tree shape” in the front yard. I also hang a “wad-o-lights” from the mesquite tree. (One year I came home to see the neighbors frantically trying to put lights up on the roofline, on Christmas Eve. They had the biggest mess of lights, and the idea was born. I think it is very funny, and I think my daughter gets the joke, but everyone else is probably out there, just wondering.
Your house is gorgeous, as usual, and two trees make it awesome. You’re the best, Karen!
Just lovely. I adore the curtains. I’ve done nothing save the Spode in the China cabinet inside, but the neighbor kid after Halloween said, you really do it up for Halloween, but not so much for Christmas. Well, that was a throw down! The outside of my house looks like a Christmas miracle, but the inside isn’t going to make it up this year.
LOL. It's hard to be really good at both, it takes energy! Although if you're feeling the Spode is too much, just ship it along to me and I'll make sure it's displayed every year. ;) ~ karen!