Friday, November 26, 2010

Holiday season begins

I hate Christmas. Let me explain: I like to get the perfect present for everybody, and Christmas means I am stressed out due to a laundry list of people to buy or make things for, rather than one or two people at a time for birthdays and such. I don't like to buy people stuff for the sake of buying it, so I don't do gift cards most of the time. Therefore, I spend most of the post-Thanksgiving time period making myself a little crazy. However, there's at least one thing about the Christmas season that puts joy in my cold, black heart: I get to set up my tree!

Several years ago, I scoured Portland for a vintage aluminum tree. I finally found one, and drove way up to the far reaches of Vancouver, WA to retrieve it. On the day after Thanksgiving each year, the tree goes up, and it doesn't come down until after New Year's. Here are some photos of the process.

Original box, from Metal Trees Corp., slightly water damaged from a flood in our basement at the Ladds Addition house.

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The base and support pole are assembled, and the tree begins to take shape!

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Peeking out from behind the tree before hanging my sparkly purple and blue ornaments.

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The finished product!

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I'm proud of my work.

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I also decorated the mantle. All it needs are some stockings. I'm thinking maybe these.

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6 comments:

  1. Buy those stockings and maybe a tree skirt. Your tree is terrific and sets the mood for the upcoming frenzy.

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  2. I bought some pink and white (respectively) fuzzy yarn to make a small Christmas tree a la Edward Scissorhands. It's going in the casita (which we have dubbed the Warhol room) for when we have holiday guests. I haven't made them yet but I have EVERYTHING to make them little perfect trees.

    I feel you on the vintage tree, though. We almost bought one last year.

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  3. Ooh I bet Palm Springs has some awesome vintage trees hanging around.

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  4. Beauty!

    I feel the same way about Christmas presents, or any presents really. I love when I can find something just right for each person, but that's not easy. It's probably one reason I put as much effort into sending cards as I do. Those are personal.

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  5. Are your cats up in that tree's bidness? I really want to get a teeny, sad Charlie Brown tree and decorate with felt ornaments, but I fear it would become Kitty Battleground.

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  6. Nope, the cats stay out of the tree. They're content to be all up in each other's business.

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