Beyond the Tinsel....

These photos were taken last Sunday,

 as I was delivering Christmas cards in my village.

Not the easiest of walking with all the snow & icy conditions,

but as the light was gradually disappearing for the day,

I took a shorter route via the Church.

Just loved how the church was portrayed with the snow,

& with the darkening colours of the sky,

just looked magical & very seasonal.

A very appropriate walk,

 when we reflect why we have the CHRISTMAS tradition!

Today, Christmas Eve!

Just one more night....

Wishing everyone a

 Very Happy & Peaceful Christmas!

Seasonal Red

It's that time of year,

preparing the home with Christmas decorations,

featuring the warmth & brightness of the colour Red

With the latest weather,

 snow helps add to that christmas feel,

 as the snow wraps itself around the many clusters of red plump berries.

The Christmas season blending together,

 with the manmade efforts & the ways of nature.

London for Shops

During this pass week, I have travelled to London twice.

The first time, was last Tuesday  to have a look around the shops.

If you're going to the shops in London, then Harrods is definitely worth a look,

so much to see although many price tags are certainly far too expensive for the average person to consider.

Although I'm not ordinarily a person to collect soft toys, I do have a growing collection of Teddy Bears, all of which are from Harrods only.

The one I bought this time, is a medium size Christmas Bear for 2009, entitled 'Rufus'.

One place not to miss in Harrods, is the Food Hall.

Absolute Yum!

Wish I had taken more photos,

 but certainly couldn't resist taking the one above,

 which is a cake with a price tag of £4999.00.

A staggering amount.

But there was far more affordable food,

 which covered a vast range from cheeses, cold meats to chocolates,

cakes & biscuits, besides much more.

The panels of stained glass on the some of the ceilings are absolutely beautiful,

besides other aspects of the store,

It rained all day!

Such a shame, but we visited Kensington, Oxford Circus,

Regent Street & Piccadilly.

Fortunate enough to get a photo of some of the Christmas lights,

but only because I sheltered in a doorway!

My Locality, Black & White

Recently, a walk around my local village,

 taking in what we normally take for granted.

One of the most obvious choices to start the walk was our local church,

the atmosphere of the area was well suited for the change to black & white photography.

The tall church tower stood faststead,

and was well framed by the fir trees to the back of the church.

The watery sun was trying to rise high  into the sky, but the day emerged to a dull grey day.

The weather vane below is situated on the local Community Hall

North, East, South or West!?!

Christmas Greetings

Wishing Each & Everyone of You

A Truly

 H A P P Y   C H R I S T M A S

Finally. . . .

All the Christmas shopping finally finished.

Final preparations to complete, but looking forward to the break.

S E S O N A L   B E S T   W I S H E S

Festive Preparation

All decorations finally in place, my tree this year though is my version of a 'twig tree'.

Normally produce this every year although usually by the dining room table.

The twigs may come from my garden after a massive prunning session,

 or from fallen branches  discovered on a favouite walk.

I then spray them with silver paint & once they are assembled

 in a vase, they are then decorated with white lights & small decorations.

It does look quite effective & the arrangement can be made as big or as small as you like,

which ever suits your needs.

Other items are now in place with further table runners/mats changed for that Christmas theme.

Cards are now arriving which are finally gathered & hung for displaying.

The house is finally starting to resemble some order once again.

after the chaotic mess  from wrapping paper & boxes of cards seemed to dominate many areas. . . .

Most gifts are now wrapped, just one more present to buy. . . .

Nearly there. . . .

Sigh of Relief

Finally, getting organised with Christmas preparations.

 Just enjoyed a lovely week off from work, although it went far too quickly, 

 but time used mainly  to bascially catch up with myself.

The Xmas decorations I displayed, above, are nearly all my own work except for the santa.

I made a table runner using techniques of patchwork & quilting. Then a cross stitch christmas hanging, a few years old now but I was please with the effort I had put into this.

Finally, 'Noel', the centre of a cushion I had made, using cross stitch once again.

The top cushion is one that I kept for myself,

& the bottom cushion I gave to my neighbours,

but knowing how much they enjoy the festivities of Christmas,

especially with their famillies & friends, I knew this was appreciated.

SEASONAL   GREETINGS

Shop Till You Drop!!!

Managed to spend an enjoyable day with my daughter today,

 visiting the shopping mall at Cribbs Causeway, Bristol.

This is about a 45 minute drive away travelling by the motorway.

The shopping complex is situated over two floors,

which was very festive with an abundance of huge

Christmas decorations with its wealth of lights was stunning.

Very festive.

Enjoyed some good retail therapy,

enabling us to nearly buy all the gifts for our family & friends.

The Festive Mood. . . .

Starting to sort out the Christmas decorations.

The first to be found is the cross- stitch creations.

The centre Christmas Tree was a present for myself  from one of my Niece's a few years ago.

The framed stocking was one my daughter made when she was about 10 years old.

They both come out every year.

I taught both my daughter & my niece how to cross stitch,

so both projects have significant meaning.

The other Christmas stockings are projects that I made.

The fully embroidered stocking is specifically for the tree.

It's quite tiny & it was awkward to make.

There is a series to this but never gone back to make the rest yet. . . .

Most projects have to be quick to make these days.

My niece's Christmas Tree featured again.

 The bear has been used many a time for presants. . .

Countdown

The countdown of Christmas has now begun. . . .

Although, this year, I've not even given it alot of thought yet,

 and I am not as organised as I should be.

But, I now have a week off  from work,

so maybe, I'll get myself sorted. . . .

Over the years, I have preferred to make some of the Christmas decorations.

The Advent Calendar above was made when my daughter was 2 years old.

She is now twenty-two.

The tree shape was made from a corduroy fabric, while the pockets were made from Xmas prints.

The numbers, I worked in Cross Stitch, & then handstitched in place.

Each year, I would put a small gift into each pocket, not always chocolate, maybe a hairslide, etc., although, the 24th number always had a small amount of money.

Needless to say, this became a tradition for our Christmas's.

My daughter may be older, but she still expects to see it hanging somewhere within our home, even if the pockets are left empty now. . . .

*

* ~ *

* ~ * ~ *

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

XX

S E A S O N A L   G R E E T I N G ' S