Christmas Clucking in my Kitchen

I grew up on a farm and we raised a lot of different animals, crops . . and lots of chickens.  I can tell you more about chickens than you'll ever want to know.  But they seem to have some charm when it comes to kitchen decor and I have a few little "chickies" gracing my kitchen.  
I'm also very fond of antique items and have some treasures that I was able to claim from our farm and a few things that were in my in-laws house.

Thought I'd have some fun and use the first egg scale we used on the farm in my decor, weighing a ball ornament.  Use some cute little aluminum molds to hold more vintage ball ornaments or light string bulbs and add some other bric-a-brac.

A vintage quart milk bottle makes a great container for peppermint sticks.  Tie up some silverplate utensils, add a vintage gallon milk jug and a complete set of vintage glass tree ornaments and use some fun dress shaped potholders and Christmas themed napkins.

Vintage thermos bottles all dolled up for the holidays, along with cordial glasses holding vintage ball ornaments, chickens, rusty bells, plates, mugs, evergreen branches, an antique butter churn and more napkins.   And, just lay it out on kitchen-y towels and redwork tea towels.

Better look at the churn with a fun 1950's salt/pepper set and antique kitchen utensils.

Well, in true farmgirl, "lover-of-old-stuff" fashion, I wanted to incorporate some of these antique/vintage items into my kitchen Christmas decorations along with the chickens.  Boy does this remind me of Christmas on the farm . . that big, two-story house whose only heat was the Warm Morning coal stove in the dining room and the fireplace in the living room.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Santa Claus . . and Snowmen

I LOVE CHRISTMAS!   I have such a fun time decorating my house and planning festivities to celebrate the season.   In my heart I KNOW . . and BELIEVE . . that "JESUS is the REASON for the SEASON".  That reason and that reason alone are what it is ALL about!  HALLULEJAH!  WHAT A SAVIOR!!!!

I enjoy the other parts of Christmas just for the fun and joy of it.  In my Christmas boxes, bins and tins are lots of decoration items.  Boy!  I have a vast array of fun things.  I have enjoyed collecting Santa Claus figures over the years.  They range from a tiny Santa doing handstands, or one barrelling down the slopes on skis to a tall Santa dressed as a woodsman with a toggle button jacket and burlap gift sack.  I just enjoy looking at all the different features of each one.

This is just a FEW of my Santas . . I just love the blue one on the left.

I also have a wonderful and delightful collection of snowmen figures.  They range from a miniscule clay snowman covered with a glittery finish to a tall resin snowman holding garden implements.  There are soft sculptures, metal, wood, clay . . . all kinds.  I even have "Irish Snow People" which includes one with sheer green angel wings and another wearing a green Irish cloak. This pair was made for us by a fellow traveler on a tour in Ireland several years ago.  Again, I just enjoy handling them, looking at the faces, admiring the different features.   My snowman collection stays out through January!!

Just a couple of my snowy friends.  I display my snowmen on this snow/snowman themed mini-quilt that I made.

Lovely Treasures

I was just tickled pink to find this lovely embroidered vintage vanity set in excellent condition. A hairbrush, clothes brush and mirror with beveled edge.  It sits on my dresser and I am able to admire it daily.   I was able to obtain the vintage gloves in a barter with a farmgirl friend.  With the doilies I thought these are a lovely addition to my dresser.  Reminders of decades gone by.

Some Farmgirl Favorites

The sweetest, most wonderful peaches were grown on our family farm

My "valance" of vintage potholders over my kitchen sink . . . just so fun to see them there!

The joy of baking . . in miniature!

My "Silverware" Tree

I just had to have some fun with an odd selection of forks, spoons, butter knives, etc. So I bent then all in half, applied a little metallic paint here and there, glued on an embellishment which was either an earring, pin or some other piece of jewelry.  Some folks may think . . . "hmmmm . . . and why"?  But I like this for a simple elegant table or credenza decoration.  Furthermore it is a whole of of fun.
And, once again, I liken it to the beauty that can be manifest through the quirkiness of us as individuals . . . God's children, created in His image!!!

A "Do-Over"

What do you do with ratty looking, worn out things that some folks would not hesitate to toss out.   Well, if you're like me you examine them for ALL the possibilities for a "do-over".  This project WAS an old leather suitcase but with a lot of tender loving care it became TWO . . . yes, TWO . . .lovely little wall units for my house.   The first one is the main part of the suitcase and it has hangers on it so it can be hung on the wall as well.  This is currently sitting on the chest of drawers in my bedroom on top of vintage linens and with some other lovely decoration pieces with it.   The other picture shows the lid of the same suitcase made into a display unit which is hanging in my bathroom.

Loving tender care . . . GOD's GRACE!!!!
WOW!!!!

Life is a Bowl of Cherries!

I'm "sweet" on cherries and I love this vintage tablecloth that I was able to barter an apron for.  And, I found this Mary Engelbreit teapot (sans the lid, sorry to say) at a local thrift shop.  But I'll be able to enjoy it.  Life is kind of like cherries  . . there's the sweet, yummy part; the hard, difficult part that would be the pit and if not properly cared for they can go bad in a hurry.  I want to be able to savor the sweet, yummy part and know how to the deal with the "pits" with grace and more grace.  I don't want to miss out on any of it  . . I want to enjoy the "cherries" of life!