The Giving Trees

As you can probably tell from all my holiday decorating posts, I’m a little geeked out this season, which also led me to get our Christmas tree earlier than years past. With our lovely new living room and beautiful big front window I just couldn’t help myself. Plus, I had a bunch of new ornaments from post-holiday sales last year that I was eager to unleash. So we took ourselves down to Culver City to the Christmas tree lot run by the Delancey Street Foundation and snatched up a large and luscious seven footer!

I used to just get a tree from whatever lot was closest to home (formerly Home Depot) but last year we happened upon this new lot, and having heard such great things about the organization I knew I wanted to support them. Delancey Street is a residential self-help organization for former substance abusers, ex-convicts, homeless and others who have hit bottom. Started in 1971 with four people in a San Francisco apartment, Delancey Street has served many thousands of residents in five locations throughout the U.S. Residents range from teenagers to senior citizens, and include men and women and all races and ethnicities.

What does all this have to do with Christmas trees?  Well, Delancey isn’t just a home, they teach their residents personal skills: how to break old habits and how to get along with other people. They also teach basic work habits – showing up on time, listening to a boss and getting along with coworkers, and the tree lots are an important training school in the basics of sales and customer service. In addition to Xmas trees and decorating, Delancey street offers catering and moving (I've had many friends use them with great results), among other services. Proceeds from the tree sales go to further their program, and the staff there is nothing but helpful and courteous. What better way to share a little holiday spirit than by helping to fund such an amazing program?! If you haven't picked up your tree yet, see if they have a location near you and make the effort to give your tree dollars to a worthwhile organization.

Oh, and here’s the new tree, all dressed up and smelling delicious!

Still Decking the Halls

This weekend was a whirlwind of activity - a birthday party, brunch, kids classes and the Nutcracker - and that was just Saturday! By Sunday morning I was excited to sleep in a bit (how sad that 7:30 seems like sleeping in at this point in my life) lounge around in my PJs until late in the morning, and indulge in a delicious chocolate chip pancake breakfast prepared by the hubby and kids.

I was able to make some time to get up a few more holiday decorations though, including this wreath on the front door...

...and gold balls in a vase on the mantle (next to our owl stocking holders).

I also took some of the pinecones we used for Thanksgiving decorating and gave them a quick coat of gold spraypaint:

...then used them in a garland with burlap in the windows...

...and with some candles in the fireplace:

I picked up some evergreen and berry arrangements from Trader Joe's and placed them in two large pots in front of the fireplace:

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Bedding Down

There is some serious marital discord in our house. No, we’re not fighting over money or religion or even the remote. What’s coming between us? Well the thermostat of course.

I’m the first to admit that I’m constantly cold. In fact, I never took off my jacket on Tuesday, and am typing this message while wearing fingerless gloves:

I grew up in chilly Massachusetts, but I guess your blood really does start to thin out after a while, because after 11 years in LA, 60 degrees has started to feel like a frozen tundra to me. Not sure if it was the third floor positioning or the smaller space, but we never had to use the heat in our condo. In the house though, the nighttime temp has been hovering around 65 lately, so I've adopted a pretty standard evening routine: walk in the door, turn on the heat and throw on sweatpants, winter socks and a long sleeve shirt, all while the heater brings us up to a (reasonable, I say) 72 degrees, where it stays for the remainder of the night. My husband however, dislikes the skin drying effects of the heat so much that he complains, turns off the heat when I’m not looking, and chuckles at my constant shivers. Not to mention he’s not exactly a fan of my head to toe clothing coverage at bedtime.

Well yesterday I decided to something about it. While at Target picking up a humidifier for the kids' room (an attempt to offset the dry conditions created by the heater) I decided it was time to give our bedding a seasonal overhaul. I love our coverlet - bought from Garnet Hill about five years ago - but it provides little warmth, and piling on additional blankets just leaves the bed a mess of covers that shift and slide during the night. It was time to call in the big guns - a down comforter, new duvet and jersey knit sheets:

I spent most of the evening washing and drying the new and old sheets and cover, but once we got everything set and crawled inside I was in heaven. In fact, I had to take one loving shot of my new warm haven before heading into the shower this morning. Until tonight my love...

Deck the Halls

The holiday decorating continues over here! Remember the lovely little wishing tree I made for the baby shower? Well, I was looking to add a little holiday cheer to our den (since the more formal living room will house our full Christmas tree soon) and decided to repurpose the branches I had collected to create a mini Xmas tree. I picked up a new crisp white vase from Target for $15 (the cream colored pot they were in before felt a little too low and soft for the more modern look I was going for here) and grabbed a package of small silver and turquoise ornaments for $5 (they conveniently came with silver string to hang each one.) I rearranged the branches to feel a bit more tree-ish, and then got to hanging!

While I was trimming trees I decided to also add a little color splash to this driftwood log I picked up a few months back. I saw these shiny mini red balls on our last trip to Ikea (gotta love the holiday tent over there!) and thought they would look great.

PS – Last night we hid the first of 24 little goodies in our new advent calendar bags and they were a huge hit! It's going to be such a fun month!

My Festival of Lights

We’re not an especially religious family, but we love to celebrate holidays, and because my father was Jewish I think that entitles me to both Christmas and Hanukkah. Since I’ve always had trouble finding menorahs that are aesthetically pleasing to me and also within my budget, I decided to make my own this year.

Instead of opting for one candelabra or vessel to hold the traditionally tall & skinny Hanukkah candles, I opted for nine separate mercury glass votive holders lined up in a row, one of which is just slightly larger than the others to signify its identity as the “shamash” candle (the one used to light the others.)

At $.99 each for the eight small ones, $3 for the one larger one and $6.99 for a package of XX candles (all from Target) this is a cheap and chic option, if I do say so myself.

The other benefit is that after we’re done celebrating the Festival of Lights, these pretty candle holders can grace my dining table, mantle or bathroom any day of the year and fit right in. 

Oh, and here are a couple more “modern” menorahs that I think are a stylish and irreverent way to celebrate, should you be so inclined:

Manzanita Candlabra from West Elm - this one isn't technically a menorah,
but it holds nine candles and looks awfully pretty in the process

Last Match by Kathleen Walsh

Happy Hanukkah, everyone!