the little cottage on the pond...: merry little Christmas

Showing posts with label merry little Christmas. Show all posts

12.29.2014

Our holiday...

This season was the simplest and quietest we have ever had, and I have to admit- I'm really liking grown up kid Christmas. We slept in, ate a late breakfast and didn't do our family dinner or gifts until the evening. Here are a few pictures of our day...

Travis worked days all week, but he managed to squeeze in a bit of time in the evening to hang out with the kids...

Pioneer Woman's recipe for Prime Rib- it was incredible!

The day after Christmas I packed it all up back into the basket. I was ready to clean up!

I asked for copper pots this year and Travis delivered...

This week Hunter's cousin is staying with us. These boys are two peas in a pod...

I'm looking forward to lots of snuggle and reading time for the month of January, as well as the start of our laundry room build. We have some really great plans for that and I am so ready to get that room finished!

New Year's Eve will be low-key- soup and game night. Staying in and just hanging out. I may even wear my fancy pjs for the occasion ;)

I hope y'all have a very happy New Year's!

12.24.2014

From grocer to giftwrap...

This year I decided to use Trader Joes grocery bags as gift wrap. I love craft paper, and the bits of red and white print made it the perfect holiday paper...

I used a set of very old (from my childhood) wax seals to give the tops of the gifts a little interest...

Very simple, and free paper ;)

In other news, my daughter and son played the parts of elves for Mrs. Claus checks in. They had so much fun visiting families and children all over the area from Thanksgiving to just last weekend.

A very good friend of mine just wrote her first book, Shaggy Dog Eats. The kids and I have had so much fun baking and preparing all of the amazing recipes in it. The doxies are also very happy with the book, but for obvious reasons.

Christmas dinner will be just us and the kids this year. Travis is working all day, but we will be together tomorrow night for dinner and exchanging gifts. This year is so different from past years, but I am looking forward to new traditions.

From my family to yours- have a lovely holiday and a beautiful new year...

12.15.2013

It's a wrap...

Since I had a quiet Sunday morning to myself I decided to wrap a few presents. And since we are keeping it super simple over here this year there were only a few things to wrap.

I had seen a cool monogram tutorial in a magazine while waiting for hubby to finish up buying wood at the hardware store. I figured I would give that a try. Remember y'all- I am NOT crafty, so attempting these little fun projects is always a humorous endeavor. I must be slow to learn, because I keep trying- either that or I just like a good laugh now and then.

I started out with the box of baubles and bits I keep in my craft closet for such wrapping occasions.

I also picked up a roll of the very thin plain brown craft type paper at Home Depot. It is supposed to be used to tape of the edges of rooms for painting, but I have found that for very little pennies you can use it as fabulous wrapping paper! The little gold tags are water meter tags that we find on the ground and pick up in the new construction areas. They are already used, and not recycled by the city- so I like to gather them for a bit of industrial on our packages. I am all for up-cycling opportunities!

Take a rubber stamp and add some interest to your plain ol brown paper...

Plain white tags rubbed over some distressed ink for aging... This one is "old paper" and gives plain white tags to a more vintagey feel...

First I attempted to make a star/snowflake from paper straws. The straws are from Hobby Lobby and relatively inexpensive. I was nervous about this one because I have no coordination when it comes to floral wire. Oh yeah, you also need a bit of floral wire.

You start by bending two straws into a V shape. Then wrap a bit of the floral wire around it to keep them together at the V point...

Then lay a third straw straight across the two V's and wire it it. Ta-Da! A star/snowflakey looking thing! Add some twine and call yourself a wrapping rockstar :)

Then it was time to tackle the monogram/twine thing. Here we go...

Start by wrapping the gift, then draw on the monogram you'd like to use:

Then grab some glue. I suppose you could use a hot glue gun, but since I am prone to gluing myself to things I went for a safer option: clear school glue. Grab your twine, it's about to get crazy up in here!

Carefully put a bit of the glue around one of the letters, or part of a letter, and lay your twine on it. It may be defiant and decide to go elsewhere, or stick to your fingers, but be the boss- make that twine bend to your will!

Keep going. Wonder at some point why you didn't stick with Jewish tradition and forego a middle name... Nevermind the fact that you are Jewish and wrapping Christmas presents. I try not to think on that one too much ;)

Then decide on the next kid's gift you are going to go with block letters. Because, BLOCK LETTERS are just so much easier to manipulate with glue and twine...

Don't worry about the glue, it's clear it will dry and not show. I'd pinky promise, but you'd be stuck with me. Ba dum bum! I'm here all day ;)

12.06.2013

Little cottage Christmas...

Jennifer Rizzo's

Welcome to The Little Cottage on the Pond! Our "cottage" is just under 1,900 square feet. Small for a Texas home and a family of six, but we believe small houses make for tight knit families. Although it's a new build, we have incorporated vintage pieces to give our little cottage a farmhouse vibe.

In keeping with our "merry little Christmas" theme I used decorations that we already had collected over the years. I like decorations that blend in with the existing decor and don't compete with it, as well as taking what we already own and revamping it a little differently each year.

So y'all come on in, and fix yourselves a cup of hot cocoa...or a tall glass of sweet tea. After all, this is the Texas coast, and it doesn't get very cold here in the winter ;)

I love these little birds nests...and I've always been a fan of burlap...

I used my dad's old nautical maps to paper the ceiling in the entryway. I love that I can see where he charted our trips to Florida and Corpus Christi. I am big on repurposing and adding details that have meaning to our family. It's what makes a cottage cozy...

Brown paper packages tied up with...more burlap. This is a Texas Christmas...

Our kitchen truly is the heart of our home. We spend lots of time here cooking, baking, playing games around the table...and laughing. A cottage needs lots of laughter...

We eat all of our meals around this table...

I started setting up a hot cocoa station a few years ago. Our kids are getting older, but I love how the they still come home and fix themselves a cup of cocoa- proving that you are never too old for mini marshmallows!

Even Bessie is decked out for the holidays...

vintage hangers make great towel racks...

Vintage knobs add sparkle...

Our doxies will tell you this is the most important area in the cottage...

Our tree is a skinny tree. This is not a large living room, so space is at a premium. We decorate it using ornaments we have collected over the years, burlap ribbon, vintage postcards, and some red balls for a pop of colour. A thrift store crown is our tree topper...

Vintage postcards hang from our tree. I love reading the handwritten notes on the backs of them...

I adore typography and incorporate it wherever I can...

This blanket was a gift from some friends in Scotland...

Gruene- Our favourite tiny Texas town...

Burlap and linen stockings...

My favourite part of owning this old Royal typewriter is using it to display quotes or lyrics...

My dad's old books. One of my most beloved treasures...

A bit of greenery hiding out in the cabinet. A few pops of gold here and there add a bit of subtle sparkle all year long.

My dad's boar's hair paintbrushes. He started out as a bridge painter in the 1940's...

I love winter whites and creams. Cool colours in the bedroom are relaxing to me...

Hubby and I built this headboard. It's a Ballard Design knockoff- learn how we made it here...

A Southern Proper Monogram hangs on the back door with another burlap stocking...

We like to keep the holidays simple. Enjoying the presence of each other's company rather than focusing on presents under the tree. Baking treats for neighbors and friends, sending notes of gratitude to those who do things to make our world a brighter place, relaxing together and taking in all the beauty of the season. Living in the moment and seeing our very full glass in life makes for a very happy holiday.

Thank you so much for stopping by, and from my cottage family to yours-

we wish you a very Merry little Christmas...