Heirloom Tree Toppers
I finally got into the spirit of Christmas today. On the annual pilgrimage to the garden centre the scent flicks the memory switch and you have all the Christmases you have ever had.
A tight budget means I am shopping around. The less expensive and beautifully scented Norway Spruce appeal. They are finer with slender branches. These are the trees of my youth and always look a bit 1970s .
In the end we chose a Noble Fur, mostly because it has more of a chance to stand up to the immense weight of decoration. Fortunately, I had a few teenage boys lolling on the sofas to erect it.
Unpacking the decorations is always a joy, like opening a memory box - I recall all of the places I have picked up ornaments over the years. It is my chance to embrace the kitsch, which I mix with hand blown glass from Amsterdam and the results of craft projects. Each year I add a new one. This year it is a smooth polished wooden hand in heart, symbolic of charity, given from the heart, bought at the Hancock Shaker Village, in Western Massachusetts in August. The finishing touch -one of Claire Fletcher's Angels. She makes very few each year and we are lucky enough to have three in the shop (at £239.95). Mine has an angelic moulded face with rosy cheeks and red lips, hand painted by Claire and dressed in vintage fabrics. Had I gone for the more delicate Norway Spruce I would have invested in one of Sam Mckechnie's Fairies, made from papier-mâché and vintage french fabrics: these too are hand painted with real character - £150.00.
[caption id="attachment_9515" align="alignleft" width="600"]
Claire Fletcher Angel £239.95[/caption]
Unpacking the decorations is always a joy, like opening a memory box - I recall all of the places I have picked up ornaments over the years. It is my chance to embrace the kitsch, which I mix with hand blown glass from Amsterdam and the results of craft projects. Each year I add a new one. This year it is a smooth polished wooden hand in heart, symbolic of charity, given from the heart, bought at the Hancock Shaker Village, in Western Massachusetts in August. The finishing touch -one of Claire Fletcher's Angels. She makes very few each year and we are lucky enough to have three in the shop (at £239.95). Mine has an angelic moulded face with rosy cheeks and red lips, hand painted by Claire and dressed in vintage fabrics. Had I gone for the more delicate Norway Spruce I would have invested in one of Sam Mckechnie's Fairies, made from papier-mâché and vintage french fabrics: these too are hand painted with real character - £150.00.
[caption id="attachment_9515" align="alignleft" width="600"] Claire Fletcher Angel £239.95[/caption]