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Glass Ornament & Entry trees are up!

15 years ago

I'm still scared that you all are going to get tired of me!!!! LOL

This is the dining room tree and my second oldest tree. It's a 9' slim and the actual tree stays up year 'round.....it's a weird corner that needs something to anchor it, so it gets orange lights, fall leaves, etc. for Halloween, Easter decorations for Easter and then general florals for the remainder of the year.

Mom gives me a couple Radtkos each year, so I'm building up a decent collection, otherwise there are a few nice German glass ornaments I've picked up on sale here and there, several that I've picked up from dollar stores, Walmart etc. I do have 12 Fitz & Floyd ornaments on there that I bought at Sam's about 4 years ago. The rest are just jewel toned plastic and glitter ornaments for fillers.

This is the entry tree and it has received a major overhaul the last couple of years. Before it was on a shorter "corner" tree that just never looked right. So last year, when my 14-year-old daughter informed me that she was too old for her tree (sniff sniff....it was sooo pretty with all the pinks, antique styled, jewels and florals....now I have no where for it to go), she got a new lime green tree and I switched out the ugly corner tree for this one.

Basically, undressed, it's a scrawny, ugly, almost mangy looking thing.....but....it WAS the very first Christmas tree that my husband and I bought 18 years ago (shutter at that thought) for only $30. Eewww, I can still close my eyes and see our first attempt at decorating that poor thing....blech! It then housed the glass ornaments after we got our current "Big" tree, became my daughter's tree and is now in it's new home.....the entry!

For this one, all the ornaments come off each year and the tree is stored with the lights and garland left on, moved into place and then decorated.

Don't look at the rest of the room! I'm not done decorating and I don't even have my garland tacked down! I don't even have the tree skirt out yet.....but it's up!!!!

Hope you all enjoy, and I'll try to get some close-ups tonight of everything.....I finished a couple of the small trees last night that I'm really excited about!

Alex

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Comments (15)

patty_cakes
15 years ago
It's gorgeous Alex, and is perfect for your room! You'll get to the minor things, but the biggest task is done~lucky you. As much as I love all the decorating, putting on the ornaments is so time consuming~I actually have to place the bigger ones in specific areas so they'll be seen~do you do that? Maybe i'm just anal.

Will be watching for more pics. ;o)
bourbonlady
Original Author
15 years ago
Thank you Patty! There is a method to the madness...the ornaments come off and go back on the trees in a certain order. Big and/or special ones always go on first in special places to balance. Next medium ones, filler ones and finally the ugly ones to the very back! They come off in the opposite order.

Alex
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I have 2 glass balls from my mother's grandmother, I don't know how old they are, but she died when mum was a girl, so at least 100 years old; most likely from the mid-1800's. Those are carefully packed... maybe for GS when he grows up. A couple years ago, I gulped and discarded all the chipped, raggedy, and a few frankly ugly momento types. Some were easily 50 years old. I don't miss them. Actually, it was with a silent sigh of relief that I packed away only those ornaments that actually have a meaning for me AND look as good as the meaning. I think this may be on par with clearing a shelf on the bookcase.... thinking about tossing and actually tossing are painful, but oh how much better the area looks once the deed is done.
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I'll give my grumpy viewpoint on these. Many years ago my husband's family started me collecting blown-glass ornaments made in Italy. They were sold at Lord and Taylor and other department stores and came in all kinds of fanciful figures. They were quite expensive even then, though not as bad as now. Then I saw fewer of them as the years went by. One summer on vacation in a resort town I wandered into a Christmas store where 10 years previously I'd bought one of my favorite, a peg-legged pirate, and asked the owner about the glass ornaments. She sadly told me that Christopher Radko had bought up many of the small factories where these ornaments were produced. Now he introduces or "retires" certain designs each year and has driven the prices WAY way up. It's this fake collectible market like they did with Beanie babies. I find the whole thing really annoying and rarely buy this kind of ornament any more; when I do, they're usually made in China and are much cheaper. I still treasure my old ones, but I'm kind of glad none of them are marked Radko!
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Bright199
15 years ago
Wow!!! You are really working hard!! Beautiful! I need more rooms in my house!!! Living and dining rooms are on big L shape... I may have to build a wall so I can have two trees!!! LOL!!!! I would love to see a picture of the entry way tree with the lights off to see the orni's better. Just love them all soo far.
mary_ruth
15 years ago
THANK YOU, THANK YOU for taking pictures with the lights on too, and no flash! What a BEAUTIFUL tree! Oh that puts me in the mood to continue to decorate!
Thank you! LOVE the pictures!
plainjane425
15 years ago
Alex..your trees are just beautiful. I love both and they are very different from each other. I can see all the hard work that you put into them. I'd love to see more pictures when you're done. I'm woking on my DR tree now. Next week, I hope to have the others done. One day, when your daughter is older, she may come full circle, w/her tree. I know it happened w/my DD, after she 'declared' it was 'baby' to have one in her room.
So, I brought her tree to school, to put in my classroom and had the kids decorate it. Well, when she found out that it was there, she became VERY territorial..and insisted that it come home. Just wanted to know that no one else was getting it and that it was still Hers!! It came home after the holidays. When she was a little older (16), she wanted it back in her room, and wanted to buy new 'cool' decorations!! Go Figure...
When you get a chance, we'd love to see all your other
trees and decorations, as you finish.
jane
donnawb
15 years ago
Beautiful trees.
luvstocraft
15 years ago
It's evident that you really enjoy decorating for Christmas. You have lots of pretty ornaments and your trees look really lush with them. I'm still green with envy over you having two whole storage rooms in your house next door! We never get tired of pics, and I'm loving the stories you are sharing too. Luvs
leveta
15 years ago
I love the older homes for christmas. They have so much charm...Your trees are beautiful...
ncnana
15 years ago
I just love them. Good job with the photos too. Can't wait to see more. - Gail
bourbonlady
Original Author
15 years ago
Jane, that's funny about your daughter, mine will turn 16 this next March (shutter!) and I've got all the ornaments and decorations from her "unwanted" tree packed up. I know she'll use those one day when she has a daughter.

Luvs, I absolutely LOVE decorating for Christmas...I think for me, I have always been a creative/artistic person, drawing, sewing, etc. But as the kids have gotten older and the business has grown, time for that has dwindled. My work allows me to create, but I'm on this computer all the time and there is no hands-on in that creative process. So, my Christmas decorating has become my hands-on! Now instead of taking a simple piece of paper and a pencil, I take a simple tree and bargain-basement priced leftovers....

Anyway, here are some more photos then of the entry tree:

The ivory, gold and silver tasseled garlands and the shiny and matte balls, were all that I had on the ugly corner tree before last year. I got those about 8-9 years ago for 75% off. All the decorative ornaments, I have gotten over the last 2 years, after Christmas, again 75% off....The topper I got last year, and I want to say that I spent $12 at the most on that!

Here are some closeups of the glass ornament tree:
bettyd_z7_va
15 years ago
Awesome!
Betty
luvstocraft
15 years ago
Beautiful ornaments and such a nice assortment. TFS. Luvs
Bright199
15 years ago
Thank you ever so much for the closeups! They are just beautiful trees.
lynnencfan
15 years ago
Alex - first off - I for one NEVER get tired of looking at pictures and seeing how others do their trees so don't be afraid of posting too much

Second - what beauties - they are lovely trees - I especially love the glass ornament tree and the close-up shots. I am getting so many ideas as to how to start grouping my ornaments to make a 'statement'. Thank you so much for sharing and keep em' coming......

Lynne
User
15 years ago
That entry tree is stunning! I love all the different ornaments... just beautiful:)

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