Thanks Santa!  You deserve a break after all that hard work last night! 

I hope everyone is having a Merry Christmas!

The ultimate natural decoration for me . . .

So . . .  I love tropical things, natural decorations, lemons, and wreaths . . .

This pretty much covers it all!  Next year, I'm making one like this for sure!

The Legend of the Sand Dollar

In one of my previous posts, I wrote about decorating my Christmas tree with sand dollars.  Whenever I would go to the beach in Florida, I would consider myself lucky if I found a sand dollar.

One of the most unusual specimens of marine life; the markings on the shell symbolize the Birth, Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ. 

On the top side of the shell, in the very center, is a five-pointed star, representing the Star of Bethlehem.  Surrounding the Star is the Easter lily.

On the reverse side of the shell, you will recognize the outline of the Christmas Poinsettia and also the Bell.  When broken, inside the shell are five little birds called the Doves of Peace.  Some say they are the Angels that sang to the Shepherds the First Christmas Morning.
 

Central Virginia Botanical Artists' blog

I occasionally post on other blogs.  Today I have a post on the Central Virginia Botanical Artists' blog about Mark Catesby: artist, naturalist, and explorer of the southeast coast during colonial times.  A show of his work is on display at Wilton House Museum here in Richmond.

 

A link can be found here: http://centralvirginiabotanicalartists.blogspot.com/2012_12_01_archive.html

Natural Christmas - decorating with shells

Many years ago when I was single and lived near the beach, I decided to go "simple and natural" with my holiday decorations and used shells to trim my Christmas tree.  Wow - what a wonderful look!  I looped red velvet ribbon through sand dollars and hung them as ornaments.  Many of the clam and scallop shells I found on the beach already had small holes in them, so I slipped hooks through each shell and used them in place of balls.  White shells against a green tree with a pop of red looked so festive in December.

After having children, I used lots of shiny balls and tinsel, but we made it a tradition to buy one beach-themed ornament each year on vacation to add to our tree.  Now that the girls are older, I'm thinking of incorporating shells and other "found" natural decorations again.  I've been looking through Pinterest for ideas on how to use shells, rope, greens and pinecones for garlands, wreaths and ornaments.  I'd like to do a small tree like this one!

 

And I feel like I would be remiss if I didn't mention the decorations in Williamsburg, Virginia.  They are the masters at using natural objects to make the most beautiful decorations.  My daughter recently sent me this photo she took of a wreath on a door in Colonial Williamsburg.  I'm glad to know my love of nature is rubbing off on another generation. 

 

 

Happy Decorating!