“How would you describe your holiday style?”
That was the question “on the table” late last month as we began discussing our upcoming, holiday-themed posts for See How We Sew. We quickly discovered that, although we number just four, each had her own unique take on how to “deck the halls” at this special time of year.
Laura loves the traditional look and remembrances of Christmas past, as exemplified by her Dickens Village and vintage Santa collections. A nostalgic array of handmade photo ornaments, one for each daughter to mark each year, is a beloved tradition on the family tree.
Christie’s whimsical holiday scene centers around a small tree adorned with bells and bows and a large collection of holiday critters and snowmen, all of whom dance and party at night when the house is quiet!
Jennifer favors classic red and green holiday decor, with large doses of warm gold, although a recent passion for snowflakes (especially iridescent, sparkly versions) now complicates the mix. Her compromise is to drop snowflakes from the ceilings, affix them to her walls, and tape them to her windows–yes, it’s an OBSESSION.
Darra’s seasonal style is a casual blend of natural and homespun: live tree (always!), lots of greenery, pine cones, candlelight, and handmade ornaments–fiber, paper, glass, ceramic, tin, wood, cornhusk–some heirloom, some gifts from “crafty” students and friends, many gathered during her years in the North Carolina mountains.
So…how do four women with such divergent tastes launch the traditional holiday season in a single post? With a challenge, of course! Knowing that so much of holiday tradition centers around the holiday table, we decided to create two distinctive table settings, using seasonally themed placemats and napkins as the focal point.
Coming up with a placemat pattern was a no-brainer: we selected the versatile (and easy!) Table Chic pattern from Christie’s Artichoke Collection pattern line. For napkins, we went back to our archives, and agreed on the clever, two-sided napkins featured in Laura’s May 3rd post.
In the spirit of compromise (and given four busy lives), we worked in teams. Laura and Jennifer opted for an elegant and sophisticated palette of gold and silver. Their fabric selections sparkle with a wink of metallic, and the motifs are more seasonal than holiday- specific to carry comfortably into the new year.
For their interpretation, Christie and Darra chose a contemporary–and somewhat whimsical–take on the time-honored palette of red and green. Their fabric choices feature Rudolph and candy stripes, snowflakes and festive, funky holiday trees.
When we gathered for “the big reveal,” we were more than pleased with the results, and amazed at how the same basic placemat and napkin could yield such different looks. We also agreed that the project was easy, easy, easy, and either set of placemats and napkins would be welcome on the table at our own holiday gatherings, or as a quick-and-easy gift…
…which leads us to today’s giveaway.
How would you describe your holiday decorating style? Traditional? Sophisticated? Whimsical? Homespun? Kid-friendly? “On trend?” Do you have a favored holiday color scheme? Leave us a comment by Sunday, November 27, 11 pm (PST), and we’ll pop you in the drawing for one of the placemat and napkin sets we made for this post. Each set includes four placemats and four napkins; be sure to tell us if you’d prefer the gold and silver, or the red and green set.
Option 1: Jennifer and Laura
Along with the placemats and napkins, each winner will receive Christie’s placemat pattern so that she (or he) can add to the set, or make a set for family members or friends. Laura will announce the winner in her post on Tuesday, November 29.
It’s our way of saying “thanks” to our wonderful readers…like you!
Option 2: Christie and Darra
Before we sign off, congratulations to Janice, Sandy, Lisa, and Brenda–winners of the November 8th giveaway. Each receives a downloadable version of Christie’s Urban Chic pattern.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone (and a special “thanks” to our friend, Kim Butterworth, for the beautiful table-top photography)!
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