Christmas Kitchen Dining Nook

I've decorated the kitchen dining nook area with a lot of "Christmas"!

For about 2 minutes the sun shined a few rays into the kitchen.  I had to hustle to get these pics and some are not as crisp as they should be but there was no chance for do-overs!

 I filled this tub with birch sticks, silver coated pine cones and some evergreen branches to look as though it was gathered for a fire.

 The sleigh was gifted to me from my kids a few years ago.  This year it landed on the etagere and since it was designed to be a serving tray I loaded it with some dishes.  

 I bought this tray at T.J.Maxx on a whim and it landed here.  I also found the silver bells there which ended up in the tray with my cardinal and some more pine accents. Again sorry about the blurry pictures….I was literally racing to get these pictures when the sun was out.  Moments later it was all gone!

 I loaded this up with bottle brush trees, a sleigh and another cardinal as though they were part of a woodland scene.

Old Santa here has been with me since the Bombay furniture days.  I was considering getting rid of him but I decided to give him a try up on the top of the etagere and loved it instantly.  The garland came with the faux oranges but the cinnamon poked in them are real.  I bought that years back at my favorite garden center at the end of the season.  

The tartan dinner plates came from Williams Sonoma last year and this year they brought them back.  I ordered the salad plates to go with them. I wanted something simple for the lower shelf since I had the other pieces just below on the little console and it was busy enough.  

 The lantern is from Pier 1 and so is the LED candle inside it.  I had some Pottery Barn filler I tossed around the base.  The old world Santa came from the garden center I visited this year and the bark finished candle is an older one from Pottery  Barn.  

 He's a keeper!

 I re-bag all my filler items and keep them around from year to year.

 The red beaded candle ring and the one on the little tree have been in my collection for a while.   They always look good and have held up well.

I found this adorable top hat at a little decorator's store.  I was looking for something to set on the candle holder that was different and I was so happy when I found it.  I'm not sure what I was creating here but I like it.

The top hat is meant to hang on a tree but it suited me better here!

In the evening I have a back light running.  We use LED lights which are economical to run.

(Sorry I missed fixing the electric cord so it wasn't so obvious)

 The chandelier got a special affect this year.  I told hubby I was curious if I could get this red globe up underneath and he came up with a solution.  I've included pics further down below that explain this part.

 I draped this white almost popcorn looking stuff around to look like snow.

 I found these tartan fabric dogs at Kohl's and they ended up here.

 I installed some of those battery operated wire LED lights inside that I turn on in the evenings. 

How did we do it? 

 He bought a piece of acrylic and cut a disc that was larger than the opening of the glass globe.

He made a hole in the center so he could have some way to manage it as he installed it and put holes on the sides for the tie wraps he was going to use to hang it with.

 He also cut a notch on the side so it would allow him to get the piece down inside.

Mr. Smarty Pants!

 He sort of rolled it in there.  I had already put in the little battery operated LED lights.  I am the technical assistant- I helped hold the globe in place while he got the tie wraps on.

Now all we have to do is suspend it with tie wraps.

I had him secure the battery pack for the LED lights with a tie wrap too so I can turn it on and off without disturbing the wreath and deco objects.  You can kind of see the tie wraps holding the disc in place.

 When I first took the pictures my cloche was empty.  I was waiting for this darling little girl on the sled to arrive and it did later in the day.  She's another Bethany Lowe piece- I love the vintage creations she comes up with.

Isn't she cute!  Of course I had to put in some faux snow for the sled!

This year we have no real snow which is very unusual for us!  Personally I am enjoying it but the local ski resorts aren't too happy about it!  Its was 53 degrees today!

So that's my Christmas Kitchen Dining Nook

Joining
Between Naps on the Porch for
Metamorphosis Monday

A Stroll Thru Life
for
Inspire Me Tuesday

Life & Home at 2102
for
12 Days of Christmas Blogger Tour