Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Paula's Cozy Christmas Cottage 2013 - Part 1


Ah...yes! 
That is Paula's charming cottage immortalized
 on this very special hand painted Christmas ornament.

We had our annual, wonderful, whirlwind 2 day
 Christmas shopping extravaganza!
We covered it all....from our favorite home decor boutiques, holiday open houses, antique shops, upscale specialty,
 dress and jewelry shops...
...to junk shops and even Home Goods and TJ Maxx. 

In between shopping and eating I managed to take
 lots of photos of  Paula's Christmas cottage.



This post is way too long... with 50 plus photos... so you may want to read this when everyone else is taking their post turkey nap!
...just so you know!

First, here is a peek at her little cottage kitchen decorated,
  of course, with a small Christmas tree on the counter.
 I counted over 17 decorated trees this year!
The charming kitchen is indeed tiny, but let me tell you,
 I have enjoyed some pretty awesome meals coming out
 of this wonderful space!



I didn't even count this sweet little tree...



...or this one! 


Paula made a pair of angel wings, trimmed with lace
 and old buttons, for this wire dress form.


And then she crowned a Christmas tree with it!
Where does she get these ideas from?


We were together antiquing when she found these bed springs...
...now turned into a table candelabra centerpiece.



Her silver table top tree filled with birds and nests
 was set up in the corner of the dining room again.


Don't you love the colors in these bird plates
 that she found in Pottery Barn?
The colors fit in perfectly with her palette
 of creams, whites, green and brown.

And yes, that is one of Evi's hand made Santas.





Another of Evi's Santas...in an antique shoe.





A newly acquired, hand crafted curly wool sheep
 stands beneath another tree.


Small vignettes fill each shelf of an old chimney cupboard.









Paula converted some old chair springs into her version
 of a "dove cote".


There are those wonderful skates she bargained for
 at Brimfield a few years back...
...and one of Evi's rabbits.


The bed in the downstairs bedroom has a new duvet cover 
on sale at PB...
The pine cones and boughs are just perfect for a winter bed...
...and I was thinking ...it would be wonderful on one of the beds
 at the lake house in the summer too! 


  

There's the olive bucket I gave her for her birthday...finally!
I love these little Charlie Brown trees she finds.












Michele from Taken For Granite
 made these charming pillows last year!



Pillow by Michele at Taken For Granite!







I loved the way she decorated the mantel in this room
 with the hairpin gate, clock faces and funky trees.




The Mama rabbit and little bunny are making their first appearance
 this year as they are new to Paula's collection
 of Evi's one of a kind creations.



Every single detail is important to Paula
 which is what makes her Christmas cottage so special.

More to come!
We haven't been upstairs yet!

Until then....
Sending best wishes for a healthy, safe and
 Happy Thanksgiving
to you and your families.
:)

24 comments:

ℳartina @ Northern Nesting said...

BEAUTIFUL!!! Happy Thanksgiving!

Chrissy...The Apothecary Shop said...

Hello stranger..how are you? Well that was quite the tour,but I have to say out of all those photos my favorite was...the little Charlie Brown tree in that awesome bucket..I love it!!Makes my bits of cedar look pretty pathetic I must say!! I know tomorrow is your Thanksgiving so enjoy it my lovely friend..xoxo

lynn said...

I love her style!!! Is this the same Paula that was featured in a Mary Engelbriet magazine years ago? If so, I tore that story out as I loved the style then also. A question: what are the long metal sculptures with curly cue's and wavy designs on them? Thank you.

Gail Peterson said...

WOW, she has so many pretty things, I would love to just shop at her cottage! HTHank you for sharing a part of the holidays that you love with your friends christmas cottage!
xo,
Gail
CasualLovesElegance

theodora said...

WOW, that is all so beautiful..thank you for sharing it all.
Barb

Boxwood Cottage said...

My my my *picks her self up from the floor where she passed out* you know what Laura if I didn't knew that these photos are real I wouldn't believe it because it is all just too good to be true! The Winter Wonderland beauty that Paula created in her cottage makes me all teary eyed because of it's amazing beauty! I'll have to study them again and again and then going to start a mad pinning spree lol Thank you so much for sharing Paula's home with us again dear Laura and please tell her that she's me idol and that I worship her! That wire dressform xmas tree what an awesome idea and there is so much more and so so many gorgeous details it's hard to take it all in. And Evi's handmade Santas and Winter Bunnies are giving it all that extra touch of whimsy. Love her new mother and child pair!
Happy Thanks Giving to all of you lovely, creative and inspiring ladies!
xoxo~ Carola

Tania said...

Looks amazing, thanks for sharing these festive pics with us.
Tania.

Unknown said...

first of all Laura, Thank you for sharing Paula's home.....I look forward to seeing her home any time of the year....she is amazing to say the least....I look at each picture again and again and wonder how she does it.....a true winter wonder land !!!!! her talent is unbelievable !!!!!! Thank you again and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!!!!!

Ariadne said...

Thank you again this year for this gorgeous tour! I told you your photos are much more beautiful than in the magazine! I loved every nook and corner!Looking forward to the next installment!AriadnefromGreece!

Junkchiccottage said...

Thanks Laura for sharing Paula's home with us. It is just amazing. I loved every picture. My fav was the dress form on top of the tree. How super amazing is that?!!!! Love it. Happy Thanksgiving.
Kris

Recycled Rita said...

I will come back and visit this post several times, I love when you share her house! So beautiful! thank you and Happy Thanksgiving! karen....

Sussi.Sussinghurst said...

ohhhh, sooo lovely - are you sure that you did'n forget to post a few more pictures.

Anne Lorys said...

Stunning, Laura!

XO,
Anne

Vintage Home said...

oh what a delightful home. Each turn is my favorite!
Her pallet is so restful and inspiring!

Denise @ secondtimearoundfinds said...

So many great pictures.
The lady is talented I can see why you took so many pictures.
Denise

Evi said...

Hi love,
I just enjoyed this years enchanting Christmas cottage. I cannot wait until the 14th, when we will all meet up at Paula's, and I can FEAST with my own eyes. Our friend is so talented. Every time she takes my breath away, and I go home inspired!!!!
Maybe I will put up a Christmas tree this year after all....
Laura, the one snow girl that you thought I decorated, is not one of mine.
Thank you so much for including Paula's collection of my "babies".
I miss mom and baby rabbit!!!!!
But I will visit her soon.
Hope you had a great day yesterday...we did!
Talk to you soon.
Love, Evi

Julie said...

Hello Laura - thank you SO very much for sharing Paulas cottage with us ... your photos are just beautiful & quite made my day. I think it was just last year I discovered your blog around the time you shared her christmas cottage then & I have been following you for a year. I love that you dont just take a random room shot but you share each little detail of the small touches. I have a crink in my neck from peering so closely at the screen & will come back many more times for more eye candy. I am so glad to see you blogging again more frequently as I very much enjoy your posts. Warm wishes, Julie x0x

Carol said...

Purely magical! Happy Thanksgiving

Smiles,

Carol

Egretta Wells blog said...

Hi Laura, Paula's cottage is just lovely. So many exciting ideas...I especially love the pillows she made.Every single thing is eye-popping special. I would like to just place one bright red cardinal somewhere just for shock effect, though!

Ivy and Elephants said...

Thanks so much for sharing Paula's amazing home. I think I look forward to it just as much as you do!
Hugs,
Patti

Sylvia/LittleTreasures said...

WOW...wish I could live there! Just love all the little displays. I could use 3 cottages...just for change of seasons. Thanks so much for the fun post.

ThiftedBliss said...

Love love love this post! Paula's vision is true magic. Thanks for this lovely feast for the soul. Merry Christmas to you and your family and hello to Paula from the couple who came to your tag sale and wished you a happy birthday tow years ago. I have your metal pieces hanging on the fence in my yard. xxoo

Unknown said...

So unique! I love it! Thanks for sharing!

Lucy said...

This is hands down my absolute favourite Christmas house tour ever! If I could that is exactly how I would decorate my home for Christmas. Oh makes me pine for my own little cottage! Will have to come back and enjoy all the details again and again. I couldn't stop pinning!

Blessings