DecorBook Classic : A Magical Christmas Collection
- kathleen
- 4 hours ago
- 3 min read
Just a few miles east of Oakland, CA, there is a sweet town. And in this town, there is a house filled with everything Christmas. And yesterday, I was invited to photograph this magical house of a friend of a friend. Every piece tells a story of childhood or travels with her family. But to tell the truth, Jo Anne had me with these handpainted Santa faces. Let's take a look at the rest.
When Jo Anne and her husband were married on December 10 over 50 years ago, she was given a Christamas ornament shower. Her mother gave her this handcarved Italian creche. Over the years, she found the 3 wise men from the same artist. Its displayed in the entryway.
And in the living room, a second creche and other pieces by the same carver were found later.
In Jo Anne's rooms, there is an overlying theme of inredible blue&white antiques. The exquisite tree in the living room is filled with glass ornaments.
No matter what time of the year she's traveling, Jo Anne keeps a look out for Christmasy items. She spied this beautiful ornament in a St. Petersburg (Russia) museum gift shop.
Many of the glass tree ornaments were purchased at Bergdorf Goodman in New York City. Others are from Jo Anne's mother.
Jo Anne's complementary fabrics lay a founation for the large open plan rooms. Toiles and checks predominate. See that pinkish toile in the background? That's the print on her dining room chairs and a couple of stools, When I first saw Jo Anne's house a couple of years ago, I had a light bulb moment - and that's how I got my orange with blue&white color theme for my Christmas decor. Thanks, Jo Anne!
A Toile covered chair and Staffordshire dogs by the fireplace.
Every year, Karkow (Poland) has a nativity scene competition, open to ages and contests for individuals and families. Jo Anne found these in a museum gift shop.
A base of pinecones and snow is a central theme to many of the tablescapes.
Living room sofa and treasure-filled buffet.
Sweet collection from Germany. See it below on the coffee table?
Let's move into what I'd call the snug - see adjacent room ?
Inside the snug, a special tree with only glass birds. Mostly from Ron Morgan's collection.
A Ron Morgan tree
German wooden collectables, mostly from a now closed store in Pasadena. Jo Anne stores each display in it's own containers, clearly labelled. Even with that organization, it takes her 3 to 4 days to complete.
Sitting at this dining room for a Christmas lunch - wouldn't it be glorious?
Jo Anne spotted this charming ceramic tree in Sciliy. Each ornament is handpainted.
Another speciality of Jo Anne's rooms is that she keep collections together. These sweet polar bears are made by artist Vickie Smyers. Jo Anne has filled out her collection from EBay and Etsy.
Near the entryway, another Ron Morgan tree, this one won at the White Elephant sale auction.
A Santa greeting by the front door.
In Jo Anne's yard, a wall of camellias showed their final blooms before winter starts this morning. Thank you, Jo Anne, for sharing your love of Christmas! I'll be back on December 28th with other friends' Christmas decor. In the meantime, enjoy your Sunday!
PS - Jo Anne told me about Ron Morgan, who was an Oakland, CA florist for many years. In 2017, he sold his Christmas collection in two sales. Jo Anne went to both sales, adding to her collection. If you have a minute, this blog about his collection is fascinating, I've never seen anything like it.
I'd love it if you'd like to share your decor, please email me at kathleen@decorbook.com.
