Welcome to The Holiday Home Tour

Welcome to the second day of the Holiday Home Tour! I am so excited to have been asked by Cathy of 1929 Charmer and Judy of 20 North Ora, to be a part of the tour.  If you missed the homes on yesterdays tour, you will find the links at the bottom of the page.  Lets get started!

I'll be showing you the heart of our home and where a great deal of time is spent, especially during the holiday season!  That would be the kitchen. Step right in. This is truly a simple little cottage. The house runs around 1150 square feet and we have done a lot of living in that little footprint.  The kitchen was remodeled just about a year ago, with new counters, sink and lighting.  Since we do so much cooking and baking for gifts and parties, I like to keep the Christmas decorations warm and simple and the counters as clear as possible.  

It's dark and gloomy today, cozy winter weather that makes it a little difficult to get a good photo.

 A tiered server keeps fresh fruit available and takes up very little counter space, it's also a pretty way to add some height and color. Some of these oranges will end up in gift baskets as an orange -grapefruit marmalade.

 If you look closely at the photo above, you can see the little niche that I keep our small collection of jadeite displayed in.  That little niche was a tiny built in cupboard when we moved in here 35 years ago.  There was another built in floor to ceiling cupboard where the fridge is now, an old 1940's fridge where the pantry is and a stove where the stove is now, and that was all. There were no counters or cabinets! I think the elderly people who lived here had a kitchen table in the corner that they used for mixing and eating. This little kitchen has come a long way since then.

Here is a closer look at the niche.  I added some cute little snowmen and some clementines for color. I also have some battery operated lights that I sometimes turn on for a little glow when it's dark and gloomy outside. 

It doesn't take much looking to see that I have sprinkled stars all through the kitchen and dining room.  I love them. They remind me of the star of Bethlehem.  These galvanized tin star lights were an outdoor solar light set from Target this summer.  The solar part went kaput pretty quickly, so I took the stars off the string and added them to a small string of battery operated lights for Christmas.  They look so pretty as it gets dark.

 I took the curtains down and attached some faux greenery to the curtain rods, then the lights. I get more light in the winter that way and the windows don't look so bare.

 My favorite candle holder, an old glass block star. I used to have a pair of these, one broke long ago and I have been looking for more ever since with no luck.

 On the back wall of the kitchen is my favorite star this year.  Earl brought home some birch logs from the family hunting cabin for some projects he is working on and was able to peel the bark off a fairly large log.  He made the birch bark star to hang on the wall. It is lit with battery operated lights and I absolutely love the way it turned out!  I flipped the chalkboard "bakery" sign over, it's on  an old cupboard door, and made the Christmas sign to go with the star.

 Here is a close up of the star, peeling bark and all. LOVE!

Back in the corner is the coffee bar.  I know, hot cocoa bars are all the rage right now but we seldom drink it. I sometimes make my coffee into a "mocha" with the addition of a little cocoa, but give me a good hot brew any day. I will, however, top my coffee with whipped cream ;) That "Let it Snow" sign makes me smile this year, it has been hovering in the mid 40's and even in the 60's this past two weeks. Unseasonably warm for December in Michigan!

Come on, grab a cup and turn around, this is the view from the kitchen to the dining room.  As you can see, the front door leads right into the dining room, that's the way it is with small cottages. No wasted space.  It's a pretty big room for such a small house. Good thing, because we like to host fairly large family dinners. I think the most we have had for Thanksgiving is 23 people!  The table belonged to my grandparents. It was used for years in their farmhouse, and I remember sitting at it many nights as a child, drawing, and practicing my penmanship for school. If you look closely, you can see the hanging star lanterns I put in the windows every Christmas. They give a pretty, warm glow to the room, and I always hope that if one of the family is coming home at night, that glow lets them know they are home where it is safe and happy and warm.

 Have a seat at the table, I made coffee and added some whipped cream :) Those gingerbread men are freshly baked and from an old Swedish recipe. I make them with extra spice and they don't last long.  Do you know how often I have wished I could sit at the table with some of my dear blog friends and just chat over coffee and cookies? Many times, and I know I have seen you express the same longing. I feel so blessed to have so many friends that I have made over the 8 years I have been blogging.

 More stars in the garland over the mirror. I have a small tree on the buffet we found by the side of the road.  It's filled with a collection of favorite bird and nest ornaments that we have collected over the years.  I added a few simple candles for color and sparkle and called it done this year.

 That's all for today.  I'll be sharing my living room and tree later this week. Thanks for stopping by and please, be sure to stop and say hello to the other houses on the tour that I have linked below!

December 16 Tours

Anne's Attic Designs

Cherry Hill Cottage

On Crooked Creektt

Sweet Cottage Dreams

December 15 Tours

My 1929 Charmer 

20 North Ora

Ash Tree Cottage

Art & Sand

Junk Chic Cottage