Year after year I search through stacks of boxes of Christmas cards in search of one that expresses the true meaning of Christmas. For several years I picked cards with beautiful angels on the front; others with manger scenes, Mary, Joseph, the baby Jesus and sometimes the three kings in the background, and every now and then I grab one just because it’s a beautiful picturesque scene that makes me remember the joyful festive streets of New York from a couple of occasions when I was fortunate enough to be there when all of their beautifully decorated buildings and windows, glowed from every direction.
I’ve received many versions of Christmas cards over the years, some more thoughtfully chosen than others, and some so special that I’ve kept them tucked away with my box of Christmas stationary and read them once each year.
One year (I don’t even recall how long ago, but it could be as long as two decades) a long time friend who was residing in Germany at the time sent what I have claimed as my favorite Christmas card of all time.
Simple, elegant, and straight to the point, I couldn’t help but praise the wonderful person who designed this beautiful card. As I slowly unfolded each of it’s accordion folded pages, I wondered how even after all of these years I’ve never seen another card with this same beautiful message.
As I opened the pages to read my special card this year, the thought came to me to share this beautiful card with all of you. As I centered on each page to take a picture, I noticed that when I took the picture of the final page (above) a warm light glowed through along the trunk of the tree. I knew my decision to share it was validated.
I send out far more cards than I ever receive these days. I miss seeing the beautifully unique script handwritten signature of each family member and friend who once sent them to me. Some were once filled with beautiful handwritten letters sharing a few notes about their year (as were mine). As this once very special tradition gets lost in the chaos of texting and posting, rather than personally writing and mailing – I suppose life won’t slow down enough for these old traditions to find their way back again. Fortunately, I’ve held on to the best so I can enjoy reading them again again for years to come.
Special thank you to my lovely friend Vivian who is always filled with faith and devotion to our Lord Jesus. God Bless YOU! An a very Merry Christmas to all of you!
Lavender is my favorite fragrance. So many things in my home are scented with lavender that one morning some time ago when my daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren were visiting for several days, I woke before everyone else and decided to ease out of the house to do some weeding in my front yard flower beds. When I returned inside, I found my daughter and grandchildren starting their morning routines of coffee and cereal. As I walked into the kitchen my daughter said, “There she is!” with a chuckle. I said good morning and asked what was so funny. She said, “The kids were looking all over the place for you. They said we can’t find Nana anywhere, but we can smell her!” I’ve learned that my grandchildren have come to associate the scent of lavender with their Nana.
Friends, an occasional delivery person, even trick or treating kids have said as I opened my front door, “Your house smells so good!” The secret for years was the Glade lavender and peach blossom plug-ins, that much to my dismay have been discontinued. Using another lavender scented plug-in is just not the same, but I’m still searching for a better alternative.
An avid reader, I especially love historical fiction novels set in France and have often read of how a character in the book ended up being invited to spend the night in some mysterious old manor. While settling into their guest quarters, they would find fresh linens folded on their bed. As they lifted the bed sheet or towel a small sachet of dried lavender buds would fall out, and the delicate fragrance would permeate their linens as they crawled into bed for the night.
The idea inspired me. My bed linens are (as you may have guessed) lavender ( in color) that I’ve paired with grays and taupes in my master bedroom. After each change of linens on my bed, I press (yes I starch and iron my pillow cases and flat sheets with – lavender scented starch when I can find it) and then fold the pieces to store away for the next change. As a result of the idea from my novels, I now slip sachets of dried lavender between each pillow case and folded sheet. Adding a couple of drops of lavender essential oil to the sachet brings the scent of the buds back to life after each change cycle.
Note: While you can purchase sachets already made (see link below the picture above), you can also purchase lavender buds online and small organza bags to fill and tie.
Of all the lavender I surround myself with, bath time contains some of my favorites. Bath oils, bath bombs, bath salts, bubble bath and body wash all filled with the soothing fragrance. Lavender scented candles flicker around the room to also help calm a stressful day away.
Italian Bubble Bath and Sage Smudge Stick with Lavender
Hand wash, lotions and occasionally I may even dust a little lavender scented powder around my neck.
English lavender powder by Taylor of London, Italian lavender hand soap and Laduree scented candle from France.
Lavender scented air freshener and linen sprays are a great way to scent the bedroom and linens just before lying in bed to read a good book. The fragrance is known for its calming and relaxing properties to help one fall into a deep sleep.
A couple of years ago a friend gave me a perfume roller bottle filled with lavender essential oil that she suggested I put on my temples, wrists and upper chest that also helps to calm and soothe the senses for a sound sleepful night. (Note: I do not have skin allergies so of course those with sensitive skin conditions should use caution before putting essential oil on the skin.) The link below is an example of bottles that I ordered and filled with essential oil.
Linen spray and bottle with roller (see link provided above) filled with lavender essential oil purchased at Homegoods.
When life is filled with stressful events, lavender has provided me the comforts to the relax and the benefits of self care. Over the years I’ve discovered more and more ways to enjoy the scent of lavender and hope to discover more. If you love the scent of lavender, hopefully you have discovered some new ways to enjoy it with the ideas I’ve shared. Be sure to share your own finds with me!
An event planner, whether for a party of 6 or 600 has to plan ahead, and in my case any chance of making things in advance is an opportunity to save time later. My Annual Mother’s Tea, held the first Sunday of May, is a tradition formed after my mother passed away and I was facing Mother’s Day without her. I invited a small group of friends who also lost their mothers to join together for an afternoon tea and share memories of them and from there a tradition was formed. As a way to make each year a little different, I wrote everyone’s name on a piece of paper and placed all of the names in a teapot. At the end of each tea (themed in honor of a mother) we pull a new name and honor that person’s mother the following year attempting to include memories, favorite flowers, special interests and/or careers including a menu filled with flavors that each mother would have loved.
At our most recent tea, my friend Kelly’s name was selected and in 2022 we will be honoring her mother Jane. Each year I’ve noted shared memories for future reference, and when I saw Kelly’s name I immediately thought of a memory she shared at one of our first gatherings about her mother saving marigold seeds.
Kelly shared with all of us that just a couple of weeks prior, she was planting marigolds in her vegetable garden, and a memory formed of her mother collecting the seeds from marigolds in her own garden. She confessed that as a child she didn’t understand why her Mom was planting the marigolds or collecting the seeds, but now here she was planting her own marigolds to protect her vegetable garden from insects and attract others that encourage pollination and healthy growth.
As she told the story, it reminded me of my own mother planting marigolds. She didn’t have a vegetable garden, but it seemed to be one of the few flowers that could stand the Southern California sun years ago. It also gave this party planner a great idea for a small memory favor to create for everyone at the table.
By mid-June, my own marigolds were beginning to struggle in the heat. As I pulled away the withered flowers from their plants, I realized this was an opportunity to dry the seeds and create the seed packets for next May’s tea that I had been thinking of.
I searched online for seed envelopes, but they were sold in large quantities when I wanted less than a dozen, and I wanted each to be pretty and femininely decorated to fit into my tea decor. So I then searched for free seed envelope templates. As I scrolled through the options I found this beautiful template by Glenda’s World. https://glenda-jsworld.blogspot.com/2013/09/seed-envelope-packets.html
I printed a sample and found that the size was a bit smaller than I wanted, so I then took a snipit of the image and pasted it to a blank page. This enabled me to expand the size to whatever I wanted. I printed the resized image. Once satisfied with the size, I decided I wanted the front to have a marigold rather than the date, etc. provided on the original. So I searched for free images of marigolds. I’m no graphic designer, but for years I’ve made what I want by printing, cutting and taping with matt scotch tape and then making a photocopy of the final image.
I cut out the center of the framed section on the template and then sized and fitted the marigold to fit inside. I then created and printed a bordered “Marigold Seeds” band, to cut and tape over the marigold image.
I found a pack of pearlized paper that I didn’t remember I had, and thought it would make a prettier envelop. After taping all of the edges down (above is before the taping), I smoothed it down carefully with a bone folder (a craft tool used for making crisp folds). I laid the prepared version above on my printer face down and then laid a white sheet of printer paper on top, finally printing a color copy on to the pearlized paper. The marigolds changed to a rose gold color and the green font looks gray (that I can’t explain), but all together it created a delicate image that was perfect! In fact as I was researching marigolds I found that there is a French variety of strawberry blonde marigolds that the image below looks very much like.
The printer ink has to be allowed at least 5 minutes to dry or the image can smudge. Once dried, I used the bone folder to carefully fold all of the edges of the template for a professional look. I originally tried using a little Elmer’s glue to adhere the back and bottom flaps, but you can see from the image above, it caused some puckering. So I used a glue stick instead. Due to the texture of the paper, I had to weigh the glued envelop down with a plate for about 5 to 10 minutes to allow the glue some time to dry and hold the flaps together.
When I first started experimenting with the original template, I printed several thinking I would glue the image of the marigold over the fonted information. But after some thought, I decided that wouldn’t look as professionally made. Rather than wasting the first set of templates, I formed each into envelopes and placed one behind each of the marigold seed filled envelopes that would allow my guests to use for their own seed collecting.
I then added a small pre-glued pearl at the bottom of each envelope and tied the two envelopes together with some sheer white ribbon I had in my supply of all occasion ribbon.
I
Each envelop was filled with marigold seeds and then sealed with small gold heart stickers I had in my stationary drawer. In fact, everything used to make the seed packets were in my craft or stationary stash. So they didn’t cost me a penny!
My friend Kelly’s memory of her mother, has been carefully created into a small gift from the heart that I hope she can be proud of at next year’s Annual Tea, where we will honor her mother in other ways yet to be discovered.
S I P [Social Interactions and Parties] 