tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1822452633282744192.post4996659507777888782..comments2024-03-25T12:21:56.752-05:00Comments on Sweethearts Of The West: VICTORIAN CHRISTMAS TREES by E. AyersCaroline Clemmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914658854159456335noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1822452633282744192.post-75152839179214863252017-12-15T12:55:03.013-06:002017-12-15T12:55:03.013-06:00Thank you, Sarah. I appreciate your kind comment a...Thank you, Sarah. I appreciate your kind comment and I loved your father's childhood Xmas tree. I should consider it, being it's just me. I'll skip the candles. :-)<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />E. Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01434761738048963826noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1822452633282744192.post-16200776221777625822017-12-14T20:50:21.352-06:002017-12-14T20:50:21.352-06:00I thought your excerpt was enchanting and warm for...I thought your excerpt was enchanting and warm for A Rancher's Dream.<br /><br />My father used to talk about life growing up in the little red school house his father transformed into a home. He would reminisce about his childhood before people in his small Pennsylvania town had electricity or running water.<br />He told me about their Christmas tree which was usually a bunch of pine boughs placed in a big pitcher, decorated with homemade ornaments and candles for light. My grandfather was very cautious about setting fire to those candles and stood by with a bucket of water when they lit those candles.<br /><br />Your article was filled with wonderful facts about Christmas trees and ornaments. I do remember those metal "icicles". Mom loved those things. I had no idea they were made of lead. What a dangerous world we lived in then--and yet, we survived. This was a lovely blog, E.Sarah J. McNealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17749991094677728042noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1822452633282744192.post-89292531858827194642017-12-11T15:32:17.795-06:002017-12-11T15:32:17.795-06:00I agree, feathers seems a little odd for Christmas...I agree, feathers seems a little odd for Christmas, but for those who never had live trees, maybe that seems odd and a waste of a natural resource. Remember that Christmas trees are farmed, even trees used for lumber are farmed and paper comes from the trees that are thinned from the stand. <br /><br />Oh my goodness. Christmas Nightmare! But why take the tree down for a Christmas wedding? I would think that would be part of the charm of marrying at Christmastime.<br /><br />E. Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01434761738048963826noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1822452633282744192.post-59686104984570710382017-12-11T10:03:13.008-06:002017-12-11T10:03:13.008-06:00I always wondered why those Victorian trees didn&#...I always wondered why those Victorian trees didn't catch on fire..thanks for enlightening me on that fact.<br />Feathers...uh-uh. Those don't seem right for a Christmas tree.<br />We always had a green tree--never an artificial one--as a child and during the years I put up a tree--which I don't anymore. My two sisters got married at Christmas in small weddings in our parents' living room. I married at Christmas, too, but we had a big church wedding. My older sister's wedding was to take place about noontime on Christmas Day. We all had Christmas the night before in the living room. The next morning, Daddy had orders to "get that tree down before the wedding.Before we could take down the decorations, Daddy began to vacuum. The cord caught on a bottom limb, and down came the tree..glass baubles, icicles, and all==strung out across the carpet in the living room. Countdown to the ceremony--all hands on deck...pick up every scrape of tinsel, etc...vacuum wasn't working right. Whew! A very nervous bride finally said, "I do."<br /><br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16272417114895975742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1822452633282744192.post-16197115136350556632017-12-10T23:05:36.808-06:002017-12-10T23:05:36.808-06:00I never thought about those southern decorations t...I never thought about those southern decorations turning brown in the sun. Friends who live in those no-snow zones swear that palm trees decorated with lights are amazingly beautiful.<br /><br />I don't think the feather trees look much like Xmas, but that's me. :-) Easter?<br /><br />Years ago, a friend's husband went into the woods to find the perfect tree. Three days of running around their newly acquired property left him pretty upset. Out of frustration, he cut three pitiful branches and brought them home and left them in the bucket of water on their porch. Wife took one look and laughed, knowing it was a joke that really wasn't...exactly a joke. The next day when he got home from work, she had tied the three branches together with sturdy string that she found in his garage. Then she proceeded to decorate the "tree". It was funny-looking, but it matched their personalities and their quirky taste in art. In the ten years that they were our neighbors, they had become so fond of the Bohemian-style Xmas trees, they never attempted to do another traditional tree.<br /><br />Christmas is what we make it. And 100+ years ago, those families that made do or the others who wanted that perfect tree with beautiful imported ornaments are no different than those of us today. Isn't that exactly what we do? E. Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01434761738048963826noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1822452633282744192.post-48634595476934466022017-12-10T11:48:07.387-06:002017-12-10T11:48:07.387-06:00I've seen German dowel trees but the feather ...I've seen German dowel trees but the feather tree is a new one on me. Such a variety of possible colors! In the winter of 1947-48, I moved to Florida from NJ's harsh winter. Trees on the light posts in the south turned brown in the sun! A shock to my 9 year old self. In 1970, times were tough and our "tree" was a branch! We learn to make do!Arletta Dawdyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08838394408448357652noreply@blogger.com