“Sunday in the South” Book Signing & More

This Saturday, October 29th, from 1 to 4 pm, Christmas Place hosts author and chef Ginny McCormack for a signing of her book, Sunday in the South.

More than just a cookbook, although it is filled with delectable recipes, Ginny’s book includes 350 photographs of  food, gorgeous table decor, and beautiful Southern imagery.  Complete dinner menus; quotes, stories, and humorous anecdotes; and tips and techniques fill each chapter, making this much more than a simple cookbook – it’s a story about incorporating food into the best times of our lives with Southern  grace, hospitality, and congeniality.

Chapter topics and recipes cover a range from ”A Formal Sunday Feast” to ”A Comfort Food Family Dinner,” “A Seafood Lunch on the Porch,” “A Hearty Outdoor Dinner,” and “Ten Southern Classics,” and include breakfast and other meals.  I’m going to check out her recipe for Southern Key Lime Pie – it’s my personal favorite, and I’ve been gathering ideas for making the best!  In the mean time, can I interest anyone in Southern Home Style Meatloaf with Sweet Chili Glaze,  Creamy Corn Pudding, and White Cheddar Cornbread, finished with Peach Bread Pudding?  (I would just choose today to write about this, when I left my lunch sitting on the kitchen counter at home!!)

Ginny is a cooking instructor, speaker, author, food columnist, editor of an online magazine, and host of GinnyMcCormackCooks.com.  She has appeared regularly as a T.V. chef.  She lives with her family in Marietta, Georgia, and enjoys writing and teaching about the art of Southern hospitality and new Southern cuisine.

This is Ginny’s first visit to Christmas Place, and we are looking forward to meeting her.  Her book would make a fabulous Christmas or special occasion gift!

Also at 1 o’clock on Saturday, our Floral Department will be demonstrating  how to assemble and decorate the mesh boxes that are such a favorite for holiday decor – and especially since they can be themed for any occasion, not just Christmas.

We’ll see you Saturday!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

P.S.  Two more signings on Saturday – you can take care of all your Christmas at one time! – Ne’Qwa Inside Art Ornaments, painted on the inside of glass ornaments – Trieste will be here once again demonstrating her amazing painting technique – sometimes she brings brushes you can buy to try it yourself.  I have painted on glass – it’s a very mental challenge, because you have to think about the image in reverse order from traditional surface painting.  (This iconic snowman & cardinal image is my personal choice – I got mine signed when it was first released in 2008.)

R. J. McDonald is back with us for the weekend to sign his wonderful Santa prints and giclees – some of which can be personalized by adding your family names to Santa’s “nice” list!

Come see us!

Hope Black Bear Ornament

We learned over the weekend that customers are snapping up this black bear ornament in honor of Hope, a black bear that was part of a research study on the bear population in Minnesota.  Hope traveled with her mother, Lily, and another cub named Faith – but always managed to get out of her tracking collar.  She was legally shot by a hunter sometime last month.    Read more about the story here.

We enjoy a sizeable black bear population here in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park area, too.  According to The Park’s website, this is “one of the few places remaining in the eastern United States where black bears can live in wild, natural surroundings.”  Our bears have been very active this year, and it is awesome – and fearsome - to see them enjoying the land.  A mama and cub sighting is the best, but can be the most dangerous, too.

When you visit Pigeon Forge & Christmas Place, be sure to schedule time for a drive or a hike in our national park – leaf season is coming on, and it’s going to be a beautiful fall!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Fall Sweepstakes Time

Admittedly, we prefer selling things, but we do enjoy giving things away from time to time, too!  Check out our two current sweepstakes:

Just for fun and creepiness – a Department 56 Halloween house, the Retching Pumpkin Diner!  I don’t know about you, but it’s awfully wretched-looking to me.  Please, someone, win it and take it home with you.  Enter once a day through Friday, September 30th, and we’ll award it to one lucky creep winner on the first of October.

If something on the sparkly side is more your style, be sure to enter our 25th Anniversary giveaway, celebrating both Christmas Place and Snowbabies turning 25 this year!  The happy winner will receive a “Joy for You and Me” SnowDreams figurine from their glittering anniversary collection and a beautiful, red Christmas Place 25th anniversary t-shirt.

Any time we are having a giveaway, you’ll find it in the “What’s New” column on our home page.

Also going on right now, a 20% off sale on almost 3,000 ornaments – both in the store and online – including lots of your favorite styles for personalization.  Remember, ornament personalization is free.  We carry a broad selection of family ornaments, for personalization of up to 15 names!

Just to get you excited, let me remind you that Christmas is less than 100 days away!  Yippee!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

P.S. More newly-decorated Christmas trees coming next week!

I Mulched!

Longtime readers know that I was not one born to a life of yard work, and have only come lately to the management of the green green grass of home.  With winter ending rather early here in the south, I’m actually going to have to mow the lawn before the end of March this year.  Crazy, I know!

I have some cleaning to do first – my maple trees tend to shed limbs every time the boy down the street whistles a happy tune .. thankfully, they don’t fall on the roof .. and don’t get me started on the Magnolia.  I would like to find the person who thought the lowest branches should be severely pruned, exposing all the fallen seed heads.  I really want to thank that person for leaving me with the task of picking them all up.

Dogwood Bloom

Look how close we are to dogwood blooms in my valley ~ this little guy must have popped open just hours before I got home yesterday.  We’re having a beautiful spring.

But the thing that is making me the most potentially-less-stressed (can’t bring myself to quite say ‘happy’) about yard work this summer is that I finally realized – - – MULCH.  Why didn’t you ever tell me to try mulch before?  I’m prepared to forgive, but really, I could have been mulching two years ago and saving myself so much time.

I have mulched!

There’s a large-ish patch at the end of the front porch that was at one time covered with black plastic, with a couple of bushes coming up through and a line of decorative grass along the edge.  Til yesterday, it was a battleground where dandelions, strawberry vines, and assorted flowering weeds struggled to maintain an encampment,against my random, periodic attacks of pulling everything up.  Mostly, I just tried to keep everything short enough that the neighbors below could not see the jungle.  This morning, it is a tranquil oasis of mulch.   Victory for me!

Similar enclaves scattered around the yard have no doubt heard about my triumph by now, and are trembling in anticipation of their own impending annihilation.  I have more bags of mulch, and I am not afraid to use them! 

My plan is to mulch everything I can’t reach with the mower.  I’m sure I’ll still have to deploy the weed whacker in a few areas, but ultimate yard domination is now within my grasp.  I have even earned the right to hang this ornament on my Christmas tree this year, as I posses and have used at least three of the items it includes – I bought new, BIGGER pruning shears this month.  Watch out, forsythia, I’m coming for you next.

Now let’s talk about the goats for the grass……

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

 

Two for Tuesday

We’re gearing up for spring break around here .. although we don’t have much to offer in the way of beach front property.  Maybe you’re headed to a sunny, sandy shore.  Here are a pair of new ornaments to remind you of vacation days!

Let me tell you, our associates know their stuff so well that even out of the many thousands of ornaments we have around here, when I asked what was new this week, they pointed me right to these two.  I am amazed!  These will be available on the web site by the end of the week.

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Two for Tuesday

My coworker Laura saw me wandering around with the camera today, looking for my (belated) Two, and she suggested The. Greatest. Idea.  Take a look at this wonderful cookie platter (it should be on the site shortly):

The back of this plate is white, with lots of smooth surface.  Laura’s Greatest. Idea. is that you would purchase the plate and write your name and the date on the back in indelible ink, serve guests with it at your fabo Christmas party, then pass it along to a friend or family member.  They would add their name and the date to the back after using it at a party, and continue passing it on.  When all the space on the back has been used, return the plate to the person who started the chain.  What a great collection of memories will come back to you with this gift!  You see why I say it’s The. Greatest. Idea.

Now, another quick Two for ..

Super Bowl’s coming up .. anyone up for some Colts victory??  I searched our NFL collection, and found a Colts nutcracker, Christmas tree skirt, scoreboard clock, wreath, nightlight helmet, and snowman ornament, along with this animated Colts player looking awfully fierce up in here!

For the New Orleans Saints?  Well, I found this cute little ornament.

Eh.  Not so much.  Who knew we were such fans of the AFC here?!  As I’ve said before, I say again, Go Blue!

And have a great day out there!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Two for Tuesday

Hey, it’s the first Two for Tuesday of the new year!  I guess really all this week it’s the first everything of the new year, of course, but I’m noting it anyway.  I’m sure this year I’ll sometimes have to share three or four or even seven or eight for Tuesday, but it’s all good, right?

Today is also National Bird Day, according to the “fun excuses to celebrate this month” calendar.   In fact, it’s quite a busy month.  Tomorrow is Cuddle Up Day, the 14th is National Dress Up Your Pet Day, the 23rd is Measure Your Feet Day, and the 31st is Backwards Day, just to name a few highlights.  Everyone better watch out on the 21st – National Hugging Day … if this cold weather continues, I plan to be an enthusiastic celebrant on that day … !

But I digress.  How about a few cute birds to get you in the appropriate mood today ~ and remind you to make sure the bird feeders are full, especially on these cold and snowy days.  Our feathered friends could really use our support this winter.

 Christmas birds and Snow birds – I’m so crazy about these guys, I’ve added about a dozen to my personal collection.  I’m planning on keeping them out until spring – they’re just so wacky and somehow adorable and cheerful when flocking together on a shelf.

Christmas Birds

Snow Birds

If you’re in the “I’m desperate for spring already!” crowd, here is a blooming trio that will warm your heart and hearth.

Think warm thoughts already if you must; I’m still enamored of winter, and anxious for a real East Tennessee snow and more time with my plush Snuggie.  Yes, I’ve gone to the Snuggie side!  But you need to get the one with the hand warmer pocket – it’s the best.

Happy 2010!  I’m looking forward to sharing Tuesdays with you this year.  If there’s anything you’d like me to highlight, just leave a comment and I’ll be sure to cover it.

Stay warm (or if you’re in a hot place somewhere today, be cool!),

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Egyptian Museum Glass Signing

This Saturday, October 24th, Linda Abdelhameed will be in the store to sign your purchases from our Egyptian Museum Glass collection.  These beautiful Christmas ornaments, vases, compotes, and jars are mouth blown, then etched by hand and decorated with 24 kt gold.  Each piece is a work of art, and my photos here really do not do them justice.  They are sparkling, elegant creations that you’ll want to display in your home year round.

Red Cut-Glass Compote

The signing will take place from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.  If you are unable to be here but would like to purchase a signed piece of this lovely glass collection, just give us a call at 1-800-445-3396 and we’ll take your order.

In addition to the red and lavender pieces pictured here, we offer blue, gold, green, and even black glass pieces, as well as a group in pink with cut-glass ribbons in support of the effort to defeat breast cancer.  There is also a wonderfully unique assortment of glass ornaments.

Lavender Vases and Jar

 For a truly grand gift or a special addition to your personal collection of glass, be sure to stop by the store this Saturday.

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Two for Tuesday

I recently noticed some very fun and funny carved ornaments and figurines, a more light-hearted approach to Santa and his Christmas pals.  Santa rides on the back of an irreverent polar bear in this crazy piece that comes in at about 9 inches tall.  If you take a more casual approach to decorating for the holidays, this collection might be just right for you!

I also discovered a very special ornament collection depicting the events surrounding the birth of Jesus in a beautiful and delicate carved interpretation.  I love the message of the cross and heart woven into the design of this ornament depicting a shepherd and sheep looking across to the manger in Bethlehem.  This ornament would look grand on an ornament hanger as an unique decoration in your home.

I hope you’re getting excited about Christmas!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place 

Two for Tuesday

I found these very antique-looking glass ornaments on a tree in the Custom Floral Department.  They are a rich copper brown that would work with any antique color theme.

Not pictured is a coordinating round ornament with the message “Season’s Greetings.”

When you see these next pictures, you’ll know right away why they caught my eye – just the right amount of sparkle!  These are crafted of very light-weight mesh, arranged into stylized branches or limbs, reminiscent of a type of feather tree.

Whimzy Christmas Tree

 Don’t the sparkles on the gold tree look like diamonds?  The gold tree comes in three sizes; the green Whimzy tree also comes in a couple of sizes and is accented with snow on the “branch” tips and shiny glass ornaments in assorted colors.  One tree or a grouping of different sizes on a mantle or foyer table will make a beautiful focal point for your holiday decorations.

 I hope you’ve been enjoying our new shopping site this week!  Did you notice the enhanced search-by-category feature?  This should help you find just what you’re looking for on the first click.

We were delighted to see the sun for a few hours today in Pigeon Forge … hope you saw a little of the big yellow guy in your neighborhood, too!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place