An eclectic collection

Do you have a love affair with Christmas ornaments like I do?  Even though I struggled this year to get ambitious enough to finish the tree decorating, I still love pulling out each ornament.  This one is a counted cross-stitch/quilty ornament. I made it in 1990 and that year is stitched on the back side. I love the little quilt block on this side along with the  fabric folded star points.



I've been collecting interesting Christmas ornaments for decades. And yes, it's a good thing I have a very big tree to decorate.  I often purchased an ornament on trips over the years.  I love hand made ornaments or those with a theme close to my heart.  For example there are close to 3 dozen icicle ornaments on my tree of various shapes and sizes.  Some are glass and others are not.

This metal Jackrabbit ornament was a gift from my grandchildren this year. I really love it.



I purchased this little birdhouse ornament at an artist guild shop in the Blue Ridge Mountains many years ago. It's only about 4" high, but has that tiny little perch. I love the bark texture mixed with the silky smooth sections of wood.  You can just barely see the artist's signature along the bottom. This was purchased sometime in the 1990s.



This little lighthouse was purchased in Maine in 2002.  I had just started a new job after teaching in the same high school for 18 years.  It was a big change for me, and I was sent to Maine for some training.  This ornament, and a tiny red metal lobster magnet (on my fridge to this day) were my mementos of that trip with new co-workers.  Notice the red berries?  I also have lots of "picks" stuck in among the branches.  Most have red berries of various types, or have something sparkly on them.



We probably all have items in our homes that bring back good memories every time we see them.  I can feel the memories flowing as I lift the lid on the ornament boxes every year.