William Miller House Blog » Holiday Decorations

All Decked Out for Christmas

innkeeper — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 20:09:49 +0000

This year instead of trying to decorate all at once, I decided to attempt decorating in layers instead of trying to do it all at once. The tip worked well for me here at the Fan District’s premier bed and breakfast. Thanksgiving weekend was warm, so I started with outside decorations, get them up wearing short-sleeves is the way to go!

This year may be the last year for this particular garland around our front door – lights are functioning a little quirky so I added some extra to make sure they would be bright all season. A natural wreath with a bright bow greets guests at the front gate and the garland and wreath at the front door reinforce my preference for slightly nontraditional colors: instead of red – use purple and fuschia, instead of green – use lime, and accent it all with bright gold and lights. Don’t be afraid to experiment. Of course, we have candles in the windows – but the ones in our guest rooms’ windows turn off at 9 PM so they don’t disturb our guests.

Come right on in! We're ready for the holidays!

This weekend, December 10 and 11, just happened to be the weekend of the Fan District Association of Richmond’s 49th Annual Holiday House Tour. Most of the houses were within a short few blocks walk of the William Miller House and we are delighted that guests came from far and wide to enjoy this wonderful holiday tradition that is the sole fundraising event for neighborhood improvement projects. Guests from Easton MD visited tour homes for the third time. The record goes to a mother-daughter team who have been visiting the Fan for eight years now to check out the architecture, the individual interior design, and each homeowner’s interpretation of holiday decorations.

This year Kristen traveled all the way from London, England to spend her annual mother-daughter weekend in the Fan to shop at Carytown’s eclectic shops, to dine at the neighborhood’s bistros, to tour the homes, and to gather over snacks after the tour and compare notes on all the houses we’ve seen. This tour is over for 2011, but house tours are all the rage in Richmond. We have tours in the Spring for historic Garden Week, as well as in the Fall and around the holidays.

Grapes, feathers, snowflakes, ribbons and bows make a festive wreath for the porch

After the outside layer of decorating was completed, I moved inside the inn to incorporate the wonder and merriment of this festive season. There are three trees (two of them are half-trees due to space considerations), three mantles, and wreaths outside on the blue antique garden gate, on the kitchen door, and on the garage.

Here’s a sampling of what’s inside The William Miller House Bed and Breakfast, the Fan District’s oldest bed and breakfast…..

Enjoy and we hope you’ll take advantage of those treasured items from friends and family to decorate your home for the holidays!

Here's what you'll find if you slip out the kitchen door

a jolly happy Santa just hanging around . . .

Santa flying high from the family room ceiling

homemade by Judie .... several years ago

another homemade made by Mom .....

A homemade ornament compliments of Mom

Kitchen Half-Tree with Homemade and food-related ornaments

Family Room Mantle in Blue and Gold - my personal favorite

Garden Room Tree (or half-tree - it's missing its back so it fits better)

Wreath by Janice Hall Nuckolls hung in the dining room on the mirror

The dining room mantle

The parlor mantel decked out with tree and table toppers

The parlor tree features snowflake ornaments crocheted by my Mom in 1999

This garland winds its way up to guest rooms

Lights: Tacky and Classy for the Holidays

innkeeper — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 21:29:25 +0000

Lights, lights, and more lights! Light displays, both tacky and classy, abound in Richmond between Thanksgiving and the New Year.

Are these really Tacky Lights, or simply Christmas spirit?

Homeowners across the central Virginia’s metropolitan area have decked their houses in holiday lights, blow-up decorations, store-bought decorations, home-made decorations – all vying to outdo each other with more, better, and over-the-top displays lighting up their homes with Christmas spirit beginning the Friday after Thanksgiving and ending with the New Year.

But homeowners are not the only ones who go “over the top.” Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens GardenFest of Lights provides a fantastic display, decorating each garden, water feature, and path with a myriad of lights. The rose garden even has rose lights for the holiday season. And, The GradenFest of Lights will be on display until January 10th!

This fabulous peacock in lights inhabits the lawn below the conservatory at Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens

Some of Richmond’s homes have been featured on national television, of course, local television, books and publications, blogs, newspaper articles, even coffee table books. This phenomenon dates back at least to 1986 and seems to grow exponentially every year. Patricia Cornwall even mentions Richmond’s Tacky Lights in her book: “Black Notice” saying that Marino’s house was lighting up the sky like an amusement park!

Blow-up Santa and other figures complete this Tacky Lights scene

The sky is aglow with Tacky Lights

There are city blocks of folks who band together and decorate to be included on the Tacky Light Tour, homes along Monument Avenue and in the Fan are all aglow, cul-de-sacs and blocks in the burbs join together in pacts to decorate, and individual homeowners just go all out and begin decorating Labor Day to be ready for their grand illumination Thanksgiving weekend.

More Tacky Lights!

Can you count the lights in this Tacky Light display?

And, then, there’s Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens who decorate their gardens and conservatory as the Gardenfest of Lights. This year’s theme is Fire & Ice, combining the Hans Frabel’s glass sculptures with their more traditional holiday elements and lights. The gardens also decorate the conservatory and the educational center. You’ll even find trains in a setting of miniature structures crafted from natural elements.

One of the houses constructed of natural elements that is part of the model train setup in Lewis Ginter's conservatory

Don’t miss these very Richmond holiday traditions this year or next! It gets better every year!

Fan District Holiday House Tour December 11 and 12

innkeeper — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 19:59:42 +0000

Richmond’s Fan District is hosting its annual Holiday House Tour on December 11 and 12. During this 48th tour, eight homes near Meadow Park will be open both Saturday and Sunday from 1 PM to 5 PM.

Advance tickets are available on line and in several retail locations in Richmond. Tickets will also be available the day of the tour at hospitality centers and Strawberry Street Vineyard. More Info.

The Fan District Association of Richmond, Virginia has posted a preview of the tour: A Story Book Holiday House Tour on their website. The descriptions of the homes and the photos will entice you to get a ticket and take part in this very Richmond tradition – a chance to see how a sampling of Fan residents live and celebrate the holidays.

Another Richmond tradition, the Gardenfest of Lights at Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens, lights up the evening creating magical splendor with over 700,000 lights in a Fire and Ice theme. There’s even a firepit with s’mores! Don’t miss the gift shop – unique gifts for you, for your garden, and for that hard-to-find-the-perfect-gift-for person on your list! More Info.

And, as usual, Richmond’s premier bed and breakfast is putting on its holiday face too! A stay in one of our guest rooms during the holiday season gives you the opportunity to delight in the holiday trimmings and a wonderful, hearty gourmet breakfast!

Shopping and Champagne Event November 11

innkeeper — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 13:49:55 +0000

Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens is hosting their annual Champagne ‘n’ Shopping event Thursday, November 11, 2010 from 5 PM to 8 PM.

Lewis Ginter's Gift Shop - THE place for holiday gifts

The Garden Shop hosts a special evening of shopping just in time for the holidays. Guests are greeted with a glass of champagne or sparkling cider; live music and door prizes. Door prize drawings are every half hour and include GardenFest of Lights tickets, Garden Shop gift cards, and Garden Memberships.

Shoppers who purchase more than $50 worth of merchandise on this evening receive a FREE Garden tote bag and Glorious Glass in the Garden: Frabel at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden book. Garden Members will receive their 10% discount on all purchases.

Featured on this evening will be Raku-fired jewelry by Dimensions Art. The Garden Shop features an extensive collection of garden accents, containers, books, gifts, toys and jewelry – perfect for gift-giving. The garden shop also carries a wide selection of holiday trimming ideas and unusual ornaments to complete your holiday decorating scheme. So whether you’re searching for a gift for someone else, a special treat for yourself, or holiday decorations, be sure to stop in and enjoy the fun! INFO.

Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens is one of Richmond’s treasures, just minutes away from our Bed and Breakfast in the heart of the Fan District. When you stay with us, we’re happy to share shopping secrets and shopping tips of all kinds to make your shopping excursion to Richmond the best ever.

Annual Holiday House Tour

Nuggett — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:51:00 +0000

The interior of our Richmond Bed and Breakfast inn is gussied up for the holidays, too. Here are a few snapshots of how I helped Pat decorate. I did help too – I still have glitter on my nose!

Here is our Christmas tree in the main parlor. It is decorated with gold, purple, lime green, and white ornaments. The snowflakes on the tree are all ornaments that Pat’s Mom crocheted, beaded, and starched. We have used them on our parlor tree since 1997. Since we moved into the William Miller House one week before Christmas in 1996 – we didn’t have a tree then — we had plaster dust and tools everywhere.

We do have two other trees, one in the library wine room (decorated with silver, white, blue and green ornaments) and one in the kitchen

(our “Charlie Brown” tree decorated with handmade ornaments from Pat, her mother, and sister).

The railing going upstairs to our guest rooms sports new multicolor bows, lights and ornaments. I did help make the bows sometimes you need more than two hands and four paws can come in handy!

I was a little short to help with the mantle, but here’s a photo of it anyway.

After we were all done, we took the opportunity to tour the homes open for the Annual Fan District Association’s Holiday House Tour. The were all decked out, bedazzled, and besparkled for the holidays. What a treat! Of course I had to go in my human disguise since canine ticketholders were not allowed. Next year’s tour will be on December 11 and 12 – if past tradition holds true. Mark it on your calendars and come see this special event now 47 years old – next year will be the 48th year.

Here at the William Miller House, we are wishing all of you a very special and busy holiday preparation season full of warmth and good cheer! I hope to see you soon! Nuggett, Official Bed and Breakfast greeter

Holidays are here!

Nuggett — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 22:26:00 +0000

Things have been very busy here at our bed and breakfast in Richmond’s historic Fan District. So busy, in fact, my paws have been too tired to type in my blog. First there was a beautiful fall, trees covered in magnificent red, orange, and yellow leaves, and squirrels to be chased in my yard. Then there was Halloween with our big pumpkin on the porch and all the treaters, then shopping for Thanksgiving dinner, and, finally decorating for the Christmas and New Year holidays.

In the middle of it all, Pat and Mike got new computers and I lost my password to my blog. For three weeks I have been trying to log in and brief you all on the happenings – today I finally asked for help.

First, I never did catch a squirrel; though I did chase a lot. They were burying things all over the yard and making a mess of the planting beds. They have pretty much gone away so I must have convinced them to find a new home. Though, at my age, I ended up pretty tuckered out every night.

Just before Thanksgiving, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts held a preview of several galleries. Now, remember that the Museum does not officially open until May 2010; but as members we were invited to sneak a peek at the expanded Sydney and Francis Lewis Galleries, which house a world-class Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and Mid to Late 2oth-century art collections. The renovated 1936 galleries with the European collections were open too. Of course, canines were not allowed; but Mike and Pat talked about what they saw for hours. The full gallery opening is only about 5 months away.

Here’s an insider tip: Between May 29 2010 and August 15 2010, the Louis Comfort Tiffany: Color and Light exhibition will be here in Richmond at the VMFA. This exhibit is currently in Paris, and will only be shown in Montreal and Richmond. The Richmond version will be expanded to show additional items that are part of the VMFA collection not included on the tour. Make your plans to come and check out the VFMA website next year to reserve your tickets.

Now about those decorations, I took a few photos to share with you. The first is at the top of the blog. The tree in the front yard has lighted blue balls, the rest are plain old ordinary oversize balls.

Our front door has a lighted garland with purple, gold, green, and rose decorations tied to it. We have a big wreath that matches next to the door. Pat made new bows out of many different ribbons using all the colors in the ornaments.

Next we have lighted snowflakes hanging from the porch roof; even though Richmond doesn’t often get any snow.

I even took a photo of our front door for you so you can see the colors of

our oversized Christmas balls tied to the garland. My favorite are the purple, the gold and the lime green. I think the rose ones are a little too pink and sissified for me.

Obviously Pat likes them! She puts them up every year.

Well, that’s all that is new here in Richmond for now. I’ll try to be better about letting you know what’s happening. if I get the chance, I’ll take some photos of the inside. Mantles are decorated; there’s a lighted garland going up the stairs; and, we have THREE trees!

Remember this is the season to be jolly! We’re wishing you bloggers out there in internetland a Merry Christmas, a Happy New Year, and a holiday season full of fond memories.