Christmas Tree & Winter Weather

I’m feeling pretty smug this year because I finally succumbed to my longstanding wish of getting a fake Christmas tree, in white, not unlike a set piece for Siegfried & Roy’s Christmas special in Vegas. Go fake or go home! That’s how I now roll at Christmas. No more pine needles all over the floor, no more paying silly prices for a tree that has been chopped down just to sit in my living room for 3 weeks before being dumped on the side of the road in January. The only downside? Poppy, our Siamese Ninja-Cat, didn’t get the memo about this not being a real tree. She doesn’t care, and destroy it she must. That silver tree blanket that is designed to artfully hide the wires and tree base? It’s always scrunched up like a crazed cat has been rolling around on and under it, mainly because that’s exactly what does happen here for most of the day. Those cute little decorations that I don’t have enough of as is to cover my big fake tree? I’m always pulling one out of a cat’s eager paws or our dog’s mouth. No artful Christmas here, folks. In other amazing news, I finally found a new set of pillows for the livingroom sofa. You didn’t even know I was looking for new pillows, right? I’m so sneaky that way. Imagine my boundless joy at finding a pair of sheepskin beauties in the most lovely taupey-grey at IKEA on Friday…boundless joy. These pillows appear not to be on the website yet, but they’re called ALLEBY and also come in black and white. Who says you can’t do chalet glamour in a terrace? Silly chalet naysayers.Just like most everybody else in our neighbourhood we have been wrestling with Christmas lights most weekends in an attempt to make things look festive. What would we do without our professional lighting specialists? Today is the first day of proper, in-your-face snow here in Kassel. Guess it’s too late to source that protective patio furniture cover. Have a lovely second advent, everyone.