Hello again dear friends of Loom Tree! At long last the Christmas season is upon us! Despite being myself one of those people who really hates it when Christmas decorations get put up too soon, being a merchant has forced me to change my tune. Many of you have already begun making your holiday purchases, and every merchant worth their salt knows to put up some holiday cheer as soon as Halloween is over. So every year I do my best to tamp down my inner Grinch and get into the spirit early! One way I achieve this is to push myself to come up with creative and imaginative ways to decorate the shop. From filling the garden with wicker sheep, to creating massive curtains of manzanilla (hawthorn fruit), Loom Tree has never shied away from trying something different for Christmas. This year the theme is trees, lots and lots of trees! After all, there is no Loom Tree without a tree, right?
First of all we brought out the iron Christmas trees we always put up, and we decorated them with many wonderful glass details. The lovely glass teardrops on the little tree are handmade from Diferenzza, a fellow must-see Antigua shop just up the street. The larger version is essentially the same but with antique chandelier glass pieces. The third iron tree is a bit different being made out of many iron hoops welded together. Within each hoop is one of our handmade pompom balls like the ones we use on our curtain holdbacks. Finally the fourth iron tree is made from many rings in layers with miniature red pillows and tassels hanging from each tier. All four of these are far from what you would expect from a traditional Christmas tree, and that is exactly why I love them!
Along with my forest of iron trees I always love putting out other little forests here and there. Especially my miniature green pines I get from Antigua’s central market. These are really something as they are made with plastic pipe cleaners painted green. You can only find them this time of year, and people often use them as decorative elements for nativity scenes. But I love them on their own as a centerpiece for the table. If you haven’t already, or if you are thinking of visiting Antigua around this time of year, do yourself a favor and visit the Christmas section of the central market. You never know what treasures you will find!
Finally my centerpiece for this year is the forest of woven trees! These are made with many of our signature fabrics and they have little lights woven into the edges. They are essentially large versions of our pillows made in a Christmas tree shape. With six of them of varying heights, you have a woven pine tree forest to greet you on your way in!
One of the best ways to enjoy your Christmas shopping in Antigua is to go around and see what each shop does to decorate. One thing you can always count on in Antigua is to have some very creative displays this time of year! So whether you're coming to shop or just to look around, come see us this holiday season and get into the spirit the Antigua way!
Until next time!
Carmen