A Welcoming Woodland Porch

There was a slight change to holiday decorating on the outdoor porch this year.  There are no complicated lights or time needed to set up a lit tree.  A bench decorated with soft, comfortable pillows and a bottle of rich red wine to enjoy as the snow gently falls and winter quietly settles in is all that is needed.  It is a porch that welcomes everyone all winter long.

The left over black and red buffalo checkered fabric from the fireplace mantel and dining room tablescape design (see next two photos) were used to make some toss pillows for cozy comfort on the front porch bench along with a "Merry Christmas" red truck pillow made from a inexpensive burlap gift bag ($4) from the Dollar Store.  

A once inexpensive gift bag cut and sewn into a toss pillow is paired along with two black and red buffalo checkered pillows.

The top drawstring and bottom of the burlap gift bag were cut off and the red truck print centered in the middle to make the fabric size 17 inch x 17 inch.  With the addition of a cream colored zipper, the pillow is the perfect size for an attractive decor piece.  I do not know of any other print that works more with the little red truck than the red and black buffalo checkered fabric for the side pillows.  

This cute homemade red truck print pillow conveys a warm welcoming feeling.  A sense of "come on over and make yourself comfortable".  

The troll like/Santa face plant pot given to me from my sister a number of years ago is perfect to hold snow/ice to chill a bottle of crisp red wine.   It looks like it has been hand carved from a tree trunk.  I just love the fairy/folk art feel of this versatile piece.  Adorable for a woodland theme, don't you think?

This unique plant pot which is charming as an ice bucket can also be used to hold a pillar candle and a protected hurricane glass.

For next year at Christmas, I am also thinking of using the plant pot to hold a small Christmas tree in place of a tree skirt or as a table centerpiece with a variety of Christmas flowers.   So many possibilities.

 

A ring of cedar branches and a cranberry scented pillar candle gives this troll/Santa face plant pot a beautiful look as a candleholder, especially with a red candle.

A tray is prepared with coffee and delicate Pecan Finger cookies rolled into a snowball and dusted with powdered sugar for a bit of sweetness on the front porch.  Who can resist this soft, buttery cookie served with a woodland/folk art Santa on the tray.

These cookies are the perfect treat any time of the year and every occasion.  If you would like the recipe to give it a try, here it is:

Pecan Fingers/Balls

1 C butter, softened

1/4 C brown sugar

2 C all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 T water

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 C finely chopped pecans

powdered sugar for rolling the finished cookies

Cream butter with brown sugar.  Add flour, salt, water and vanilla extract and mix until blended.  Add pecans mixing until incorporated.  Shape into balls or date-like shapes.

Place on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degree oven for 18-20 minutes.  Let cool slightly and roll finished cookie into powdered sugar.

Enjoy the holiday season!