Did you think everything gets quiet here when winter comes and we are only open on weekends? You’d be surprised! Yes, of course we are still open for group tours and scout programs — but the Log House has been bustling with activity all week. Volunteers are busily decorating for our annual Holiday Open House, taking place on the first two weekends in December. During this event, the Log House will be decked out for the holidays in period style and with a focus on Stickley’s own ideas. Utilizing holiday greens, pinecones, and the home’s forest palette, the decorations will bring nature indoors and spotlight the Arts and Crafts movement’s emphasis on finding beauty in simplicity and in simple materials.
For Stickley, a rich family life was a key part of his Arts and Crafts ideas, and this event addresses his values by providing a peek into Christmas preparations that would have been typical for a family like the Stickleys, including blending Victorian traditions — like making treat-bearing cornucopia and giving handmade gifts–with more modern trends. One vignette imagines Mrs. Stickley preparing to wrap a kimono, a fashionable gift–as was anything related to Japanese culture–for ladies at the time. The Christmas tree itself is a blend of Victorian and modern times, as it is wrapped with a short string of electric lights, which were the latest thing and quite expensive, but in a nod to custom, the tree also includes candles, which were traditional and still the most popular method for lighting a Christmas tree.
While celebrating the holidays, the Holiday Open House is also meant to provide respite during a hectic time of the year. On the porch of the Log House visitors will be invited to relax and enjoy hot cider and cookies, perhaps take a minute to work on a jigsaw puzzle or send holiday greeting to a friend.
Join us for the Holiday Open House December 3-4 and 10-11 from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Or come for a sneak peek at the holiday décor during our annual trunk show, which opens at 11 a.m. on Black Friday, November 25.
What’s Behind the Closed Doors? is a post from The Stickley Museum At Craftsman Farms
