Country Living December 2019

A A Welcome from the Editor If you have a brother or sister, you know that sibling rivalry is a very real thing. My younger sister and I often jokingly compete for “favorite daughter” status—although she has a literal home field advantage by living in my parents’ Tennessee hometown. Of course, sibling rivalry (and revelry) is part of any family gathering: Look no further than the famed March sisters of Little Women (pg. 68). So at Country Living, we have officially upped the competitive ante and embraced gingersnap season as a sport with Holiday Baking Team baseball tees (store.countryliving.com). Available in two team colors and adult and kids’ sizes, the apparel is sure to spark spirited family competition. (You are going down, Katie Hardage Penland.) If you do batter up,…

HUE FINDER Lend permanent cheer to your palette with this wintry mix.…

Pets on the Furniture! THE DOG Scottish terrier mix Gibson belongs to CL Style Director Cate Geiger Kalus. THE DIGS Gibson is perched on a sweet spindle daybed by Bee & Willow ($530; bedbathandbeyond.com) upholstered with a cotton-linen blend (“Chandler Check” fabric; thibautdesign.com) and topped with a festive needlepoint pillow (“Merry Woofmas” pillow, $47; houzz.com). A clean-lined floor lamp ($648; serenaandlily.com) and reversible stripe rug ($1,298 for 5' by 7'; serenaandlily.com) round out the corner. Fur Keeps Why stop at a stocking personalized with your pet’s name when you can choose from 16 breeds (Labradors! goldendoodles!) featuring faux-yet-lifelike coats? HAVING A MOMENT SCOTTIES Life is merrier with a terrier! The beloved bearded breed makes for fetching finds. GUS’S CORNER CL’s office dog (and very good boy) reveals his well-earned wish…

THE “TREE” Tart Tins Round up a collection of vintage tart pans, ranging from 2 to 12 inches, and stack from largest to smallest. THE TRIMMINGS Top with a vintage star-shaped baking mold and accent with a charming snow scene. THE “TREE” Mittens The perfect use for mittens that have lost their matches: A triangular wall display that’s right at home in a mudroom or other “bundle up” zone. THE TRIMMINGS Pin pom-pom ornaments in pastel shades to the “branches.” THE “TREE” Suitcases Give trunks and suitcases—often found in varying shades of green—new life that’s both jolly and jet set. THE TRIMMINGS Create a garland of old tickets, ski passes, and luggage tags. (The swag also works well on a travel-themed Christmas tree.) THE “TREE” Books Make bookshelves festive with…

OBJECT LESSON: Irwin Corp. Santas WHAT TO KNOW: In 1922, 21-year-old Irwin Cohn and his wife, Mary, launched their MA-based Irwin Company, beginning with celluloid (a type of hard plastic invented in the 1860s) soap boxes. The company quickly expanded into (and became the country’s largest manufacturer of) blow-molded infant toys and rattles, including Kewpie and other dolls. They soon moved into the popular holiday category with a variety of celluloid Santa figures, rattles, tree ornaments, roly-polys, and candy containers. Beginning in the mid-1940s, Irwin began phasing out their use of celluloid and incorporating newer, less flammable plastics such as polyethylene and cellulose acetate, a fact helpful in determining the age of the pieces. Around that time, the company also changed its name to The Great American Plastics Company, although…

We Can Thank Coca-Cola Santa Claus has been a staple of Coca-Cola’s holiday advertising since the 1920s, but it was in 1931 that an ad exec’s desire for a friendlier version of Santa would lead to changing the way the world would forever visualize everyone’s favorite gift-bearing man. Commissioned with the task, illustrator Haddon Sundblom looked to Clement Clark Moore’s 1822 poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” and his depiction of a warm, jolly, and delightfully plump St. Nick for inspiration. Using his friend as the model, he then created the cheery man that is now synonymous with the name Santa. Norman Rockwell’s Art Was Rejected In 1935, one of the best known illustrators of American life, Norman Rockwell, pitched his own version of the new, jolly Santa, but Coke…