Gift & Decorating Ideas ~ Partridge In A Pear Tree

'Tis the season...

My next few blog posts will be a series of gift & decor ideas; each post loosely based on the blog's theme as suggested by the Christmas Carol "The 12 Days of Christmas"... & I DO MEAN loosely based!)

So we start off with " On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... A Partridge In A Pear Tree...

How about some pear tea from T on Broadway:

{ Pear Tree Green from T }

or, for that manner, any kind of tea from Murchies or Urban Tea Co. My faves are vanilla black from T or Murchies & Prince Charles blend from Murchies. Brewed up in a lovely teapot like this antique from Sur La Table:

{ antique Hotel du Louvre teapot }

or for a more casual feel, served in these darling bird nest mugs from Pottery Barn (even though I'm sure they are intended to be robins' nests):

But I digress a bit. I saw this lovely pear ornament at West Elm:

{ mercury glass ornament }

But they are no longer available.... so perhaps a few others like these from Pier 1:

{ Gilded Forest Collection }

or these chirpy bird ornaments for more home-spun appeal:

{ from The Nutmeg Tree on Etsy }

to create displays like these:

{ photo from West Elm's website }

{ photo from Country Living }

A partridge in a pear tree leads me to think of my Grandpa & Granny Clark, who were master bee keepers & gardeners. Grandpa's "plant pears, plant for your heirs" saying indicates that a pear tree given to your beloved would take a very long time to grow. Perhaps a lovely little topiary tree like the ones below would be a perfect alternative gift for your true love:

{ citrus kumquat }

{ pre-lit bay tree }

Or, what about following the 'prickly pear' theme & getting a minimalist arrangement as envisioned by Kermodi:

{ midnight water garden }

I love these sweet lockets from Freshy Fig:

{ centre locket is a sweet little partridge }

And a blog post about partridges wouldn't be complete without some vintage Partridge Family kitsch. iTunes carries their music & I saw dvds, books & music online Amazon & Chapters/Indigo:

{ vintage Partridge Family books }

Might suit that retro-boy or -girl in your life!

And to top off your present this partridge pocket card from Pikake Press adds the perfect festive touch:

Happy shopping!