We started it the year we moved to Linderhof.
Husband Jim had always admired miniature villages
And wanted one of his own.
At a favorite mark down shop,
we scored four of these ceramic lighted villages
Department 56
"Snow Village"
We put them up on the living room mantle and lighted them.
We loved the twinkling little lights!
And over the next ten years, we acquired more and more of these lighted little houses.
They outgrew the mantle . . .
And the folding dining room table I bought to put behind the couch.
The only place we could fit the village was in the guest room/daughter Sarah's room
By that time she had left for college and the village could be set up on the bookshelves in her room.
And this we did for a number of years.
But they were not "user" friendly.
Guests had to tromp upstairs to see our magical lighted village.
Our home was on our town's Homes Tour in 2005
And we set the village up that year.
And then put it in bins, took it up to the attic and there it stayed
until this year!
We now also have a breakfast room
Perfect for the village we named "Scott City"
(after our beloved town of "Fort Scott")
So with the breakfast room table extended as far as it can
And with a church size folding table
Scott City has a home downstairs!
There's a downtown with merchant buildings, a trolley and a courthouse,
And a residential area
On a "hill" overlooking the downtown!
The courthouse reminds us of the one in Nevada (where we used to live)
And every town needs a tourist attraction -- what better than a big ball of twine!
And if you have a tourist attraction like a big ball of twine,
you need a Tourist Information Center so that the tourists can be told how to find said big ball of twine!
And stores so that the village inhabitants can buy neccisities
And Christmas trees -- every town needs a Christmas tree lot!
The villagers children go to school
Jefferson School was one of the schools in Nevada
And, of course, there are the homes
and like the homes in Fort Scott, each house is different
Nestled in the residential area, is one of the four churches
of Scott City
And at night, it turns from Scott City into the Magical City of Scott!
Why, after all these years did we put up our village once again?
For Grandgirl Lucy, of course!
And she did find it magical!
Some day, all of that real estate will be hers!
We had to sacrifice meals in the breakfast room this December
Once again, the dining room became the place where we ate breakfast, lunch and dinner!
But it was a small price to pay for the enchantment of the lighted city.
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| The Magical City of Scott |
It's Monday and I'm joining Judith at A Lavender Cottage for Mosaic Monday
17 comments:
With a city this big and magical looking it does need to be in a prominent spot to be enjoyed. I see a lot of work putting this together, never mind the dismantling but with a new pair of eyes that will look forward to it every year, I'm sure it will be worth the effort.
Thank you for linking to Mosaic Monday Martha and I wish a happy and healthy 2015 to you at Linderhof.
When I put my small (only 9) and humble village together in my living room on a sofa table that backs up to a wall. I chose this table because the legs are pretty, so it does not matter if they show. I created an uneven surfaces on top of the table by stacking up books, styrofoam, and other things to give it several irregular levels. Then I covered the levels with thin quilt batting in layers, with the unmatched edges layered, so they completelhy covered the books, etc. That gave it the look of newly fallen snow. I arranged my houses, bridges, and whatnot on top. I placed the electrical outlets for the houses and buildings on top of the 'snow'. I later covered them with loose pillow filler from the fabric store. I liked the effect, and can use the quilt batting and pillow fill for something else later this year. Whew! Even a little table can be a lot of work! Happy holidays!
That's quite a large collection. I could never find a place for that many...it looks fabulous and I'm so glad you enjoy it so much.
Happy New Year...
Such a delightful post!! Thank you! Happy New Year!!! Cathy
What a lovely memory-maker the village is. I am sure it will be a big part of wee Lucy's Christmas dreams.
How absolutely charming---it just hits the spot for my love of anything WEE and twinkly. Couldn't you just DWELL?
What a lovely memory your little one will have of such beautiful shining scenes.
rachel
What a great display and your granddaughter looks amazed!
Magical, indeed! So charming!
This year I finally cleaned out my long narrow downstairs closet which is beside the stairs, and it is now my Christmas closet and I don't need to carry things up and down stairs twice a year anymore. The Magical City of Scott clearly needs lots of storage! This will be part of Lucy's happy memories forever.
What a lovely display of your city of Scott. My son had a few of the Dept 56 collection set up with his train display.. Your granddaughter is adorable..I wish you and your family a happy, healthy New Year!
Your village is absolutely enchanting. Are all of the pieces Department 56? I hope you continue to set it up for the little granddaughter. She will love it. Mine grew by 5 buildings and a Ferris wheel this year, so I added a second level. Mine is set up on an old aquarium stand in the dinning room and I am out of room, so I will not be adding any more structures. I promised myself. You have great detail and I love the trolley. Happy New Year.
That is a wonderful village. Love all the pieces. It looks great with a hill overlooking the town. I'm glad you figured out a place for it.
Wow! What a collection! I only have six houses. You can find them on eBay pretty reasonably, but I don't really have a good place to put any more. In fact, I didn't even get them out this year. Now I am inspired, I might have to collect some more1
Martha,
You and husband, Jim, have an amazing collection!!! Many of your village houses do, indeed appear to be replicas of homes and businesses in Fort Scott. I'm sure one was the Lyons House!!!
Thank you for sharing this lovely collection within the doors of Linderhof with us. I, especially, liked the photo of Lucy and Sarah with the City of Scott!!!
Fondly,
Pat
How lovely! And what fun to have a "new" tradition to share with Lucy. Happy New Year! xoxox
This is such an amazing collection!!
You have an amazing collection, Martha. It is indeed magical. I didn't set mine up this year because of my back issues and it is missed. Perhaps next year. I enjoyed looking at and reading about yours.
Blessings,
Sandi
Enchanting!
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