November 20, 2008 Issue                                       

©2007 The Chestnut Hill Local

Queen Anne home feature of this year’s house tour
by Paula M. Riley

Four Chestnut Hill homes will be colorfully decorated for the Annual Chestnut Hill Holiday House Tour on Dec. 6 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.  The decorations above were done for last year’s Holiday Tour in a room themed, “Welcome in the New Year.”

This is the second of four articles detailing homes that will be part of the 2008 Chestnut Hill Community Association Holiday House Tour.

If you have never attended the Chestnut Hill Holiday House Tour, this year is the perfect time to try it out. It may just become a favorite holiday tradition. On Saturday, Dec. 6, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., four Chestnut Hill homes will be decorated for the holidays by two-dozen talented designers and florists.

Guests will be invited to tour these homes and enjoy their festive atmosphere, preview the newest decorating trends and gather ideas for their own holiday decorating plans. A wonderful way to stroll around Chestnut Hill, the tour includes four homes all located near the heart of the Hill.

One of the featured houses is a Queen Anne-style home with an adorable front porch. Lavender Hill will transform this into a festive and cozy seating area, using a painted bench, a dovecote, French wire trellis and a rustic mirror birdcage.

Entering the foyer designed by The Garden Girls, guests will feel the Sophisticated Country theme throughout with its warm colors and blending of berries, feathers, Hydrangea and other floral. Be sure to sneak a peek under the steps in this foyer where visitors will find a vintage rose carved ladies chair and the results of a local shopping spree.

As guests move into the living room, holiday greens, fresh fruit, seasonal berries and golden pheasant feathers will capture their attention. Sweet Magnolia, a high-end gift boutique in Glenside, will complement these greens with large hurricane vases, tapered candles and vintage sleighs carrying white pine wreaths.

These will be a wonderful compliment to the work of the Greene Countrie Garden Club. This group of extremely dedicated members often volunteers its time and expertise to community activities. As it has in the past, the club will leverage the deep knowledge and artistic abilities of its members to design festive greenery, which will accentuate the fine details in this home’s dining room.

Wonderful scents and colorful food will make the kitchen a favorite for guests with a sweet tooth. The Night Kitchen sets the atmosphere with two of its famous display cakes covered in fondant icing — one featuring a winter theme and other a festive Christmas design.  The fabulous aroma will be coming from the Bredenbeck’s Bakery sugared fruit and nuts and holiday cookies made in the style of old world German confectionary.

What holiday kitchen would be complete without a gingerbread house? Bredenbeck’s will create fabulous gingerbread houses, like the ones we have admired in their store front windows, to compliment the sweet holiday theme in the kitchen.

Strolling from the sweet holiday kitchen, guests will relish the fine work of the Chestnut Hill Garden District Fund that will incorporate a natural theme of branches, pinecones, and berries in colors of chocolate, copper and reds. As guests exit the home into the back gardens, thoughts of the wonderful sights and smells of this festive home with remain with them throughout the day.

Other homes guest featured on the Holiday House Tour, sponsored by Citibank and Myers Constructs, Inc., include a classic center hall colonial, a large Italianate villa and a 20th-century colonial revival.

After the tour at 6 p.m., tour guests, local families and their children are invited to the Circle of Trees Lighting Ceremony. Four trees will light up the lawn of the Christ Ascension Lutheran Church. Hot cocoa and cookies will be served and jolly ol’ Saint Nick, of course, will make an appearance.

All tour guests will receive a keepsake guidebook with map and details of the homes as well as descriptions of the designers’ and florists’ decorating efforts. Many of Chestnut Hill restaurants and cafes offer a 10 percent discount with the Holiday House Tour wristband so take the time to enjoy lunch, stroll the shops along Germantown Avenue and finish the day with dinner.

Tickets for the House Tour are $30 for CHCA members and $35 for non-members. Make reservations in advance by calling Noreen Spota at 215-248-8810 or on the web at .

Wristbands, programs and tour maps can be picked up at Christ Ascension Lutheran Church at 8300 Germantown Ave. on the day of the tour. Groups of 10 or more will receive a 10 percent ticket discount. Gift certificates are also available.