Residents open doors for Christmas Homes Tour

The Yellow Trail Museum’s annual Christmas Homes Tour Friday evening promises festive inspiration to feed the holiday spirit. Four families in the Hope area will open their homes to the public for this self-guided tour.

This will be the second time that 69-year-old Brenda Tallent has participated; the first time was more than five years ago, she says.

“It was fun and I really enjoyed it,” Tallent says. “This is an evening that brings the community together and it is a tremendous event for the museum.”

The avid collector of Santa Claus figurines and all things St. Nicholas says visitors can expect a holiday treat Friday evening.

Tallent says the seven trees, which range from miniature to nine-feet tall, include everything from the traditional to palm – as in palm tree.

After recently redecorating one room in her home in a coastal colors and decor, Tallent says she carried that theme over for the holidays making the room’s palm tree the center of attention complete with beachy ornaments. But she didn’t stop there when it came to incorporating the unique.

“I got online and ordered a bunch of ornaments that are made out of soap,” she says. “So I have one tree that is decorated entirely with soap.”

But it isn’t just Santa Clauses and ornaments made of out of the ordinary materials that Tallent will be sharing with visitors, she also has a collection of nativities that will be displayed in a curio cabinet, she says.

Tallent admits that this year’s decorating was a solo effort of her own accord, but says she’s enjoyed every minute of it. And the best part is yet to come, she says.

“I enjoy people coming in and seeing my decorations,” she says. “But I hope that people who visit enjoy the season as much as I do.”

It is certain that Tallent’s enthusiasm for the season is matched by that of visual artist Barry Beeker, who is likewise opening his home Friday evening. As a first-time participant on the home tour, 67-year-old Beeker says his enthusiasm for the holidays will hopefully add a spark to the evening’s festivities.

Countless trees, ranging from one- to six-feet tall, are placed with purpose throughout the home. But before visitors can immerse themselves in the holiday splendor beginning with Santa Land, they will pass under the watchful eye of a toy soldier standing more than seven feet tall in the home’s entryway, Beeker says.

The home’s decorations range from the dreamy and wonderland-inspired to elegant and traditional, Beeker says, and each room has its own theme, including Heaven and Earth and Let It Snow.

But Beeker says his over the top salute to the season of giving doesn’t stop there. In addition to the beautiful array of holiday colors and scenes, the ambiance of the residence will be accentuated with live music and a visit from Mr. and Mrs. Claus.

There is a broom chair from Mardi Gras that Beeker says is reserved for special people only and Friday it will be occupied by Jolly Old St. Nicholas.

“It will make a great photo op for him,” Beeker says.

And though Beeker hopes what he has put together – with the help of friends he calls angels – inspires visitors to enjoy the holiday season, he also hopes they take away a gentle reminder that the season is about something much grander than twinkling lights.

“It is not about the gifts and material things,” he says. “It is about the gift of our presence and the presence of the Holy Spirit.”

Pastor Ed Cottrell and his wife, Lila, couldn’t agree more.

The couple participated last year and say the experience wasn’t what they had expected, but that is a good thing. This year the couple is marrying their interests and offering visitors a theme offered from a child’s perspective, Ed says. 

“She is an avid American Girl doll collector and I like trains,” he says. “We will also have packages and visions of sugar plums so they can dance around.”

Four rooms of the Cottrell home will spotlight Lila’s doll collection and Ed will offer two large train sets complemented by additional train-themed items to match.

Lila says her love for American Girl began when her grandchildren were young.

“They had American Girl dolls and I just got into it,” she says. “I got all theirs when they grew up and I kept collecting them.”

As the couple puts the final decorative touches in place, they too stress the importance of not losing sight about what the season is truly about.

“This is great and we remember all this,” Ed says. “But don’t lose sight of the true meaning of Christmas.”