family tree

A TREE HAS taken root. A family has formed. And this is already our second Christmas together. Life has been busy. And our view is constantly in motion. But, despite the turmoils of the world, we have the comfort of each other. A Christmas tree is a bright reminder of that.

MONOGRAMED CHIC | These gold-initialed ornaments form the script for a new family. J is for Juan; A is for Abella, the Bengal cat; D is for Darryl (me); T is for Tallulah (the newest addition, a rescue dog); and F is for Frida, the Ragdoll cat (who makes a blurred appearance in the top photo).

THIS TREE, in a small way, is symbolic of our new family, hung with initialed ornaments representing each of us. The wire and cardboard diamond-shaped ornaments represent a strong structure for a great future together. The tree is a Silver Tip tree, which is naturally sparse with ample space between the branches and a quirky natural shape reminiscent of the untrimmed trees you see in vintage photos. Many of the lights on the tree have crinkled metal light covers in gold and silver in various sizes to give the tree a magical glow.

ALL IN THE DETAILS | This unusual shooting star tree topper is actually a store fixture from Starbucks from last season that I convinced a manager to save for me. It worked perfectly atop this tree.

LOOKING CLOSER, this tree is topped with a multi-faceted and glittered shooting star. The tree employs a fairly neutral color scheme of glass ornaments in gold, silver, bronze, whites and greens with classic bright blue and red punctuating the mix as a nod to the traditional trees of my childhood.

FRAMEWORK GEMS | These interesting gem ornaments are made of wire and metallic cardboard. I added a tiny glass bauble to each wire-framed ornament to make them more elegant.

THE FRAMEWORK for a family starts with a bedrock of comfort, joy and love. When things are right, whatever life throws your way is tempered by knowing that you have someone there that has your back. When you feel that, you know it's the real thing.

DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH | These metallic cardboard ornaments are light enough not to weigh down the branches of the tree. Even though they are made from humble foil-covered cardboard, they are quite sophisticated in appearance due the diamond shape.

WARM HEARTS are warmed even further by a beautiful tree that is thoughtfully decorated. I chose to make this one thematic in color and form, but even if your tree is a hodgepodge of family heirloom ornaments of every style and stripe, what really matters is that it conveys that magical spirit of the holidays. The symbolic memories attached to decorations give them a heirloom resonance throughout the years that is unique and meaningful to your family.

Please check out the video of the tree below (hopefully, I'll figure out how to make the resolution better and replace this one):

©2015 DARRYL MOLAND | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

collecting, photography and styling by Darryl Moland

wedding mementos

IF A WEDDING can be a frame of reference for life events, it is only appropriate that a wedding later in life frames memories of the past and present. Marriage is a symbolic point at which a couple's lives officially merge as witnessed by close friends and family.

The trees were carefully crafted beforehand and displayed at the wedding with the expert help of Devin Borden (center, bottom).

WHEN DISCUSSING designing a tree and other elements for the couple's wedding, we discussed a way to personalize the trees. Including the photos of persons so important to each family's heritage along with past and current life event photos of living relatives was a perfect way in which to accomplish this, at least symbolically. Later, we decided that having two trees of equal stature representing both sides of this merging family was a great way to honor both families, both separately and together as a unit. The bride and groom both garden, so it wasn't a stretch to use simple natural elements as decor on the trees and tie to other decor for the wedding. It was also a theme in keeping with the autumn season at hand.

THE SINGULAR tree shown in this post combines photos from both of the trees done for the wedding. Because marriage merges two families together, this tree is symbolic of the union between the bride and groom and their respective families. 

Each frame was simply made from pine cone pieces surrounding a laser photocopied picture mounted to thin cardboard—creating frames that harken back to history, having a "tramp art" look to them. Thin brown satin ribbon formed the hanging loops.

All the handmade photo frames for both trees. The idea for the frames was modified from instructions found on the Martha Stewart website here.

At the base of the modern clay container for the tree (a wire Easter tree from this past season's Pottery Barn line) photographed for this blog, a small pot of moss, a wooden box, some leaves, pinecones and a silver bird add just the right touch of earthy whimsy.

©2012 DARRYL MOLAND | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED photography and styling by Darryl Moland; pine cone photo frames hand-crafted by Darryl Moland and Devin Borden

CatMan Tree

Last night I saw the CatMan Tree had bloomed again. In itsbranches were nestledcats of every type and color. I watched in awed silence as the CatMan gently placed his children upon the earth in a tribute he makes the night of May 5th only once every fifty years.

—Odette Colón

IT'S NOT OFTEN (maybe once every 50 years)—like today on my 50th birthday—that you feel like a kid all over again. It's also not often you're immortalized in a fairytale. The beautiful card my children's book illustrator friend Odette designed for my birthday is shown in the photo, replete with a tall tale and original artwork! My birthday so far has been amazing. It started a couple of days ago at work (since I'm taking today through the weekend off—deservedly so!). My coworkers threw me an incredible party this past Wednesday at work with a big cake and lots of food and gave me a gift card for an iPad! So I'll be able to blog from anywhere now! I can't thank them enough—I certainly feel the love!

I LOOK FORWARD to an impromptu dinner tonight with a small group composed of a friend, a relative and my new love at a restaurant called Top Flr here in Atlanta. Tomorrow night it's a Kylie Minogue concert with Jon and and a friend. 

My good friend Peggy Dana modified
Princess Beatrice's fascinator with the
addition of the number 5 for the
best (virtual) birthday hat ever! 
(That's me on my 49th birthday).

AGE IS ONLY a number (I'll keep telling myself that). Fifty is the new forty, right? All I know is that even though my life hasn't been a fairytale, I've been pretty damn fortunate to see the things I've seen, to live the way I have, and to continue to live, grow and learn. My friends and my family have been there for me to help make it all possible. It's not what you have, but how much you are loved. That is all you can take with you when it's time to move to the next realm of existence. 

I KNOW—my mother told me (without speaking) when I was holding her hand at her death in 2005 (and in one experience shortly after) that life goes on—and it is beautiful and full of love. It's all about how you look at it and how wide you open your eyes to receive all the secrets of the universe.

ON THIS upcoming mother's day, I send all my wishes and love to my mother (the roses in the photo above are from her rose bush I carry with me wherever I go—and it is blooming profusely this year!). I thank her (and my father) for my life every day. They taught me how to love—and truly, that is the best gift anyone can give. And you know what? You'll find that while you're being taught, you're actually teaching. My mother told me so. 

©2011 DARRYL MOLAND, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Collecting and styling by Darryl Moland
CatMan Tree illustration by Odette Colón
Fifty Fascinator Photoshopped by Peggy Dana 

tree of dreams

THE HOLIDAYS are a time for family, no matter what form that concept may take—friends, partners, spouses, pets, siblings, sons, daughters, nieces, nephews, grandchildren . . . or some combination of all of the above. But it's our mother that brings us the most profound connection to nature by her very essence as bearer of new life. We are all a part of them as much as they are part of us. My mother richly infused my memories of the holiday by encouraging me each year to use my creativity in decorating our family tree. Since there were ten years between my next oldest brother Mal and I, there was enough room for me to do so. My brothers were both jocks and not really interested in such things anyway. And my sister had already found her own life. We all had a hand in it when I was younger, but after a point, it became my own canvas—to sometimes dismal effect (like the tree limited to an all-white color scheme with homemade paper doily fans, which looked quite funereal). My mother provided all the room she could have to let me experiment by allowing me to buy ornament kits and letting me use my imagination in configuring the tree with the ornaments we had and the new ones I created. I always took this challenge with great glee and was successful more times than not.

THIS TREE of silver and pink was inspired by a dream I had of her. Shortly after her death, I dreamt about her finding a Christmas present from me­—a pink and silver rhinestone brooch. Though she never received it physically, this tree is an offering to her spirit. It was as if, in order to celebrate her life, I was now charged to keep the flame of creativity she helped spark in me. Her mischievous exuberance is captured by the varied animals (a giraffe, birds, a Christmas spider, and even a mouse) combined with sparkly baubles, flowers, leaves and stars; all evoking the brilliance of the brooch gift I had for her in the dream. Friends tell me that this photograph looks like an altar, and it is, of sorts. Every tree should garner such a response. There should be a light within it, even if it isn't illuminated with actual lights. My coworker Dan told me the tree I put up at work this year didn't need lights because it had a sparkle all-it's-own.The light and magic of a well-decorated tree is evocative of the historical and natural context of our collective memories and should speak to that sense of wonder, whether directly personal or a homage to generational history.

MY PARENTS instilled in me this sense of wonder during the holiday. I carry this with me and am sharing it here—creating a testament to their spirit. Plenty of holiday trees I see each year have become overwrought with elements that have little meaning or relevance to the time-honored traditions of the decorated tree, but my intent is to bring it all back in focus, by giving historical context as to why certain decorations and themes are more richly relevant than others. It really all depends on what is important to you and your family of choice—the spirit of Christmas is ultimately for the kid in all of us—and it's easy to find a pure sense of self when you're decorating with something in mind to honor—not unlike an altar to your memories of the people with which you share or have shared your life.

INSPIRATION  for a tree can take many forms. I probably take that more seriously than most people do because I've continued to grow and nurture the seeds my mother planted in me years ago. All the trees I've created in my lifetime hold memories of places I've been, people I've known and people I cherish with associations I've made in my collecting wherever I go. And nature is the base source of this inspiration. You can find incredible color schemes within one seashell or the pinks and grays of a winter sky after a freshly-fallen snow. There's nothing more magical than towering evergreens covered in snow—the sparkle and texture found in such a scene is awe-inspiring in its unadorned simplicity—sweet dreams are made of this. Embellishing those dreams and making them into reality are the stuff of wonder and surprise. 

PRETTY IN PINK | My mother's "signature" color was pink, so this tree (above, right) serves her memory well (as well as my dream of my gift to her of a pink-and-silver brooch). The seemingly random mix of ornaments are tied together only by color and my interpretation of my mother's creative spirit. They all represent some aspect of her exuberant, sometimes loud, always unique and endearing personality. The ornaments are from my own private collection of antique ornaments and newer baubles—from sources far-and-wide: Target once had an incredible line of ornaments designed by Thomas O'Brien (the tree topper and silvery-blue ornaments), the pink and silver tinsel tree and mouse ornament are from the now defunct Martha by Mail catalog. This "altar" to her memory is flanked by two mercury glass candlesticks with flames softly framed by vintage-style bottle brush wreaths. 

MOTHER'S CHILDREN | That's me on the far left (above, left) looking off into the trees even then, at only three years old.The photo was taken on a 1964 summer vacation by my father: My brother Ronald stands ever-stoically in the background, my sister Donna pensively holds me safe, and my brother Mal stands smiling to the left of my mother—the best mother anyone could have—in her boldly-striped dress. Here we are a few years ago (left) in the same configuration sans our mother (made not long after both parents died in 2005). 

NATURAL MAGIC | This sepia-toned grouping of evergreen trees (above, right) covered in snow form an iconic and magical silhouette against a wintry sky—a sight rarely seen in the American South where I was reared. I haven't lived farther north than Atlanta, where I now reside. A significant snow is a rare occurrence in the winters here.

©2009 DARRYL MOLAND | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED,

collecting and styling by Darryl Moland, 

photography (Top—Pretty in Pink) Claudia Lopez, 

(Above—Natural Magic) iStock Photo.com