Want to spice up your primitive Christmas decorating this year.....well this special one ~ of ~ a ~ kind offering should do just that by lending a warm and cozy holiday scene to your homestead.

I have had this beautiful hand carved wooden frame for years but the inside was open and I never got around to creating an insert for it. I was pulling out Christmas inventory the other day and found this interesting piece of folk art and decided to complete it!

The maker incorporated designs on the frame by a wood burning process called pyrography. The arrangement chosen is comprised of wooden shoes, an immigrants trunk, detailed flax spinning wheel, a slant back farmhouse chair and a showy plate rack displayed with plates, a mug with an intricate flower design and an early candlestick. The edge of the entire frame has been carved with tiny lines that remind me of a crimped edge. Each of the interesting designs really stands out because of the burning technique used to gain this effect. Patience was indeed a virtue and the workmanship displays inherent qualities that were done by a skilled artist.

There is a long tight crack at the top of the frame as referenced in image 9 & 10. This piece was glued at one point however the back shows no "tell ~ tale" signs of this crack. The reason for this may be because the wood used to construct the frame could possibly be considered a veneer as there are three pieces of wood that lay on top of each other. The top part of the wood may have come apart from the wood counterpart below therefore the crack is not visible on the back. This frame is still very strong and shows no signs of weakness.

There is some wear on the frame as the stain used has worn away in some places as referenced in images 6, 11 and 16. There is also visible and appropriate wear on all of the corners as well. Most of the wear is on the upper right corner as seen in image 8.

The back of the frame has indications that dark brown paper may have covered this area to protect what ever was housed inside, possibly a painting. Part of an indented cross is located on each corner to help secure the original piece that was recessed in the frame. Two thumb tacks hold a piece of aged string and can be used to hang this picture.

I was able to find a hand drawn fireplace that I reproduced. This drawing is absolutely wonderful and was chosen because it helped carry over the theme from the fame with ease. I decided to hand paint some of these accents to add color and interest. A fresh garland with red berries was added to the drawing as well as the greens in the wall box. The hearth broom, plate above the mantle and rug were also painted with a wash of color so they would stand out. The flames around the old cooking pot were high lighted with paint and the wee stockings were fashioned from an old shirt I kept for Christmas projects. I hand stitched this to old boucle wool that was aged and incorporated red X's around the border for a pop of Christmas cheer! Preserved cedar was used in the corners and stitched up with turkey red thread. An area in the back was covered in brown homespun to hide the stitching carried over from the front.

This unusual offering would grace a wall instantly and shows well above a chest or table with candles all aglow. A pair of Child's Dutch shoes filled with candy and nuts would not only be appropriate on that table but would reflect a traditional Christmas seasoned with yesteryear that now resides in your homestead! Enjoy!

The picture measures 16" Long, 8" Tall & is 1/4" thick.