Tickets are available at KGAS Radio

Tickets are available at KGAS Radio

The Glaze home

The Glaze home

416 North Saint Mary Street

Built around 1900 for the family of Dr. A. T. Perkins and remodeled in the 1970s by the R. L. Sinclairs, the beautiful historic Victorian home of Randy and Janet Glaze has been completely renovated again, with literally no room untouched. Janet says, however, that it will probably always be a work in progress. Known for her vintage English tea parties, complete with fascinator hats and all the other accoutrements for high tea, the certified etiquette instructor has dubbed the home "Glaze Manor" for those occasions.

For Christmas, each of the home's 10 rooms will have a tree with a different theme. The dining room, which is already the "Tea Room," will have a "tea tree" with a large variety of tea-themed ornaments reminiscent of afternoon tea. Also displayed will be a large assortment of vintage tea hats given to Janet by John and Terri Worley. Janet says the Worleys also inspired her with their "lost sock" tree two years ago to include a "Searching Soul Mate" tree in her own laundry room.

Janet says that when leveling the home caused cracks in the walls and forced the removal of sheetrock, all the original wallpaper from the home was found behind the sheet rock. "It was the best thing about the house," she says, "and was like Christmas to me. I saved the remnants of all of it and am in the process of framing and displaying it in the "Room of Christmas Past," our family room, whose tree will have a red, black, and white color scheme."

The back bedroom of the home will be the "Baseball Room," inspired by both Randy's and son Austin's love of the game, and will feature a baseball-themed tree as well as baseball photographs. Daughter Addison's room is the "Peacock Room," painted peacock blue and featuring peacock-themed art. The room was once Mrs. Sinclair's, and Janet found out that she also had an affinity for peacocks and had peacock artwork in that room. To honor Mrs. Sinclair and that beautiful irony, the room will feature a special "peacock dress" tree. The "Chandler Room," named for the Glaze's niece, is one of the original rooms in the house and serves as Janet's craft room and office. It will have a butterfly-themed tree inspired by Janet's love of butterflies and the transformation they represent, and her belief that this house has transformed her more than she has transformed it.

The front foyer will house a vintage tree with many ornaments, mostly handmade, from both Janet's and Randy's families. The parlor will feature a family-inspired tree filled with ornaments they both had from childhood. Janet's extended family had a tradition of giving ornaments at Christmas, also mostly handmade. Janet says, "When people come into this home, I want them to have a feeling of peace, love, joy, family, hope, and all the other wonderful blessings of Christmas. I am living proof that old wounds can heal, and that all those joys of the season can be restored."

The Glaze home is located at 416 North Saint Mary Street.

The Hirsch home

The Hirsch home

5101 U. S. Highway 59 North

Not only is the home of Michael and Kelly Hirsch an exquisite dwelling both inside and out, but it is located on very beautiful property that has been in Kelly's family for generations. Situated on a high hill surrounded by enormous trees, the home looks out over a large pond in front of the property, and there is a water view from every window in the home. (Kelly remembers telling her grandfather when she was a very young child that someday she "was going to live in a house on the top of that hill.") The home features handmade antique brick on the entire exterior, as well as on several interior walls. The home is also filled with beautiful antique furniture (mostly French), art, and books, including original Audobon renderings from the 1800s, paintings of East Texas wildlife created by Kelly's grandmother, original Clementine Hunter artwork, book's from generations of Michael's family, and other furnishings whose stories evoke dear personal family memories for both Michael and Kelly.
For Christmas the home will feature several trees, each with a special theme, and the remaining décor is eclectic-some in traditional Christmas reds and greens, but some a variety of wreaths and garlands that complement the color scheme of a particular room. Kelly's large Fitz and Floyd Christmas collection will be used as accent pieces. The tree in the study just off the entry foyer will have a "Joy of the Woodlands" theme to celebrate the family's love for all things woodland and wildlife. The dining room on the other side of the foyer will feature an antique table set with Lenox Holiday china and antique silver flatware place settings that were wedding gifts given to Michael's grandmother. The theme of the home's main tree, located in the Great Room, will be "Joyeux Noel," featuring muted French colors and textures, burlap pheasants, textured glass ornaments, magnolias, and Santas. Above the fireplace will be a large Christmas-themed mantlepiece in muted shades to complement the tree.

In the adjacent beautifully-appointed kitchen, with its extensive collection of antique copper pieces and French confit jars, will be a tree with cherished kitchen utensils and other kitchen-themed ornaments that belonged to Kelly's grandmother, with whom she shared a love of cooking and baking, and other assorted Christmas décor. Kelly is known for the very large and elaborate gingerbread houses she creates, and she hopes that she will be able to find the hours required to construct one to display on the large leathered granite kitchen island. The bar area just outside the kitchen will feature a "Vintage Christmas" theme complete with tinsel trees and garlands. Kelly's favorite tree is the small one in eight-year-old son Reed's bedroom. With the theme "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," it will be decorated with his handmade ornaments and all sorts of sports memorabilia. She says these are the ornaments that have great sentimental value to her; most of the others are ones she has just purchased when they caught her eye.

A loft at the top of the stairs will feature more woodland delights and a tree reminiscent of "Christmas at the Farm" to honor Kelly's memories of packing up on Christmas morning after opening gifts at home and heading for her grandparents' home. The coffee table in this comfortable room will feature a nativity scene. Both the study and the loft are filled with beautiful mounted specimens from Michael's hunts. While some of the more exotic ones were found in more distant places, most of them, including nearly all the ducks, were harvested from their property.

"Christmas for me has always been about the whole family being together," says Kelly, "and that's still how we all feel today. As a commercial airline pilot, Michael is seldom home for long during the holidays, so whenever we can have him home and get everyone together, that's when we celebrate Christmas!"

The Hirsch home is located at 5101 U. S. Highway 59 North.

The Lacy home

The Lacy home

1301 Cottage Road

The very interesting and beautiful home of Vickie Langford Lacy has undergone such extensive renovations over the past few years that it hardly resembles the traditional red brick house built in 1951 by the O. E. Brassell family. The white stone front was added before Vickie purchased the home, and she has painted all the remaining brick to match the stone. However, it is the changes she has made to the interior and to the outdoor area behind the home that have really transformed the home into a model of mid-century modern design with its clean lines, organic shapes, materials, and textures, its functionality, and the way in which it brings the outdoors inside.

Walls were taken down both inside and outside to bring in more light, a very modern fireplace added, and windows and doors added both to bring in light and to change entry and exit points. The kitchen was enlarged and renovated to include a large island and very modern finishes on cabinets and counters. The home features architectural interest at every turn. It is also full of bright colors and all kinds of textures, primarily in the textiles used throughout. The interesting textiles are a perfect reflection of the great love that Vickie, a well-known fiber artist, has for fabrics of all kinds. Asian-influenced items in the home are reminders of the year she spent in China and how much she loved the people there. The home originally had three bedrooms, but Vickie converted one of them into a studio for her textiles.

The home sits on a heavily wooded 10-acre lot filled with magnificent live oaks, Vickie says that while she had always admired the charm of the house even as a child, it was the acreage and those live oaks that really spurred her to purchase it. The outdoor space that she created behind the home overlooks, complements, and adds to the already-beautiful view. Glass doors from the sunroom lead out to a slate tile patio with a terraced upper level featuring Greek-influenced black metal raillings. Steps lead down to a lower level which features comfortable lounging and eating areas, a barbecue area, and all kinds of plants and greenery.

For Christmas, the sun porch at the front entry of the home will feature a pencil tree with an eclectic variety of ornaments and decorations. The foyer and living room will feature poinsettias, garlands of greenery, magnolia leaves, and candles. Other assorted Christmas-themed decorations will adorn the remaining rooms. Vickie says she has never collected special keepsake decorations and that the Christmas décor generally changes from year to year-certainly in keeping with her highly creative mind and personality.

The Lacy home is located at 1301 Cottage Road.

The Penner home

The Penner home

1302 Cottage Road

The elegant and stately white brick two-story home of Travis and Rachel Penner was originally built by Buster and Doris Hebert and underwent extensive renovations by former owners Cody and Wendy Arnold. Recently Travis added an additional structure behind the home that houses his shop and "man cave," which serves as a trophy room for his extensive collection of taxidermy and also features a kitchen and full bath, a modern fireplace, very comfortable, masculine furniture, a large television, and other handsome furnishings.

A self-avowed lifelong lover of Christmas, Rachel will fill the entire house with Christmas. In the main foyer, the staircase will feature garlands of traditional Christmas greenery and tabletop decorations. Travis uses the room to the right of the foyer for an office, and it will feature a flocked tree with rustic decorations and a color scheme of browns and golds. To the left of the foyer is the dining room, where the table will be set with Christmas dishes and the tree decorated with a "Mrs. Claus's Kitchen" theme incorporating gingerbread, candy canes, cupcakes, and other sweet Christmas treats. A family heirloom antique sewing machine will be topped with a nativity scene that belonged to Rachel's grandmother. She remembers playing with the figurines as a child, telling the Christmas story over and over; some of the original ones remain, while some have had to be replaced. One of her childhood pop-up Christmas books will also be part of the décor.

On the island in the home's beautiful kitchen will be a Christmas punch bowl and cups brought by Rachel's uncle to her grandmother from Korea. The family room will feature a Santa tree in reds and greens with black and white accents. On the mantle will be the Christmas village that belonged to her grandmother, along with Christmas greenery. An additional den/playroom off of the kitchen area will feature a Grinch tree, and the attached powder room will have a small tree with a general Christmas motif.

Upstairs the master bedroom will have a tree with a navy, gold, and champagne color scheme reminiscent of the night sky in winter, as well as assorted other Christmas accents. The Penners' pre-kindergarten son Duke will have an Avengers Super Hero flocked tree in front of the window in his bedroom. The guest room will feature a small tree with sentimental handmade family ornaments.

The "man cave" will feature a flocked tree with an outdoors theme and decorations mainly related to hunting and fishing, inspired by the great love that Travis has for those things and, like all the taxidermy, for remembering the story of every trip and hunt.

The Penner home is located at 1302 Cottage Road.

The Pshigoda home

The Pshigoda home

101 Timberlane

The stately two-story red brick home with white columns that has belonged to Jeff and Louriee Pshigoda for about four years was originally built for the Jack Parker family in 1964. The large foyer entry with the high ceiling and sweeping staircase offers an immediate sense of the spaciousness that can be felt throughout the home. For Christmas the foyer will feature a 12-foot green tree with ornaments collected through the years from Louriee's mother and grandmother, as well as from Jeff's family. The stair bannisters will be decorated with traditional Christmas greenery.

The large living room is to the left of the foyer, and features an entire wall of mirrored picture frames filled with black and white photos of old barns, churches, and bridges. The vintage feel of the room is enhanced by antique furniture, mostly from family, as well as old yearbooks and a Bible that belonged to Louriee's preacher-grandfather. Continuing the nod to old historic décor will be an old family nativity scene; the large inn and manger were built by Louriee's grandfather, and the ceramic figurines made by her aunt. The adjacent dining room will feature a Christmas table runner and dishes and other traditional décor. In the kitchen, the Christmas decorations will be mainly towels and linens. Louriee laughs, "Our kitchen is a very busy place, and we need every bit of the space in it!" Louriee works from home, and her office is also incorporated into the kitchen area.

The adjacent family room will feature traditional Christmas décor on the coffee table and the mantle above the large fireplace. The family room opens to a large room with a bar that the family uses for parties that will feature an additional Christmas tree. Plans are to add a pool to the backyard soon and make this room into a game room. It leads to an outdoor patio constructed by Jeff that includes a fire pit, a large television, and a comfortable seating area.. The master bedroom will feature red and gold Christmas pillows and Christmas décor on the tables and chests. A downstairs guest room will feature a snowman theme with Christmas bed linens and art. A red bathroom with a large Santa picture also adds a touch of Christmas downstairs. Upstairs are additional bedrooms to house the large number of family members and friends who visit, and Santa themed red and white décor will be seen there.

The Pshigoda family continues Lourie's grandmother's and mother's traditions of decorating both inside and out for every season, and the outdoor Christmas decorations will include wreaths on all the front windows, as well as many white lights and Christmas greenery.

The Pshigoda home is located at 101 Timberlane.