The Christmas Story tree is displayed on the catwalk, which overlooks the family room and the foyer, which has a second story window.  The tree is visible from the street.  

 

   I saw this idea in a book a long time ago and just loved the idea.  When I worked at the local bank, I was allowed to decorate the lobby for Christmas one year.  There was not a lot of money available for decorations, so this idea was perfect!

 

  Using sheets of 8.5" x 14" copy paper, I printed out the Christmas Story in Old English type.   I could usually get two verses to a sheet, since  they are printed lengthwise  (landscape) on the paper.  Then,  the type was cut out into strips, leaving a margin around the words.

 

   Wanting the strips to look antiqued, a couple at a time were placed in a baking tray.  Tea bags, which had been soaked in boiling hot water, were used to blot tea stain onto the lettered strips of paper until the desired effect was achieved.  They were left to air dry, and if needed, blotted again with the tea bags.

 

  Once the strips were dry, the edges were painted with a dark brown acrylic paint, so the paper looked worn and torn. 

 

  The papers were flat, so each was curled over the edge of the counter, to give the paper a little curve. (This is the same concept as curling a ribbon with scissors. You can see the before and after in the pictures to the left.) The ends were curled in the opposite direction of the middle.

 

   The tree was a hit, and one customer asked if she could have the whole story!  For such a minimal cost, the effect is really rich looking when the glow from the lights illuminates the ochre colored papers.

 

   Obviously, I have kept the papers and decorate our tree with them, each year, reading and enjoying the story, as it is woven around, in and out of the branches on our tree.