Ornaments

Store honors owner's wife For 20 years, Corona del Mar's Concept Studio has reflected seasons and holidays with ever-changing lush displays incorporating greenery and apples, lemons and sunflowers. This year, the Christmas decorations at the shop at 2720 E. Coast Hwy. pay tribute to the woman described as the genius behind the beauty, Karen Goddard, who died Sept. 22. "My wife was very positive, very creative, very energetic," said Concept Studio owner Richard Goddard.

There was a year when I didn't have a Christmas tree. My mother was very sick, there wasn't much money for presents, and there was absolutely none for a pine tree that would have to be thrown out in a few weeks. I was 7. My sister and I, though, were not going to have Christmas without lights and ornaments. We searched high and low for the perfect substitute for a tree. The banister of our New Jersey home was dismissed as too hard, and the beautifully carved screen in the living room was too un-treelike.

Roger's Gardens was bewitched by the Halloween spirit this week, offering a spooky holiday preview of the skeletons, witches, rats and cats on sale to the public starting Friday. Screams and creaky doors pierced the air inside the Haunted Halloween Room as a statue of a woman offered a platter of rat to anyone who stopped to examine her. All year, buyers for the home and garden store have been finding eerie trinkets for the store's Halloween display culminating in the Witching Hour display.

Deirdre Newman Most people look at a deodorant bottle as a way to prevent perspiration. Marie Young looked at a deodorant bottle and found inspiration. Young, 87, took two deodorant roll-on balls and fashioned a Santa Claus Christmas ornament out of it. And so a hobby was born that has lasted 20-plus years and decorated more than two decades worth of Christmas trees. Young has fashioned Christmas ornaments out of eyedropper bottles, clothespins and Popsicle sticks.

Seniors and other community members began their holiday season Tuesday by decorating a Costa Mesa Senior Center Christmas tree with teddy bears, angels, stars and Disney cartoon characters. The TeWinkle Intermediate School band played Christmas music during the decorating and, during lunch, Santa read a Christmas story to the decorators. The event launched the senior center's holiday program, which will include a performance by the Page Private Schools 82-member choir from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, a second tree decorating at 1 p.m. Friday with entertainment provided by the Phoenix House and a performance by the TeWinkle Intermediate School choir at 11:30 a.m. Monday.

South Coast Plaza has added more exclusive retailers and unique restaurants to its already impressive list of merchants. The latest additions are Giorgio Armani, Paris-based Yves Delorme, a completely remodeled Emporio Armani, the first California locations for both SoHo boutique and Z'Tejas Southwest Grill, and Champagne French Bakery Cafe. Giorgio Armani will carry the Giorgio Armani collections for men and women, the Giorgio Raman Classico Collection and a full range of accessories for men and women.

Bargain of the Day: Handcrafted, hand-painted light switch plates to fit any decor or theme. The adorable functional wall ornaments are $12 for a single light switch or $17 for a double plate. They can be found in the Crafters Corner at the Good Earth display, and the come all the way from Austin, Texas. Event of the Day: Chef Don Ferguson demonstrated healthy gourmet cooking by cooking an entire meal for crowds. At the end of the parade of products next to the Heritage Stage, he demonstrates Kitchen Craft cookware.

Glass blower Charlie Keeling doesn’t always know why he stays in the business. He compares glass blowing to the old story about a frog in a pot of boiling water. If the water is already hot, there is no way you are getting that frog in there. But if the water is cool when the frog goes in, when it heats up he won’t get out. It may be an appropriate comparison for a man who works at a fair famous for its fried frog legs. “Sometimes I see bubbles around my feet,” Keeling said of the difficulties in his business.

KAREN WIGHT No matter what occasion you celebrate, a beautifully wrapped package is always appreciated. Even if the "oohs" and "ahhhs" only last for a moment before the bow and paper are destroyed, the initial visual impact leaves a first and lasting impression. I love the entire ritual of wrapping packages. I like choosing the papers, the ribbons and the tags. I like combining ribbons and adding decorative ornaments. I am a wrapaholic. This time of year requires a certain amount of wrap-aptitude, and I'm the gal to provide it. Start with a wrapped package: Don't cheat on the folded edges; burnish them with the handle of your scissors.

CORONA DEL MAR - As Michael Resk moves around his Spanish-style home, small bobbing heads mirror his actions, following him to the front gate, backyard and alley. The chickens make it clear that he rules the roost. When he walks around his Goldenrod Avenue yard, he's occasionally followed by the six members of his feathered flock - nicknamed the Goldenrod 6 - as they cluck, peck at the grass and dig holes in search of bugs. Resk has owned the chickens for 16 months, but he ran afoul of city ordinances that prohibit owning poultry in Corona del Mar. But it's all a mix-up of semantics, Resk says, because his birds aren't for meat or eggs; they're largely ornamental.

Store honors owner's wife For 20 years, Corona del Mar's Concept Studio has reflected seasons and holidays with ever-changing lush displays incorporating greenery and apples, lemons and sunflowers. This year, the Christmas decorations at the shop at 2720 E. Coast Hwy. pay tribute to the woman described as the genius behind the beauty, Karen Goddard, who died Sept. 22. "My wife was very positive, very creative, very energetic," said Concept Studio owner Richard Goddard.

April 23, I was looking at the displays at the big garden show at South Coast Plaza. As I rounded the corner I saw a booth with a nice collection of shrubs, perennials, vines and grasses. I stepped closer. At the front of the display I quickly noticed a large table of plants, separated from the rest of the display. On the table was a prominent sign that read, “California Natives.” Terrific; I was pleased to see many familiar native plants on the table. These native plants were clearly popular, attracting a lot of attention.

Glass blower Charlie Keeling doesn’t always know why he stays in the business. He compares glass blowing to the old story about a frog in a pot of boiling water. If the water is already hot, there is no way you are getting that frog in there. But if the water is cool when the frog goes in, when it heats up he won’t get out. It may be an appropriate comparison for a man who works at a fair famous for its fried frog legs. “Sometimes I see bubbles around my feet,” Keeling said of the difficulties in his business.

NEWPORT BEACH — Halloween is still two weeks off, but the Christmas season has already begun at Roger’s Gardens. Huge, decorated trees fill the home and garden store on San Joaquin Hills Road, while wreaths, hand-blown glass ornaments and wax fruit fill most of the available space. It may seem early to string up end-of-the-year decorations, but for Roger’s Gardens, the Christmas season never really ends — except for about a month and a half in August and September.

William Lyon Homes sales fall dramatically Newport Beach-based William Lyon Homes announced Thursday a major dip in third-quarter sales and home orders compared with 2005. The home builder's 72% decrease in net income comes as the real estate market is experiencing a major cool-down. Home prices are dropping, and according to William Lyon Homes, new home orders are down 40% from third-quarter 2005 to the same time this year. The builder reported that it began experiencing a slowdown during the last half of the fourth quarter 2005.

Roger's Gardens was bewitched by the Halloween spirit this week, offering a spooky holiday preview of the skeletons, witches, rats and cats on sale to the public starting Friday. Screams and creaky doors pierced the air inside the Haunted Halloween Room as a statue of a woman offered a platter of rat to anyone who stopped to examine her. All year, buyers for the home and garden store have been finding eerie trinkets for the store's Halloween display culminating in the Witching Hour display.

KAREN WIGHT No matter what occasion you celebrate, a beautifully wrapped package is always appreciated. Even if the "oohs" and "ahhhs" only last for a moment before the bow and paper are destroyed, the initial visual impact leaves a first and lasting impression. I love the entire ritual of wrapping packages. I like choosing the papers, the ribbons and the tags. I like combining ribbons and adding decorative ornaments. I am a wrapaholic. This time of year requires a certain amount of wrap-aptitude, and I'm the gal to provide it. Start with a wrapped package: Don't cheat on the folded edges; burnish them with the handle of your scissors.

Deirdre Newman Most people look at a deodorant bottle as a way to prevent perspiration. Marie Young looked at a deodorant bottle and found inspiration. Young, 87, took two deodorant roll-on balls and fashioned a Santa Claus Christmas ornament out of it. And so a hobby was born that has lasted 20-plus years and decorated more than two decades worth of Christmas trees. Young has fashioned Christmas ornaments out of eyedropper bottles, clothespins and Popsicle sticks.

There was a year when I didn't have a Christmas tree. My mother was very sick, there wasn't much money for presents, and there was absolutely none for a pine tree that would have to be thrown out in a few weeks. I was 7. My sister and I, though, were not going to have Christmas without lights and ornaments. We searched high and low for the perfect substitute for a tree. The banister of our New Jersey home was dismissed as too hard, and the beautifully carved screen in the living room was too un-treelike.