Magnolia

This winter, Magnolia Journal is making space for connection—and all the shared experiences that deepen our understanding of ourselves and one another. Find a guide to Christmas lights, gather around fondue, and design a dining room that invites everyone to stay awhile.

The Magnolia Journal

A Letter from the Editor

Magnolia Post: Delight

These Hands Have Held Delight • The world sees two hands wrinkled by time. But their real story is not what can be seen but all the moments they’ve held in between.

Spices of the Season

Building a Winter Tool Box of Delights

A Bottle, a Fragrance, a Life • Fragrances become part of who we are—a gentle layer on the life we live—and a piece of what others experience and remember long after we’ve passed by.

Reawakening Christmas

This Holiday Season, Have Yourself a Very Merry Mantel • let your mantel draw everyone in. After all, the hearth, with its warm glow, beckons as a natural gathering space, and the area on top is a blank canvas for wherever your yuletide imaginings might go. Whether your personal style is traditional, whimsical, or somewhere in between, our hope is that the four arrangements that follow will serve as inspiration to bring a few of your favorite holiday pieces front and center. So mix, match, and let your holiday spirit shine bright.

This Winter, Let’s Make Kindness Loud Together. • On the next page we’ve put together a few ideas for sharing the joy this holiday season. Tear it out, hang it up, and jingle all the way.

Arlos Cookies • A childlike wonder inspires cookie artist Luna Ellis to create tiny edible worlds.

Popcorn • Whether eaten that moment, strung as a whimsical garland, or packed in cheery wrapping as a gift, it’s perfect any way you pop it.

Traditions Old and New • SEEKING DELIGHT IN WHAT WE KNOW AND WHAT WE HAVE YET TO DISCOVER

A Note from Jo: Ours for the Taking

These Winter Gifts of Delight

Design That Delights • YOU KNOW IT WHEN YOU FEEL IT—THAT EXTRA SOMETHING THAT TAKES A ROOM FROM ORDINARY TO EXTRAORDINARY.

A Winter Dinner Is Served • In a season of connection, we relish the way it all comes together, gathering recipes with the whole always in mind. This winter menu draws its magic from the same simple intention—a place and purpose for each dish, delicious on their own, but better as one. The collection offers the restoration we seek in a meal, reminding us that the warmth of good company brings respite from the cold outside.

Let Delight Reign

Oh, What Fun It Is to Gift • THEY SAY THE BEST THINGS COME IN SMALL PACKAGES—AND WE AGREE. THIS YEAR, LET’S TURN THE “STUFF” IN STOCKING STUFFERS INTO DELIGHTFUL GIFTS FOR EACH PERSON ON THE LIST. PLAYFUL, QUIRKY, OR FUNCTIONAL, THESE PERSONALIZED PRESENTS ARE THOUGHTFUL WAYS TO SPREAD HOLIDAY LOVE AND CHEER.

Into the Woods • REVIVING A FANCIFUL A-FRAME

Around Every Corner • While delight often surprises us with its swift comings and goings, there are also ways to plant ourselves in its shining path. We can choose where to feast our eyes or settle our attention, and by doing so, we prime ourselves for more of those experiences that illuminate our hearts and spill into the lives around us. In these stories we see how people have created unique ways to settle squarely in the way of delight—their journeys sources of inspiration as we travel our own paths.

A Year’s Palette

Chip Gets the Last Word • “That’s genuine delight, right there in the circumstances we don’t expect and sure as heck can’t predict.”

Sourcebook • For information about products or professionals featured, please contact these sources. We cannot guarantee availability of items or services.

Magnolia Manifesto