“Going bright and light as a foundation allows you to saturate or pull back through the years,” says Matt. “It’s timeless and classic, and it’s a look that can be easily updated without a hammer and saw.”
merry Madrid “New Mexico’s Christmas Town” comes alive in December by Amy G ro s s
photo graph s by Amade u s Le itne r
living
Above: A working scale coal locomotive made Toyland a hit with young and old back in Madrid’s Christmas celebration heyday. Today, Santa and his yak (right) join a troupe of bagpipers (below) in the annual parade.
Word word word sink, word sans wordcabinetry, word word Theword double-console is word word word with wordCarrara word word word word camellia word word topped marble. Vintage word wordaword word word word word word prints, milking stool, andword a Brentwood word word word word chair areword moreword thriftword storeword and estate sale word word word word word word word finds that lookword right word at home in word the soothing, word word palette. word word word word word word word neutral
A cast of characters comes out for the annual Madrid Christmas parade, including Father Christmas (top, right) and a gentleman, who, with the help of a feathered companion, offers tarot readings (above). Along Main Street, bonfires encourage roasting of marshmallows and hot dogs.
IT’S A SMALL TOWN, but Madrid’s Christmas traditions are huge—and have been since the 1920s, when an extravagant annual festival of lights drew 100,000 visitors every December. The ballpark was converted into “Toyland,” complete with a working scale coal locomotive. The town’s four hills, alternately lighting up and fading out, told the biblical story of Christ’s birth, ending at a scale model of Bethlehem (on Bethlehem Hill), where a lighted angel would zip down a line in the dark to a star that lit up in the night. It was a display so amazing that early Pan Am flights altered their flight patterns so that passengers might look down and catch a glimpse. Madrid’s Christmas light tradition ended when the United States entered WWII, but not before—or so the story goes—Walt Disney’s visit to the town inspired him to build Disney World. Today’s light displays are not quite so elaborate, but Madrid still joyously celebrates the holiday that put it on the map. The annual Christmas Parade, held on the first Saturday in December (December 5 this year) is quirky and fun—but so brief that if you blink you might miss it. Get into town early to find parking, says Lisa Conley of the Madrid Merchants Association. Every Saturday throughout the month, galleries stay open later with carolers, farolitos, marshmallow roasting, and bonfires to warm hearts and fingers. december 2015/january 2016
santa fean
59