Museum's Christmas Tour of Homes to be held Sunday

PHOTO BY LISA CARNLEY The home of Steve and Cassie Langdon is one of five to be showcased on this year's Keystone Square Museum Christmas Tour of Homes Sunday.

Keystone Square Museum will present its annual Christmas Tour of Homes, themed "Nutcrackers on Parade," Sunday from 1-5 p.m.

Tickets are $6 in advance at the museum and are available tonight during the Carol of Lights. On tour day, tickets are $7.

Five homes will be showcased, with the tour beginning at the museum, 303 S. Western.

O'Dean and Crystal Hammett, 2205 Deer Trail. Interesting collectibles adorn the home of the Hammetts, who were married in 1988.

After retiring in 2003, the couple came to Lampasas, where his family had lived for several generations, and built their Austin cut-stone residence.

Collections of angels, nativities, miniature Remingtons, wooden ducks and Butler Brown watercolors fill the spacious rooms, and the latest treasure is a pair of hand- carved wooden Santas from Russia.

Also on display throughout the home are Hammett's military honors and recognitions from the aerospace industry.

Judith Hetherly, 42 Samac. The mayor built her residence in 2006 on one acre of land near the edge of town.

It is filled with antiques collected through the years, and she has many pieces of Roseville pottery on display.

The hall tree near the bedrooms came from her grandfather's Bluebonnet Hotel in downtown Lampasas.

Numerous works of art, from oils to charcoal to watercolors, grace the walls.

The spacious fenced back yard is filled with walkways, sitting areas and seasonal plants.

Steve and Cassie Langdon, 202 E. Fifth St. This 1902 residence has been honored with a medallion from the Texas Historical Commission. Langdon moved into the Victorian home in 2004, and after the couple's marriage, Mrs. Langdon began filling it with antiques and their own special art.

Woodwork in the home is original, as are the long-leaf pine floors. Of special interest are the transoms and the pocket doors.

Among the Langdons' collectibles are stained-glass art and unique Central American pieces. Many of the whimsical items originated in Mrs. Langdon's art room.

The adjacent screened-in deck holds more of the couple's designs.

Mrs. Langdon recently received the Texas Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities' Artist of the Year award.

Ken and Amy McDaniel, 2072

CR 1005. Soon after their marriage on New Year's Eve in 2004, the McDanielses found this Mediterranean style house on wooded acreage on the outskirts of Lampasas.

Built in 2005, the home features earth-toned colors, vaulted ceilings and a stone fireplace. It is filled with many of the couple's paintings, books and objects of art from their travels around the world.

In the kitchen, visitors should make note of the wall with the "scumbling" effect. Granite countertops and the suspended pot rack lend a gourmet atmosphere for the couple's cooking pursuits.

Cedar rockers on the back veranda prove a restful place to observe nature.

Cathy Walker, 507 S. Arnold. Upon entering this 1938 home, visitors can see the large armoire that Ms. Walker said is "all I ever loved about Christmas." It is a children's fantasy.

Throughout the house are collections of crosses, birdhouses, angels and mini-tea sets.

Of special note in her serene bedroom is a small arts and crafts work area concealed in a large closet.

The leopard room will appeal to many, as will the eclectic art.

Ms. Walker's laundry room is filled with a herd of rabbits that help make an otherwise drab chore a delight.

She shares her home with two birds, three dogs and three cats.