From year to year, the holiday decor in our home changes. It’s not something I intentionally set out to do, but often, I’m inspired by new ideas and colors, or I’ll think of a different way to use what we already have. The past few years (since we’ve moved into our house) our quantity of decor has admittedly multiplied to fill the extra space we acquired in transitioning from a city apartment to a suburban home.
This year with a baby due on Christmas, my mindset was simplicity and get it done early. Thanksgiving was later in the month and I knew that waiting to decorate afterwards would mean less energy and less mobility. So I began a couple weeks into November.
I’ve shared my approach to seasonal decorating and setting up for parties. Christmas décor is really no different. I try to invest in items that keep with the overall style of our home (traditional, classic, formal) in a neutral palette. Often I scour late season or post holiday sales (Admittedly, I'm not really a "sale enthusiast" or bargain hunter, but this is one of my exceptions). Then from year to year, I’ll adjust colors and details based on moods and inspiration. For the second year in a row, all breakable ornaments are on a family tree in our basement. Our main living room decor remains toddler friendly. To play up the "shatter proof" round ornaments last year, I painted about a dozen wooden nutcrackers in shades of grey and found various felted white animal ornaments. This year I added some vintage style mini bells, glittered snowflakes and had Sterling paint some wood stars in gold and silver. (Future post on enhancing some Walmart finds including these to come later.)
Additionally, since I do the majority of the seasonal decorating, I knew that I couldn’t juggle our heavy 9 foot artificial tree, so I opted for a smaller flocked 6 foot and reused two slim trees we'd previously placed outside to help make a bigger impact in our living room.
Your dcorations don't have to scream Christmas. Items you might already have in your home like taper candles, silk ribbons, throw blankets, old books, and vintage toys can all lend themselves to holiday decor. It's often the culmination of more basic elements that create a festive feel when pulled all together.
Generally, I love to use classic Christmas colors: reds, greens, gold and silver. It starts with the metallic shades and I slowly pepper in pops of color from there. Tartan plaids and tons of texture with luxe velvets and soft faux furs are a great way to add a cozy winter touch.
Greenery is one of my favorite and one of the simplest things to include in holiday decorating. Since I put everything up so early this year, most everything is artificial for now. In the coming days, I'll be popping over to our nearby tree lot to collect their trimmings to make wreaths for each of our windows and refresh our coffee table swag. There is something special about bringing the outdoors in (no matter the season). I firmly believe there is no candle that can fully replicate the scent of Christmas greens. Paperwhites and poinsettas are a favorite fresh decoration too!
I have a tendency to try and talk my mom into passing down an item or two from her holiday collection for our house. For me, this time of year should be most focused on time with loved ones, honoring tradition, and recalling memories. What better way to do all three that filling your home with beloved decorations from childhood?
Last, I wanted to share these great holiday decorating tips I found in an old holiday magazine: Plan ahead
I categorize a lot of my rooms based on function and decor. Planning ahead means thinking through each room:
· Den (kid/ TV room), usually filled with colors and our most casual space. It has minimal surfaces, so a lot of the décor goes on the walls. It's also home to old childhood holiday decorations and durable details like bottle brush Christmas trees.
· Living room: neutral, formal, adjusts and changes each year
· Sterling’s room: Changes based on his age, what he’ll get into and what he might leave alone (for instance. last year we opted not to put up a tree in his room).
· Basement: home to keepsake family and breakable decorations as Sterling spends the least amount of time here. Décor is less coordinated and more driven by sentiment.
· Kitchen/ Dining/ Breakfast nook: changes yearly, but mainly made up of festive towels, rugs, china vintage cookbooks and seasonal candy in jars. Décor is more practical.
Pull Christmas décor out early
Take inventory of what you have on hand for your vision and what you’ll need to find or purchase.
Allow for ample time to decorate
It took me a week to do our main room (mainly accomplished during naptimes and after bedtime) And another week to take on the rest of the rooms, day by day.
Only put up what makes you happy
This year that meant simplicity for me. I would estimate I used about half of our decorations. Who knows, next year I might feel like going overboard and feel inspired by colors everywhere!
Here are a couple photos from our Christmas set up in the living room last year. Similar to this year with colors and ornaments, but the details are slightly different. I'll share some decor from the rest of the house in the next post too!
Photos: Matthew Land Studios
Comments