year of fun

Today has been the dedicated Christmas Decorating Day on the calendar for a few weeks now. In preparation, I shopped for some new items and ornaments and made a Christmas music playlist (favorite albums this year include Lady Antebellum’s On This Winter’s Night and a compilation called Holiday’s Rule featuring Fun., Rufus Wainwright, and The Shins). My plan: wreath, tree, other decor.

Wreath: very simple. We saved ours (fake) from last year in a wreath box.

Wreath and jingle bell holder both from Target.

Tree: The hubs put it together (fake and pre-lit) and that was, and probably forever will be, his contribution. Well other than putting the star on top and tolerating the Christmas music playing while he was watching the Bears. I fluffed the tree because it was looking a little skimpy but then I got started on the ornaments with bulbs trying to space them out and not have too many of the same color/shine next to each other. Then I just added ornaments all over. I love a totally FULL tree. This year, I also purchased a tree skirt meant for a mini tree, but I thought it would be perfect to just cover the plastic stem on our tree but not take up too much space beyond that (nor be too tempting for a certain puppy to eat).

Tree from Target. Topper from Macy’s. Ornaments from Target, West Elm, Foursided, Pottery Barn, home (Mom).

One Special Ornament: I bought a dog ornament that I thought looked a lot like Elphie, but just to take it to the next level, I colored on it with a permanent marker to add her black markings.

Upper Left: Before. Upper Right: After. Lower Level: Compare the two! Ornament from Pottery Barn.

Other Decor: This year, I took some advice from Young House Love’s book and put all of my decor items on a table together and then tried different combinations all over the house. This was so helpful in getting me out of the mind set that certain items “belong” in certain spaces.

Side Table. All items except the snow globe (Target) from Foursided. That candle smells like mistletoe!
 

Console Table. Reindeer card holder from Target.

Dining Table. Mercury votive holders from West Elm, mercury glass trees from Target, and Santa from Foursided in our usual bowl centerpiece surrounded by glass balls from Mom.

Bar Top. Santa from Foursided. Pine cone from Pottery Barn. The wine chiller is filled with fake cranberries from Target, a glass ornament from Mom, and wine corks.

Bathroom Shelf. Santa’s boots candle holders (I honestly do not remember where I got these. I’ve had them for so long) and December activity card from Walgreens.

Finally, I hung three larger ornaments on doorknobs throughout the house (all from Foursided) and then collapsed on the couch. I should have been taking more breaks because my feet are quite sore now, but I plan on resting, watching the Giants game, and admiring my decor from the couch for the rest of the night!