Each year I struggle with posting a Christmas home tour. Not because I don’t love decorating for the holidays– obviously I do, hence the glam Scandinavian handmade holiday explosion!– but rather it’s because I strive to keep this blog a place of reality. And the reality is that I have two young kiddos and very little free time to spend fluffing pillows and arranging greenery for hours on end. There may be a season where that IS my reality; perhaps next year when both kids are in school full time or in 18 years when they go to college or in 35 years when I’m at La Boca Vista enjoying my sunset years. Until then, I want Making Lemonade to be a place where you will find easy, simple, and budget-friendly Christmas ideas that anyone call pull off.
A huge heartfelt thanks to my husband who helped keep the kids occupied as I decked the halls (and the kitchen, and the dining room), and to my kids who so far have not broken a single thing. 18 years from now all I’ll probably crying in my gorgeous garlands about how much I miss these crazy, chaotic days. So cheers for the REAL Making Lemonade holiday home tour– the good, the bad, and the glammed up and glittered gold!
A warm welcome is so important to me, as is keeping the entryway simple for our busy family. I may or may not have photoshopped pine needles from the floors.
I went with a really simple pine bough garland with plain white bows.
A wall full of mirrors adds to the sparkle.
Even everyday scarves and boots look festive around the holidays!
From there, we move to the dining room. I’ll admit it, those stars hanging from my chandelier make me happy.
Pretty much the only surface I style for the holidays is my sideboard. No one touches a thing on there so I can go gold-glam-Scandi-crazy!
The plaid ‘runner’ is a throw blanket from IKEA. The woodland fairy light frames set the tone and make the room shine bright.
A simple branch gets some bling from gold and modern geometric ornaments.
Here’s the final resting spot for the DIY faux birch candleholders. Don’t they fit right in with the woodland theme?
Still. More. Fairy. Lights. (I should own stock in them…) plus also mason jars.
We had angel chimes when I was little, and had such fond memories that I finally ordered some for myself. Now my kids go wild for their magical chimes!
I’ll be honest. I meant to decorate those JOY letters but ran out of time. Neutral decor lover that I am, thankfully they still fit right in. What would you do with them? I have 365 more days to think about it!
Christmas decor doesn’t need to be complicated. I added gold accents to my hutch for a hint of holidays.
We’re having lots of guests over Christmas, and we are READY. I hope they are as ready, because it is ON.
And squuueeeee over those deer highball glasses!!!! I grabbed four at HomeGoods, and knew a good thing when I saw it, so went back and grabbed two more. Best advice ever? Know what you love, and when you see it, buy it. ALL OF IT.
Since I often work in here, we have a desk in our dining room. Gotta put the dining room to good use, right?
We have baskets of blankets EVERYWHERE. ‘Cause I use them ALLTHETIME.
Another easy decor idea? Burlap and berries on the backs of chairs.
Since it seemed silly to set this table just to UNset the table so my daughter could do homework here, the only decor on the table right now is a favorite bowl filled with both new and vintage ornaments.
Next, onto the kitchen! A busy place, so I kept it very simple to make room for all the cooking, baking, eating, playing, coloring, working, dancing…
Our battered Mrs. Fields Cookie Book at the ready.
(said in my best Martha Stewart voice): Stunning holiday decor can be as simple as a few flowers and berries in a bud vase, vintage ornaments nestled on shevles, or a festive dishtowel hung on your oven door.
On the faux mantel in our kitchen I propped up the chalkboard Christmas art I whipped up (literally, in about 10 minutes minus drying time) alongside the Anthropologie Tea Towel hack and easy little advent calendar.
Can you guess what these white ceramic-looking wreaths are made from? Can you? YES! CHEAP THRIFT STORE PLASTIC WREATHS I GOT FOR .25 CENTS! I just spray painted them with glossy white paint. Can. You. EVEN?!
One funny story to share: Ben was home with me the entire time I crafted, styled, set up, and photographed this home tour. He’s been sooooo good, most of the time, watching the craziness unfold. Yesterday I started to sketch out a tree I wanted to draw on their chalkboard wall. Before I could really get past the idea stage, he got so excited to add his own touch that he climbed up and started drawing little ornaments on the branches.
STAND BACK, MOMMY! I’VE GOT THIS!
How ’bout them ornaments?
GAH! I can’t handle how much this touched my heart! To most people, this tree is imperfect. But to me, it’s my dream come true. It stays. Perfect styling be darned.
He thankfully kept his hands off this one, a basket of poppers waiting in a vintage metal basket. We’ve done these every Christmas Even since my kids were babies and they’re a really fun tradition! I picked these up at, where else, HomeGoods. And that gorge poinsettia from Whole Foods.
Now onto our living room, where we find my makeshift mudroom ready to go with faux fur stockings that fit my rustic, woodland Christmas decor.
This trellis mirror came with that huge {thrifted} lacquered sideboard in my dining room. I was going to sell it on Craigslist… but then… I realized it added so much light to my dark living room. Trellis isn’t my favorite pattern, but hey, it looks kinda pretty, right? My husband would like to interject here that the MIRROR is straight, it’s the wall unit that isn’t. Thank you to my mirror hanger.
Now the highlight of the home tour, the heart of the holiday home: the tree! I stacked our tree with the DIY photo frame ornaments from a few years ago, the recent DIY woodland ornaments, and my handstamped ‘Love Actually’ garland. The white ceramic Lenox ornaments have been given and gathered over the past 30+ years! This tree means more to me than you’ll ever know, when I look at it I see FAMILY.
The Polar Express train around the base of the tree is the main reason I could get all this done while my son was home with me. It’s so great! In fact, I snapped this photo at the one moment he WASN’T playing with it. If you’re looking for a Christmas train, this one is a hoot– it even has Tom Hanks’ voice saying ‘All Aboard the Polar Express!”
Here’s a trick for you, stick poinsettia branches into the tree to fill blank spots! They were 60% off at JoAnn.
At night? Ahhhhhh….
So in love with this fox pillow. Not quite Christmas-y, which is great, because it will transition well into other seasons.
The stockings were hung… I sewed these super quick from white faux fur. I wish I could give you a tutorial, but I followed no plan, just ran them right through the sewing machine. I still can’t believe it worked.
Shhhhh…. those gold deer came from The Dollar Store! I was originally going to cut out deer from stiffened felt for this project, and could not believe my eyes when I found those deer instead.
Since my son bounces off all the furniture (I’m still trying to get him to yell ‘Parkour!’ every time he does it, but no dice), we kept the couch and surfaces pretty clear. Those glass bulbs are just for show and the rosemary wrapped in burlap is pretty Parkour proof.
My new West Elm coffee table is like an ornament itself. It was a gift from me to… me.
Even my shelves have stars.
I shed glitter, sweat and tears over getting the house decorated for Christmas but I’m so glad that I did. Now time for a hot bath, sleeping for a few days, and maybe also hitting up that bar cart.
BUT FIRST! I hope you have a great big mug of coffee or hot chocolate and a comfy chair because I’ve got a treat for you… Come join these other incredible women as they show off their homes. I can guarantee that you will gain inspiration and ideas for your own home each day during this tour!
Monday:
The Happy Housie | Everyday Enchanting | Maison de Pax | Life on Virginia Street | Unskinny Boppy | Setting for Four
Tuesday:
rooms FOR rent | Town and Country Living | On Sutton Place | Design, Dining and Diapers | At Home with The Barkers | Cottage in the Oaks
Wednesday:
House by Hoff | Jenna Sue Design | Love Grows Wild | Craftsberry Bush | All Things G&D | DIY on the Cheap
Thursday:
Rain on a Tin Roof | Making Home Base | The Wood Grain Cottage | Capturing Joy | Making Lemonade
Friday:
Migonis Home | Just a Girl and Her Blog | Fox Hollow Cottage | City Farmhouse | Ciburbanity
Happy holidays, my friends! Now who’s going to come over and help taste test my Santa’s Little Helper punch?