Christmas Home Tour 2014

There isn’t much I love more than the glow of Christmas lights in the house and I’m known to start slapping them up the minute Thanksgiving has passed.  I want to get every second of glow I can without actually entirely steamrolling Thanksgiving.

My living room, of course, has been decked since October for the Home Depot Holiday Style Challenge (you can see all the photos HERE) but the rest of my house only joined the festivity party this past week.

If you’re coming over from DecorChick, hi!  Hope you’ll stick around awhile :)  Emily’s tour was so beautiful, wasn’t it?

We’re going to travel in a big circle through the house today and visit the kitchen, family room, living room, and dining room.  Starting in the kitchen, I draped a faux pine garland across the opening between the main part of the kitchen and the eating area, which I currently have set up as a wrapping station.

The paper lanterns in the corners and the geo garland are all from Target.  I’m pretty sure the geo garland is store-only but you can find the black and white striped paper lantern and plaid paper lantern online.

I hung square preserved boxwood wreaths on the custom glass doors of the built-ins in the back of the kitchen and added a black and white striped ribbon and cluster of mercury glass ornaments.

I’ve been using the kitchen table as command central for wrapping gifts.  Keeping all my supplies in one place definitely helps streamline the process.

 On the opposite side of the kitchen I set up a little bottle brush forest on the black and gold console table.  You can find a tutorial for making the windowpane mirror HERE.

I love the sparkle that the assorted silver balls add but you would not believe how hard it’s been to keep my four year old away from them.  I found three under her pillow the other day.  I love a mini disco ball too but they apparently sing an utterly irresistible siren song to her.

Moving into the family room, you can see where we set up our “family tree” – my girls helped me decorate with gifted ornaments we’ve all gotten over the years and I was determined not to micromanage them as they went about their merry work.  (tutorial for the DIY lacquered grasscloth coffee table can be found HERE)

I didn’t move any of the ornaments they put on the tree and didn’t have any particular scheme in mind. And you know what?  I love it in all its eclectic glory.

I made the Moravian star-inspired tree topper out of scrapbook paper leftover from an old project – click HERE for the easy tutorial.  It only takes about 30 minutes and costs less than $10!

On the mantle, I hung our stockings and layered clippings from the yard with the DIY dollar store ornament garland I made last year.

I used my girls’ monogrammed stockings that we’ve had for years but made a couple new ones for Scott and I out of some scrap fabric, faux fur, and pom pom trim.  I also made the colorblocked pom pom charms (tutorial HERE).

On the other side of the fireplace is our living room, where I left most of the decorations from the Home Depot Holiday Style Challenge, though you’ll notice a few little furniture and decorative changes. (tutorial for the DIY wood beaded pendant light can be found HERE)

In the dining room, I set the table with the easiest little embellished placecards – I just hot glued a sprig cut from my yard onto the corner of each placecard.  (details on my recent dining room makeover can be found HERE)

I decorated my hutch and buffet with preserved boxwoods and giant pinecones, and reused the DIY “Noel” sign I made last Christmas.

Across the room I hung Ikea Strala stars in the bay window.

I also gathered my small collection of Byers’ Carolers, made right near where I grew up, on the buffet below the window.

They’re such exquisitely-made dolls but I love them just as much for the connection to my hometown.  Taking them out of their boxes each year makes me so happy.

And with that, we’ve literally come full circle.  If you were walking through with me we’d be back to the kitchen where we started.  I hope you enjoyed the tour and be sure to swing by the next stop, The DIY Playbook, and see what Bridget and Casey have been up to!

And if you were paying attention, you might have noticed I promised three tutorials this week – for the tree topper star, the fur-edged stockings, and the color blocked pom pom charms.  Check back tomorrow for tutorial #1!

Here’s the full tour lineup – you won’t want to miss any of it!!

Thursday
Jones Design Company
Finding Home
Jen Rizzo
Home Stories A to Z
Dimples & Tangles
Simple Stylings
Run to Radiance
The Thriftress

Friday
Inspired Room
Beneath my Heart
DIY Showoff
Just a Girl
A Home Full of Color
Rain on a Tin Roof
Eleven Gables
Burlap and Lace
Sarah M. Dorsey