Decorating for the holidays…

 

 

My entrance, in no way, measures up to the elegance of these Pinterest photos above…I wish!  The only thing I have in common is a black door!

 

 

Diane Keaton wrote this amazing book, The House That Pinterest Built, which features a home she built.  The photos and text are beautiful.  She said that her obsession with Pinterest is what helped her make decisions regarding the architecture, design and decorating of this fabulous home.

 

Like Keaton, I treasure the time I spend going through my Pinterest feed.  If you are having a creative block, Pinterest is a valuable resource.  Often an image will be just the inspiration you need to formulate an idea that will work with items you may already have at home.

I’m sure that the greenery on the mannequin (above) is not real but it looks authentic and lush.  Faux greenery of this quality is not easily found nor is keeping fresh evergreens from drying out easily accomplished.  The wreaths I have on my exterior doors (left) are made of fresh greenery which tends to hold up better outdoors than in the dry air of our homes in winter.

 

            

The above image (left) is from Pinterest and on the right is a photo of my island displaying cut branches from the garden adorned with vintage baubles.  Paperwhites (planted days apart to extend the season), miniature cypress trees, and fresh fruit complete the look and the glass garlands tie it all together.

Because we are entertaining more this year than usual (a scary thought for me!), I cannot move out any seating areas in the living room.  Therefore, there is not enough room to accommodate a full-size tree.  Instead, I’ve put up a small tree on the sofa table in the front window.  This still provides the fresh scent of spruce and the magic of the twinkle lights.

         

I always set the Christmas tree up in the dining room.  It’s where we all gather together and spend the most time as a family unit.  The glitter of the tree, lights and reflection of the glass add a special ambience. The image of the photo above (left) is from Pinterest.  I decided to put up my gold tinsel tree (right) again this year.  I have enough Christmas ornaments to decorate every house on my block which makes it difficult to discriminate between which ones will be featured this year and those ones that will have to wait for another time. Usually,  I decide on a colour scheme that is common throughout the house but this year I just went with my favourites.  The tinsel tree branches are strong enough to hold the weight of the glass ornaments plus the branches are far enough apart allowing the decorations to be the star of the show.

 

By now your home is probably all decked out for the holidays.  In spite of all the chaos that the season brings, I hope you have a chance to sit back with your feet up (maybe a glass of wine in hand) and revel in the beauty and magic of these precious weeks in December.

xox Judy