today i'm inviting ya'll into my home to give you a little holiday tour. this is our second year in our home and i really think that the holidays bring such a magical ambiance into our space. i am kind of crazy about maximizing every minute of holiday time and you bet our christmas lights and christmas tree and most of our holiday decor was up the day after thanksgiving. we only get one month, and baby i'm all about making the most of it!
last year i kept my christmas decorations and my tree pretty neutral. i did creams and golds and so this year i decided to venture into some red. my poor husband was under the impression that once you buy christmas decorations once, you never have to buy them again because you just reuse them...and i sadly had to inform him that no, there is no end to buying christmas stuff. sorry babe.
but that being said, i am totally a believer in using what you have and spending what you can. i find amazing deals on holiday stuff all the time and am always on the hunt for a bargain. million dollar looks don't really have to cost a million dollars.
our tree is from walmart. i love flocked trees and we got this one for $100 last black friday. this tree is awesome because it has great shape and it's kind of spindly, so there is lots of room for hanging ornaments without the branches being too thick and then the ornaments just hang there all awkward. do you know what i mean? i really think ornaments look best when they're kind of nestled in the tree, rather than hanging on the end of a branch. so this tree is perfect for us, i love the flocking, and i bought most of the decor from hobby lobby for 50% off. the plaid ribbon and the white branches are from michaels, however, also for 50% off.
i really wanted to find a basket or a cool metal bucket for the tree, but unfortunately that didn't work out for me because our base is so big. i am also pretty picky about tree skirts...i don't like when they just lay there flat and don't cover up the base. (i know, i am sounding kind of bossy huh??) so i ended up buying a table cloth at walmart for $14 and it is perfect for bundling at the base. maybe next year i'll luck out with a basket, but until then, i am satisfied with my table cloth.
since our tree is artificial, i love getting fresh garland. i bought mine at lowes and i am kind of obsessed and want to hang it from every doorway/window/shelf in my house. i spray it with water a couple times a day to help keep it hydrated, but i know that it's short lived and will need to be thrown away probably not long after christmas day. but that's okay, i love it anyway.
our stockings are from pottery barn kids. they are classic and timeless and pottery barn keeps their stocking designs pretty consistent every year, so we know that if/when we add to our family, we will be able to find matching or coordinating prints.
this year will probably be known as the year of the holiday pillows because i went a little crazy with the pillows. i actually only bought three and was gifted one, and i love them. i bought the "merry christmas to you all" and the red striped pillow covers from HM online for only $6.50 each and filled them with down inserts from IKEA. the red plaid pillow is from target this year and the "noel" is from target last year.
the cute little girl in the pink kitty jammies is not available in stores or online. ;)
i wanted to add a little bit of subtle holiday spirit to our bedroom and was so impressed with tj maxxx's selection of pillows. they had a ton of really really cute ones and they were all beautiful quality. this one is perfect for our bed and embodies the feeling we hope our bedroom brings to us. (except when you have a three year old climb into bed with you every night at 4am, you truthfully don't get a lot of peace.)
we bought that little tree on my nightstand our first year of marriage. we were so poor and it was only $11 and i hope we keep it always to remember where we came from and what we've been through. ava has her own little tree and so this tree is "our" tree and it's taken on a santa theme. it is chock full with vintage ornaments, sea shells from our hometown beaches, and ornaments from when we were kids.
i collect santas. my mom has an incredible collection and displayed them every year while i was growing up. she gives me a new one every year and it's always one of the highlights of my christmas. i put them on my mantle last year, but this year i decided to keep my mantle simple and i am loving them on this bookcase in my dining area. the gold garlands are both from target last year and you bet i added some fresh garland on top.
i also added fresh garland to my curtain rod behind my kitchen table. i found these awesome little battery operated lights on wire in the dollar section at target (they were $3) and i intertwined them in the garland. they look like little magical christmas fairies living in the garland and i kind of never want to take this garland down!!
my mother-in-law gave me that "merry christmas" sign/stand last year and i've been struggling to find the perfect place for it, but i think my entry way console table is a good fit. i bought the sparkly nativity piece last year at target and love that it reminds everyone of the true reason for the reason right as they enter my home.
i made the red and white garland out of little styrofoam balls i found at hobby lobby. i just used a thick needle and bakers twine to thread them. my initial idea was to put this garland on my mantle, but it was too sparkly...so david actually suggested we put it here and what do you know, he's a home decor genius!! ;) he's also really great at hanging stuff from tall places that his 5'3" wife can't reach.
some of our dear family friends growing up had a ton of christmas trees throughout their house during the holidays and each kid had their own tree. i knew this was one tradition i wanted to adopt for my own family a long time ago, and first started ava's tree two years ago. i hope that she will always have this tree and that each ornament and trinket will be sentimental to her, because each piece is so special to me!! i've hung a pair of her very first shoes, photos of her with santa, vintage ornaments from my grandmother, and the base is tied with lace from my wedding bouquet. every year we add another ornament that embodies that year and we date the bottom. one of ava's first words was "quack," so she got a duck for 2013 and a princess sofia for 2014. it's getting pretty full, but i love this tree and i love my girl. she is forever the greatest gift i could ever receive.
and that's a wrap!! merry christmas to you and your home!
if you're looking for more pretty holiday homes, you're in luck! check out these pages this weekfrom the avery grace's holiday home tour!
Monday:
The Avery Grace | The H is For | Design Roots | Etcetera Studio
Tuesday:
Superfluous Fabulous| Little Branches | Call me Ang
Wednesday:
Life as a Rambling Redhead | Cupcakes and Coffee Grounds | Maison de Cinq | Windgate Lane
Thursday:
The Everyday Hostess | Oh Deery Floral | Life as a Mrs.
Friday:
Happily Hayley | Steel Southern Pretty | ABS Home Styling