Affordable Christmas Decor
This is our first Christmas in this house. I have to [embarrassingly] admit that our house is still lacking quite a bit of decor. Even with being a new build, Husby and I seem to come up with endless possibilities for enhancements. So much so that our ideas far outnumber the time capable of fulfilling these projects. Once life settles down a bit...right.
Decorating for Christmas is probably one of my favorite things to do. But with moving into a new house with a completely different look and feel than any other place I've lived meant investing in almost all new decor. Well, we aren't just looking for things to spend money on, so that took some creativity.
All in all, I knew I wanted to keep our trend with the neutrals, and I also wanted to keep our accent colors in the house year 'round. Some people thought I was crazy for believing I could keep the vintage blues in with some bright reds (you know who you are Instagram direct messagers), but I have a feeling that any of you critics out there will see in the below that it all totally works! I couldn't be more excited about the Christmas decor in our house. Nighttime is extra cozy with the Christmas tree on and all the candles in the fireplace lit.
That was another subject of controversy. I honestly thought our builder was going to lose his ever-loving mind on me when I didn't budge on wanting a fireplace with no electric unit installed. Because to most people, why would you want a fireplace incapable of a fire?! Well, scroll down. Filled with pillar candles, the fireplace gives off exactly what I wanted. It's so.cozy to sit in the living room with a book (or writing this blog) and all the candles list. It's seriously become my stress-free zone!
Extra points to those who spot the Elf on the Shelf I forgot to remove prior to snapping these photos.
A couple of little stories:
1. For some reason Adelyn simply cannot remember the name Nutcracker. We've had lengthy discussions on why the figurines are titled that, but without fail every time she picks one up she calls it either a Snap Cracker or Snap Cracker Nuts. Coming from the kid who just yesterday said "Mom, the problem is.......Daddy lets me do that even though you don't. That's why I still ask you." She's not lacking in the smarts department, so when those simple references like Nutcracker (or swimming cool and tavle) trip her up I'm reminded that I get to hang onto this little innocent youth a bit longer still. [insert swooning heart emoji....if there was one]
2. We made those mistletoes with Adelyn's feet last Christmas and to say I'm excited to have them hanging from one of our archways is an understatement. Especially when she stands under them and yells "Mama, come here and give me a smooch!"
3. That vintage record player. Again with the swooning heart emoji. (should I be embarrassed that I want to use the same emoji for my daughter and a vintage record player? Or should I just be more embarrassed that I'm this obsessed with emojis?) Anyway, it was my moms. Husby got me a "today's world" record player as a gift when we were engaged. While we've enjoyed it and used it for years, inheriting this baby circa 1975 really makes me swoon. Especially since we can still use the headphone jack to play our phones through it 1975, you were on top of your game.
Ok, so onto the good stuff. Here were some of my very simple tricks to decorating anew without draining our bank account.
1. Target $1-$3 bins are amazing. I mean seriously. See that red truck on the fire mantle? Those mini pine trees? Notice that stocking hook with the wrought-iron dog bone (you have to look hard for that one)? Cheapie Target bins were the source for all of those finds!
2. Get fresh greens from your local Menards, Home Depot, Lowe's, etc. We walked in, got a sku from someone working and took as many boughs as we could find lying around for $1.79 total. So literally any greenery you see in these pictures (plus the greenery on our porch) all came from that $1.79. Money. Saver.
3. Use current decor as your staples. The galvanized bucket on the kitchen island with the two glass candle holders next to it get rotated by the season. Hydrangeas in the summer changed to greens for Christmas. And the glass candle holders are filled with tiny pine trees wrapped in plaid at the base. Those pine trees were $2 each at a craft store.
This post wasn't meant to be long, but of course it got away from me. I hope you enjoyed this little peak at our house during the Christmas season this year! It's been a constant request from my Instagram stories, so hopefully this captures what you've been asking for from the the snippets you've seen leading up to this!
