5 Small Ways To Start Decorating Your Home Now For Christmas
Are you in need of some simple tips that will help you find inspiration for decorating for Christmas? Keep your home cozy with these small steps.
I know what you’re probably thinking.
It’s not even Thanksgiving yet, I can’t even begin to think about Christmas! And, I hear you, friend. I really do. But here’s the thing.
These last two years of topsy-turvy emotions and curveballs have been a bit of a blur. And do you know what I don’t want to be a blur also?
Christmas.
So, if you’re feeling the need to scratch the itch of unpacking a little holiday spirit? I say – go for it. Around here we are not breaking out the big guy in red…just yet.
But, we are going all in on twinkle lights, cozy feelings and creating the opportunity to welcome a posture of praise, wrapped up in warm moments, aimed at ushering our hearts closer to celebrating the reason for the season.
Maybe this also happened to you last week?
After the clock struck the daylight savings time situation here on the East Coast, bringing a sudden awareness that November is in full swing and the world outside is moving fast…I was struck with a craving for slow soothing stability.
That is just one of the reasons I have decided to slowly start decorating earlier than usual around here. I don’t want to add more stress to the hustle and bustle of the holiday season.
I want to ENJOY the process of preparing my heart by slowly stepping my way into the season.
How about you?
Do you want a few quick tips on how to set the home decor stage for Christmas magic and slowly start decorating for the holiday season?
Oh good.
These simple tips are not aimed to add one more thing to your to-do list. Quite the opposite.
These quick decorating tips are meant to serve as gentle ways to begin to lay the foundation for what will hopefully be your soft landing place and breath of peace, tucked inside your home this season.
Tip #1: Put away Fall decor AND everyday decor that you display year-round.
We already know that Christmastime is a special time of year.
With that, we have special decorative elements that we love to take out of storage and display.
The issue comes when we start to add our Christmas decor on top of our everyday decor, without editing out some of the daily decor. When we add on the holiday decorative elements on top, or beside the home decor that is always out, things can quickly begin to feel cluttered and crowded.
Instead? Do yourself a favor.
Take some time, to remove your everyday baskets, trays, vases, candles, picture frames, pillows, florals, and house plants, etc. Give the table top and floor surfaces a good cleaning by wiping them down, providing yourself with a fresh start for the holiday season.
Then, start adding your Christmas decor onto the clean slate surface.
You might find that you wind up bringing some of your everyday decor back out, once you have added your Christmas decorations first. The key is to start with Christmas decor and then sprinkle in the non-seasonal decor and not dump Christmas magic on top of everyday decor.
The bonus that happens when you store away the every day decor and allow Christmas decor to take center stage, is that the traditional accessory decor that you tucked away will feel brand new, once you break it back out in January! Which is exactly the refresh you will look forward to after the busy holiday season.
Tip #2 Start by laying a foundation of greenery.
I am convinced that the key to Christmas cozy starts with a hearty layer of greenery. Kick off your holiday decorating by breaking out the artificial trees, wreaths, and garlands! As for me, I love to begin holiday decorating by bringing out our smaller tabletop trees and any artificial trees we have in storage.
And then?
I set them up in various corners of rooms…naked. That’s right…this is the time of the year to let your trees go naked.
No need for ornaments or a tree topper yet. Simple greenery and lights twinkling softly in the corner is an instant mood booster and a way to softly invite the season ahead without rushing into it.
You might also hang a green wreath on the inside of your front door or on a door leading to the basement or garage. Perhaps you have a pair of windows in your family room or kitchen, that would love a hug from a wreath hanging on the inside.
Another place and way to hang a small wreath is by looping a piece of velvet ribbon and attaching the ribbon with a piece of tape to the back of an accent mirror in the entryway or above a console table.
Tip #3 Let there be light.
The next foundational layer in the Christmas magic recipe is dressing your home in…twinkle.
One of the very first holiday decor items that I search for in our storage bins, is our set of remote-controlled candles that we place on our window sills.
There is something soothing about pulling up to the house during this time of year, when it gets dark outside so early, and seeing the flickering of the candlelight from each of the windows.
Yes, timer-controlled, battery-operated candles in the windows of our home, is one of the first layers to Christmas cozy that simply sets the stage for all of the Christmas magic that is soon to come.
Of course, once inside I love to sprinkle more of the battery-powered candles in every room. Nothing says snug as a bug during the holiday season, more than settling in for the evening on the sofa and pressing the remote control to turn on the flameless candles placed on our console tables and bookshelves.
Tip #4 Layer your sofa and chairs with throw blankets and pillows.
Here’s the thing. The key to layering this next piece of Christmas cozy is simple. When it comes to a throw blanket on your sofa? The chunkier the blanket…the better.
When it comes to layering an accent chair or single dining seat, perhaps at the head of the table? The softer the throw…the better.
Find one chunky throw blanket you love and place it on your sofa and grab one smaller, perhaps faux fur blanket and place it over the back of a chair, then top it off with a pillow. Done and done.
Tip #5 Inhale the smell of Christmas versus the stress of Christmas.
Is it just me or is there something about the sense of smell that is more keenly awakened during this time of year?
Surely, growing up as a little girl, on my Dad’s Christmas tree farm and being around all of the freshly cut Fraser firs and mugs of hot apple cider might have something to do with it. But even without all of that childhood history and the fond memories that are triggered by the smell of cider…
What I am finding year after year, is that layering in the smell of Christmas is a key player to awakening my whole self to be available to the season ahead.
Creating and layering in the smell of Christmas can be accomplished in a variety of ways.
You might choose to make a stovetop potpourri with cinnamon sticks, orange slices, and cranberries. Or diffuse your favorite holiday essential oils or simply light a favorite holiday-scented candle.
No matter the route you take to awaken your sense of smell…be sure to take the time to pause here and then?
Inhale and exhale. Breathe in the magic of the moment.
Because, you have just set the stage to welcome the wonder of the Christmas season.
Before I let you go friend…there is something I want you to know.
Right now, when the world feels sharp and heavy for so many reasons. Right now, when we walk outside, in our fragile form into such tangled-up places.
I think it’s more important than ever, to take the time to create a soft place to land to catch us…and hold us, when we walk back through the door.
My hope is that these simple decorating tips will help you to find the inspiration and refreshment you need, tucked within the process of beginning to layer your holiday home foundation for the season ahead.
More importantly? I pray that you will feel God’s love in your heart and peace in your mind as you do and that He will decorate your soul with His promises and Truth.
Living on a prayer,
Heather
PS – Christmas music may have been played during the writing of this message.
