There is no faster way to flood your home with Christmas spirit than decorating the house for the holidays. For some of us, this is a day we quite literally count down for and for others it’s a heck of a chore. We have put together a simple list of easy and beautiful ideas to spruce up the existing vibe you have, or add new layers of decor to switch things up a bit, and create a new look without breaking the bank.
All The Faux Fur
There is something so dreamy and cozy about adding a layer of faux sheepskin to your winter decor. It is versatile, and can be used almost anywhere. You can purchase a length of white or grey faux sheepskin from any fabric store and simply wrap it around the base of your tree, giving a look of fresh fallen snow and a soft place to lay your gifts. Any of the home decor stores have small faux sheepskin rugs that you can lay over the top of a wing back chair or lay across an entryway bench, even add some faux fur pillows to play with texture and create depth on your couch or entryway. You can also replace your living room rug with a big faux fur piece for the winter season which will give you extra bang for your buck.
Endless Opportunity Garlands
Garland is the most DIY ready decor idea there is. It also is a fantastic way to get kids involved and bring beautiful Christmas scents to the house. Garland is a cheap and easy way to add a festive touch to your house this season. We have 3 go-to garlands that we switch out depending on the room and colours we use through the house. Bleached pine cones and cranberries bring a gorgeous golden rustic vibe to your mantle. How? Make a bleach solution of 2 parts bleach and 1 part water, submerge and weigh down your pine cones and leave them for 48 hours, rinse, lay out to fully dry, then string them on yarn with cranberries and hang where needed. Oranges make for a stunning display that can be used around the house or your tree. Thinly slice navel oranges and pat them dry with a paper towel, lay them on parchment paper and bake in the oven on 200 degrees for 6 hours, once cooled you can string them up and put them anywhere. Personally we love them in the kitchen wrapped with pine garland and placed around big kitchen windows or your hutch. A fantastic way to display your “Merry Mail” is new to us and we LOVE it! Add your Christmas cards to garland branches and wrap it around your banister!
Special Mention Tree Collars and Stands
How have we never once considered an out of the box idea like this? We have been using the same old tree skirt (that we never really loved to begin with) for decades. Well that buck stops here! Turns out, you can use just about anything under the sun as a tree collar. Throw some burlap around the stand and place it on top of an old wooden sled from the flea market. Pick up the biggest galvanized tin you can find and simply flip it over (or little known fact, Canadian Tire sells them with a pre-cut hole for the tree)! Any metal basket big enough can be stuffed with faux fur (the answer to everything) and your tree stand placed inside!
