Transforming your Home for the Holidays

by Lindsay Ballard on November 9th, 2012

The holidays are synonymous with getting together with your loved ones and celebrating the joy of being together. However, in the age of the Internet and sites like Pinterest, they are also becoming synonymous with over-the-top projects and trying to out-decorate Martha Stewart.

I am one of those people who loves decorating my home in general, but my holiday decor usually isn’t a show stopper. Why? Well, I live in Texas where the kids can generally ride their new bikes outside in short sleeves on Christmas Day. It’s hard to get into the spirit when you know you will never have a white Christmas, so holiday decor can feel pretty forced.

Even if you are in a situation like me or else don’t have time to put together elaborate holiday displays, you can still make your home holiday-ready for your friends and family with a few easy projects.

Last year, I raided my fabric bin and pulled out every bit of inexpensive white, tan, burlap and muslin fabric I could find. I cut it into strips and knotted the pieces together to form one long garland. Mixed with the colorful decorations we’ve collected over the years, my neutral garland really made my Christmas tree look custom decorated. Even better, the garland didn’t cost me one extra cent.

I’ve also been known to hit up the dollar store to grab a few supplies to make Christmas decor. One year, I cut “B”s out of foam core, wrapped them with faux pine garland, and hung them with ribbon from the back of the chairs around our kitchen table. They turned out so cute, and it didn’t take much time or money to make our breakfast room feel special.

If you prefer to have a more formal look for the holidays, why not turn to your dining room? I cut different sized snowflakes out of white cardstock with my craft cutter and sprinkled half of them with silver glitter. If you don’t have a craft cutter, you can buy precut snowflakes at the craft store. I hung them with a thin red ribbon from my builder’s grade chandelier. The key here is to hang them at different levels and to hang a bunch of them—four or five snowflakes wouldn’t have the same impact as my little snow flurry.

For the dining table centerpiece, I coated some dollar store vases with thin glue and rolled them in a mixture of glitter and Epsom salt. Lit with a tea candle, the vases glimmer in the candlelight.

Transforming your home for the holidays doesn’t have to feel like such an ordeal. A few nicely placed projects here and there will give your home that holiday warmth while still leaving time for you to enjoy the festivities with your loved ones.

Categories: Before & Afters, Examples, Inspiration

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