It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…

Hey there sweetness… did you all survive the Thanksgiving holiday? We spent a wonderful week back home with family and friends. There was lots of sunshine and mild temps which is such a bonus for us born and bred Michiganders where mood often hinges on cloud cover. Now that we’re all five pounds heavier, its time to start thinking about Christmas. There’s so much to organise! I know these earrings from https://gemaandco.com/collections/earrings are already on my Christmas list but I’ve still got to decide what I’m getting for everybody else as well as sort the decorations out and make sure I’ve ordered my turkey. Well bring it on I say…

I noticed lots of trees and outdoor decorations went up while I was away. None here as of yet. If you’re like me, behind as usual, or still in the process, this post is for you! I’ve put together some of my favorite holiday inspiration shots and projects to get you fired up for the holidaze.

Hard to resist anything shiny and red. But surprisingly you won’t find any in my holiday decorating. What’s up with that? Source here.

Mmmm beautiful bronze…

Wicker, wood and burlap, oh joy!

I need some of this buffalo check in my life stat. The child’s chair is precious. Reminds me of the adult version I “picked” in this post.

I just love my beautiful hand-made stocking crafted by my uber-talented friend, Lisa Gabrielson. Her vintage stockings ROCK the holiday every year at our neighborhood holiday bazaar show (taking place Friday, December 9th and Saturday, December 10th in Vickery Village). One-of-a-kinds adorned with sweet details: vintage jewelry and buttons, metal cut outs and beautiful trims from Italy.

How bout a moody blue holiday? A coastal Christmas tree inspired by Wisteria, a favorite catalogue, that surprisingly not everyone knows about.

The triple wreath threat. Do it. Easy and such an impact! I want to too but the neighbors get on me if my childhood ice skates aren’t on the front door. I’ll catch all kinds a hay. But I’m sweet on them for noticing and happy they take such pleasure.

Rudolph! Bake me HERE.

Lovin the heat this simple stripe ribbon is giving off. Bam.

You know I love a crazy cupcake. Another great one from Martha HERE.

Black, white and beautiful all over…

Those are some hot wheels! This ones for you Patty. I can so see this as your holiday card. Would be cute just sitting inside some cool hipsters loft all adorned with lights against a brick wall. My rad neighbors hang one from their porch every year, complete with tinsel. I love it when people step out like that!

For those that are ginger bread house challenged (myself included) these are cardboard. One and done! Make HERE.

A special place for all those gorgeous holiday cards. Is it me or do they get better and better? Don’t have a wall for it? Look around your house and find something large and in charge you can wrap the lights around (a big urn, tall topiary trees, an old column) then affix the cards with those sweet little paper clips I found at Walmart awhile back.

Ornaments or art? Find their maker on my Pinterest page.

Another Lisa Luby Ryan holiday shot. I wrote much about her PHENOMENAL home and Christmas trees HERE. I’m feeling like I might wanna attempt to mack out my front door wreath like hers. I’ll do my best. Eye of the tiger.

Moving outdoors. Simple and understated yet so so SWEET. Painted brick: a. dream. I wish more folks up North would paint their brown brick houses a monochromatic color. The brown bricks are everywhere and would be so pretty in whites, grays, greens. I would love to hand pick exterior color combos all day long (trim, shutters, etc). I love the house number. Readily available at Lowes and Home Depot. Let’s not leave out the lantern and boxwood – you are amazingly attractive as well. Details. All of the door’s jewelry: the handle, the knock knock, the letter box at the bottom of the door (I was enamored with my Grandmother’s letter chute as well as all the old milk delivery doors and dirty clothes chutes too). Dad was forever unplugging ours and Babs and all her friends would come flying out.

Absolutely, positively in love with the arrangements here. Another wish list, those big sticks for moi’s urns out front. Image via House and Home, my new favorite magazine, via our great neighbors in the North, oh Canada.

And lastly, just when you are loving how full and decorated your home looks, thinking man I wish it always looked like this, Christmas comes and goes and its time to put it all away. Dreadful. The post holiday blues do their best to seep in, but wait, there are pretty paper snowflakes to cut out that will do perfectly well and fine all January and February long. Celebrate Winter. Why not? You can’t beat it so join it. Run through em (like fresh laundered sheets on a clothesline) and dance around!

Have you had enough sparkle and shine? I hope I didn’t overwhelm you. If you see any photo above without its due, you can find them all HERE. As well as many, many more sweet holiday pics.Here’s my holiday decorating to do/wish list:

1. One live tree for Mama, one fake tree for kiddos.

2. Thinking about a live wreath over our bed this year to frame my sunburst mirror and bring in some holiday decor and scent to the master bedroom.

3. Set up Mom’s Dickens Village homes, complete with fake snow.

4. Make a terrarium like the one spotted in Better Homes in Gardens (more fake snow).

5. Work some orange and peacock blue into the scene woman!

6. Add more natural elements to my front door wreath and urns. Sticks and sticks and more sticks. Wish I had some tall skinny birch branches!

7. Hang lights somewhere to affix holiday cards (where???). An old door leaning against the wall would be cool for this or an oversized mirror (my mind works so much better with coffee)!

8. I’ve always wanted an outdoor Christmas tree on my back patio, complete with bird seed ornaments. Probably not going to happen this year AGAIN. Darn.

9. Every year I move the placement of my live tree. This year I’m thinking centered in main bay of windows to hide the fact I still have no window treatments in there. Slacker.

10. Really want a large wreath to hang over keeping room fire place. And I mean LARGE.

11. Do I hang wreaths in my kitchen windows again this year, also to disguise the fact I have no window treatments there either.

12. Lastly, is it tacky to hang white tissue balls all throughout my dining room chandelier like falling snow?

I wish I could tell you I’ll be posting my own home’s holiday decorating soon but I’m off again. Total last minute, live-in-the-moment trip to Portland and Seattle, all thanks to my two crazy and extremely generous girlfriends that have so many hotel and airfare points, they don’t know what to do with them. Holy hot Christmas! I’m the lucky recipient of their love, laughter and friendship and that’s all I can say about that before them tears come flying out of my eyes again. I should probably thank the hubby too for making it so easy for me to come and go. Thanks for holding down the fort babe! Can’t wait to be inspired by these two hip American cities and see my BF from childhood too. Triple bonus. You know I’ll be taking all kinds of pretty pics for ya! We’re due for an iphone photo post very soon. Cheers sweets and happy decorating! Turn the music up, pour yourself a tasty beverage and bask in all this holiday goodness.

xoxo

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