As mentioned to a few friends and family members, I am finally getting around to adding some photos of our Christmas decor. This was done, courtesy of a good friend whose company designs decor for malls. She donated several items from her own supplies that match my existing paint etc. Although she has officially retired she still helps her daughter out on occasion and is always willing to help a friend with Christmas. Her way of doing it means that take down is easier and reestablishing it the following year will also be easier. Having these photos will also help me a lot when we redo it next December.

My friend explained to me that decor like this is a matter of levels and changes in height so she created a box for the Santa to stand on and then incorporated the rest. The baubles were all gifted to me and are commercial quality so don’t break or scratch easily. The crystals are all gifts from her stash and they make such a difference to our display. As well our home looks welcoming and pretty but not contrived in any way. Sometimes I’ve found that Christmas decor becomes matchy, matchy and then it looks as if it is done for show not for pleasure.

The previous owners of this house must have hung tapestries, quilts or other type of wall hangings as there are proper holders for them in several places. We had thought we might remove them when we decide to repaint the room, but then realized that they work beautifully for Christmas so we’ll be keeping them. These swags are old and I always had them on the mantel and around the door frame in our last home. Not having a mantel in the main room of this house, we used them on the door last year. Our friend decided to use them this way and took some of my stuffies and added them to one and then sisal, baubles and crystals to the other. She added them to the curtain rods and then to the wall holders. All I have to do is remove them as they are, put them into bags and hang them in the attic until next time. Its like magic. And just an aside, I love this colour scheme so when we eventually repaint I shall be keeping it, but use a better quality paint and professionals to do the job. In certain light one can see that the painter wasn’t very experienced.

I’ve had this wooden creche for a long time as well as the paper dolls. It was built by a friend, but the dolls were always just slightly too tall for it. Our decor friend made the dolls more in proportion for it and made sure they are all fastened inside so putting it away is a matter of moving it to the attic and covering it. The only things I need to pack are the farm animals. She also added some fabric (old sheers) around the edges to make it look more like a desert scene. That idea ensured that the table it is sitting on is not really visible making it look quite special. The second photo is a decorated basket of stuffies sitting on the sideboard in dining area and underneath the swag that has more stuffies hanging from it. I made the sock gnomes last year, but our dog who loves stuffies decided they were for her. She got to them more than once until we added the sisal around the base and since then she has ignored them.

The built in cabinet has a section in the center that acts as a sideboard. We removed all the art pieces and added the angel on one side and some baubles and a felt winter display on the other. This felt display is on a board and is another item that just gets packed as is, ready for next time. All I have to do is add the beads, baubles, greenery and rice lights and its done.

When our friend had finished with our piano it was transformed and looked way better than anything I’ve done in the past. I have a few cards that are special and deserve to be part of the annual decor so she incorporated them into the village. Then she added the cotton snow with some glitter and suddenly it looked amazing. Again it is all about different heights so some of the houses are covered boxes to give them a lift. It didn’t look bad last year, but it is certainly a step up for this one. The lights at the back are like birch trees and my hubby incorporated them into a stand. I have a few little birds that are special to me and they are now part of this scene. There are also rice lights incorporated around and inside the houses so when lit everything glows. In this case my photos don’t really do the scene justice.

Instead of the bigger, heavier swags, which we used elsewhere, I bought some rope/pinecone hangers from the local dollar store and we also added some additional greenery in the middle. I would never have thought to add the baubles at the bottom but they make a huge difference. The reindeer was going to be thrown away by another friend, but I acquired him and refurbished him with some additional greenery, some new paint on his eyes and nose and new bow around his neck. The outside porch is a deep one so I filled a few pots with fresh greenery cut from our trees and a few baubles and red ribbon which made it look quite welcoming to any arriving guests. As our home can only be seen from the street on one side, we add the outside lights to that side making the terrace look very festive. Our tree was done by me, although our friend added a lovely skirt, using an old sheer curtain, as I couldn’t find the one I usually use. I didn’t bother with photos of it this year.