Christmas Home Tour

 I didn't have any Christmas house posts last year. I am going to try and remedy that this year. Sometimes nothing changes because I am definitely one where most of my Christmas decor is the same year after year with sentimental, long-held items taking center stage. Occasionally those same items get shifted around.

We will start at the front door that Gus and I see multiple times a day, but I dare say no one else sees it ever:) Why bother with it you might ask? Well Gus and I like it very much and it makes us smile multiple times a day to go through here.

Leaving the foyer we enter the big open formal hall as I call it. I once thought it such a waste of space, but you know I have learned to love and embrace this space. It makes me happy to walk through it and now other than Gus and me loving it, we have added Tucker to the mix. Tucker loves the grandfather clock and rarely misses a chiming of the hour if he is at Mimi's house.

Get ready for the chatting of thought…

I decided this year I didn't want to do the traditional garland and lights on the banisters that line the room that you step down into off the open hall or the stairs' banister. I had grown tired of the garland and almost felt it was drudgery to put it up. It was pretty, but I kept searching for an idea. I can't tell you how many times I have looked ideas whether through a search engine or Pinterest for something else to do. Really to no avail. I had almost decided this would be the year I would just leave it down and skip decorating it. 

But then...Lindsay wanted some garland for her mantel. She knows to ask before buying. I had two tubs of garland. One was some I bought when we first moved here that was thin and cheaper. I had actually wound two strands of it together and had blue Christmas lights with it because my mother-in-law had done blue lights. I later found some much nicer garland and had changed to white lights. In my Christmas decorations I had kept two large tubs of garland to decorate that very long stretch of banisters.

I pulled some of it out last year when I put some garland above the picture above the fireplace. Then we got some for Lindsay's mantel. While that was sitting there, it occurred to me I could make a sash with all that garland since I would probably never use it again. I mean after all I had a whole set of thicker garland that I have used in the past few years.

I began to play with it and then pulled out the red berry garland I had used on the tree a few years ago and well, we have a new fresh look that is different than my usual tour of Christmas.

The first set I used my Prairie Schooler Santas to adorn the sash. This flanks the step down into what used to be a formal living room, now a pool table that holds Christmas gifts until closer to Christmas since Gus would tear those boxes to shreds. Naughty Gus.

Lots of pictures!

I was deciding about the lights I think when I took these. One is brighter than the other. I’m did use them on these two sashes. Just the battery ones from Target.

Then moving further along is our Auburn tree which was started a few years ago. Now, it shines a light on the Christmas Eve dinner since you can see it from the dining room table.

I then needed something more for the stairs' banisters and I remembered I had bought the pinecone ornaments last year not really knowing what I was going to do with them but I really liked them. They were just perfect for the sashes. I am really loving the new fresh look. I will be able to store them in the plastic bin I had all that garland I had kept for years.

The dining room looks the same, but it may get a newer look next week. I am thinking of changing the table runner and ornaments to blue. If I do change it I will share. We do have our family Christmas meal in here. We pile in close and make it work.

Now for the living room.

I have learned I can’t take too much in the room we live in. I have toned it back a lot in the past few years and I feel I got it just right this year.

I put my favorite reindeer on the top shelf of the bookcases and a couple of treasured tins, a wooden tree and a stitch on the bottom shelf and let that be it. The stockings and garland make it a bit busy as it is.

I think this will keep me from going stir crazy with too much out. I added one small item to all the tables like the drummer boy. He graces my stitching chair table along with Mama’s afghan.

I added the lantern to my childhood desk in back of he chairs.

And then for the tree, I always say the tree and the Nativity in the dining room are the important things. Again this year, I went with a much smaller tree.

Lights on.

Close up of my blue bows that I love.

Lights off.

 

 If you are not worn out yet, I am going to go on with the rest of the tour while I have time.

The kitchen gets a little on the side counter. The truly old ceramic tree that a neighbor made for my mom in the early ‘70s and a stitch I did back in the early ‘90s.

I have a pretty Christmas cross and thingie hanging over the sink but I can never photograph it with the light so you will have to imagine it:) The table is going to sport two looks depending on my mood. I can get a little overdone with so much red so I played with a blue and green look. Currently, it has the red but the other look is close by in a drawer for a quick change.

The guest bathroom has a new addition to Christmas this year. The metal tree was a gift from a good friend. They made it and I had all of the stuff to decorate it. I didn’t plan on putting in the guest bathroom, but when they gave it to me for Christmas last year, I stored it  in the adjoining bedroom’s closet. I pulled it out and started working on it in that bathroom. When I moved it to other places in the house it looked best with that blue wall as its background so there it went.

I will place some candy canes in this favorite little dish too.

Last place is a couple of real life photos in the sewing room.

This counter is my work counter. I have been furiously wrapping as soon as I get a present bought. I have decorated slowly this year and a the time of this photo I still had Christmas stitching and my space ornaments to put out. Real life. I am showing you this because I bought this wonderful Amish basket to put here to add stitches too. That turned out to be a no go for me. It is a WORK a counter. I moved the basket to my desk area to corral items and really like it.

You can see the basket above and it has worked out to be useful after all. When I got this room as a gift I didn’t even have the vision to add those bars for gift wrap. The cabinet builder thought of them. Yes, they are amazing and wonderful!

I added some stitching and even more since this picture, I love it and plan to add more tucked into all the spots.

That is a wrap on the tour for Christmas 2021. As always, I will tweak and add or remove stuff but that is my documentation for posterity’s sake.

Jesus is the reason for he season.

Sandy