Merry Christmas!

First off, I want to apologize for the lack of posting this month.  I've been busy growing two (yes, I said TWO) babies inside of me!

This has led to a lot of tiredness and some nausea so we haven't gotten as much done around here this past month.  Tomorrow is the official start of my 2nd trimester and so hopefully, I'll get some energy back and we can get some projects going around here.

I hope you all have amazing Christmases and are able to relax and visit with family!  

See you next year!

Snowy Christmas Mantel

We're finally getting things back together around here after the kitchen cabinet painting craziness.  The drawers are in and we've started rehanging the cabinet doors, but have run into some issues with the new hinges.  Trying to change out hinges on custom built cabinets from the 60s is not fun.  There were no standard measurements used to make these doors.  But...we are making progress.

In the meantime, I started putting up our Christmas decorations.  I finished the mantel this afternoon and wanted to share.

The black framed DIY antiqued mirror (if you click on that link please ignore the awful photography) made a return.  I used some 3M picture mounting strips to secure that gorgeous canvas from Lindsay Letters onto it.

The silver deer and spindle things are Hobby Lobby finds from a couple years ago.

I used some "snow-covered" pine branches to fill the top of the mantel.

The larger silver striped stockings were from Lowe's last Christmas.  One for me and one for Seth.

The smaller cable knit stockings I found at Target last year.  There is one for each animal.

In case you're worried about Fred, he has taken up his former residence above the TV again.

Next on the list is the tree.  It's up but has been sitting bare for the past week.

Merry {late} Christmas!

I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas!  I've been working the past 5 days so we will be celebrating tomorrow. My parents are headed our way right now and I can't wait to spend some time with them!  Better late than never, right?

Our Christmas Tree

I have a confession.  I lost steam on the Christmas decorating.  Remember how I was all on top of things at the end of November?  Whelp…that was the beginning and the end of that.  Ever since, the Christmas decorating has been moving at a snail's pace.  I lost motivation.  I ran out of time.  I had grand plans.  Blah blah blah.  Maybe next year.

I've been feeling really down and out about the whole thing.  I've been feeling like I've let all 5 of my readers down.  And I've been feeling like my house and home decor just don't measure up (that's what happens when you subscribe to too many blogs written by too many uber talented women).  But then I read this amazing post from Ashley and I felt instantly better.

It's easy to get down on yourself and critique your less-than-perfect home when your inbox is flooded with picture-perfect, clutter-free, bright-and-shiny Christmas home tours from every home design blogger in America.  But you know what?  It's okay to push more important things up your to do list.  Whatever they may be.  For me, relaxing, de-stressing, and sleeping took precedence over making more ornaments for our tree or creating the perfect Christmas tablescape.  And I'm trying not to be sorry about it.

Our tree has been up since the end of November but it just hasn't been finished.  I am still not 100% in love with it, but…I'm done.

I went with a white and mixed metal theme this year (the theme started with our Christmas mantel).

The garland is a DIY project using this tutorial.  

Our felt mistletoe is from West Elm.  A couple years ago I attempted to make my own but when the result was less than exciting, I ordered the West Elm version.

One day, in all of my spare time, I'll learn how to take bokeh shots.  And I'll fill up the tree with DIY ornaments.  And I'll make my own tree skirt.  And I'll solve all of the world's problems with a wave of my hand.  You might not want to hold your breath.

Christmas Inspiration: The Tree

I'm back with another Christmas Inspiration post.  You can find the first two here and here.

Possibly the most important part of Christmas decor is the Christmas tree.  I love how everyone starts with the same "base" but ends up with vastly different end products.  I tend to stick to more traditional tree decor and shy away from themed trees.  Here are some trees that I can't stop staring at this year.

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Kristin from The Hunted Interior used different metallic ornaments and disco balls to make her tree shine.

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I'm also loving John and Sherry's paint chip tree from last year.  Such a great idea for homes with toddlers and/or destructive animals - nothing breakable!  Also, I have a TON of paint chips.

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I'm loving the "Merry Christmas" garland and the monochromatic color scheme on this tree.  And could that owl be any cuter?

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Isn't Emily's nature inspired tree with real, live succulents unique?  I would never have thought to add live plants to my Christmas tree.

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The garland on Melissa's tree is amazing.  I have a thing for pom pom garland.  And again, I like the neutral color scheme.

Our tree is up and partially decorated, but I need more ornaments.  I'm trying to figure out how I can DIY some.  We also need a new tree topper.  It should be ready in a couple of weeks.  

In the meantime, I have finished (and fixed) the wreath for our back door so stay tuned for that post.  Hope everyone has an amazing week!

Christmas Inspiration: Mantels

This is the second post in my "Christmas Inspiration" series.  You can find the first one here.  I am so excited about decorating our floating fireplace mantel for Christmas.  Here are some mantels that are inspiring me.

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This twinkling canvas is simple and right on trend with the chalkboard craze.  It doesn't hurt that the quote is from my favorite Christmas song.

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Again, I'm drawn to the simplicity of this mantel.  The green, white, and mixed metal color scheme is divine.

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The giant star is inspiring me to make a new topper for our tree.  I also like the playful woodland feel that the deer and mini Christmas tree add to this mantel.

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Another toned down color scheme with a rustic feel results in a cozy, calming fireplace.  And how cute is that deer perched on top of the E?

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Ahhh.  Marquee letters.  What's not to love?  Something similar will be making an appearance on my Christmas mantel for sure.

What I'm drawn to this year for our mantel:

• a mostly neutral color scheme
• a simple, uncluttered design
• a cozy, organic feel with a bit of rustic glam thrown in

Rainy weather this weekend delayed our shutter project.  Instead I spent my time working on the mantel, creating a wreath for our back door, and starting on our Christmas tree (yes…we put the tree up yesterday - I LOVE Christmas, remember?).  I'm having a small issue with the wreath, but I should have the finished mantel post ready for you later this week!

Christmas Inspiration: Wreaths

I LOVE Christmas.  It is absolutely, without a doubt, my favorite holiday.  I've been immersed in Pinterest inspiration for the past couple of weeks and just made purchases at the local craft stores for some materials to start my Christmas crafting.  Here are some of the wreaths that I've fallen for.

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I love how Sarah kept things simple with her boxwood wreath by just adding some gold dots.

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I've been wanting to make a wood slice wreath since Laura from Finding Home debuted her first one this Fall.  There is a big branch sitting in our carport waiting for me.  I'm hoping I can start on it this weekend.

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I love the softness that this feather boa wreath brings to Chris' Christmas Mantel.  You can find the tutorial here.  

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Since I already have a grapevine wreath form, I thought this might be an easy (and cheap) way to change it out for Christmas.

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Virginia made this ornament wreath for only $10!!!  Her tutorial inspired me to look for inexpensive ornaments at our local dollar stores.

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For a modern take on an ornament wreath, look no further than these PVC pipe wreath tutorials.  I really like them but I'm not sure I'm going to take the time to make one this year.  Maybe I'll feel more ambitious next year.

I'm going to make two wreaths this year - one for our front door and one for our back door.  We always enter through the back carport door and I'd like to have something festive to look at when I'm going in and out.  I deserve that, right?

As for other project news, our shutters are assembled and sanded!  We hope to paint them (and maybe possibly install them???) this weekend.  So keep your eyes out for the second installment of our exterior facelift.

Christmas Garland

I meant to post this last week, but things got crazy at work and I slept during most of my free time.  But better late than never, right?  A couple of weeks ago, I made some garland for our fireplace.  It was very simple and cost about $1.50.  First, I debated about what I wanted my garland to say.  I mulled over some different ideas such as "merry & bright", "o holy night", "merry christmas", etc, but I eventually settled on "o night divine".  I made a template out of card stock and then used it to cut 12 pennants (one for each letter) out of some burlap that I had on hand.

I left two tabs at the top of the pennants to use for securing them to the twine.  I then typed out my message in word and printed out the letters.  I cut them out, traced them onto different colored felt, and cut them out of the felt.  (There may be an easier way to do this.)

I used hot glue to first glue the felt letter onto the burlap pennants and then to glue the pennants onto the twine.  

I found the printable to the left of the fireplace here and had it printed at Office Max. Again, you'll have to excuse the nasty cream trim that we haven't been able to do anything about quite yet.  

Yes, of course the animals have stockings.  And they happen to spell "car".  Or "arc" or "rac" I suppose.

Even Armando, a gift from my late grandmother, got spiffed up for the season.  I hope everyone had an amazing day.  Merry Christmas!