So, is Christmas all packed up and out of sight till next year in your house? Did you pack up and clean up right after Christmas or wait till New Year's Day, or later? I'm more of a 'later' kinda gal, and later usually translates to January 6th for us. It always makes me wonder why some folks take down their tree the day after Christmas. I would find that too depressing, especially this year when the world has been so void of joy and things to cheer us up.
For some reason I didn't make it till January 6th this year. Around January 3rd I began feeling in the mood to dismantle and clean up and if you saw my annual house tour blog, you understand that this is no small job. That being said, in the past several years I've found a way to pack up 'Christmas' but still enjoy 'winter' decor for another month or so. This year, I was inspired by Colleen of Life on Kaydeross Creek. Colleen is a local blogger who inspires me every season with her decorating style and her recent blog post, "How to Easily Transition to Winter Decor After the Holidays" (click here to read) got me so excited that I couldn't wait to pack Santa away and do my own winter transition. My little house is no comparison to her gorgeous home, and my decor and vignettes are not nearly as spectacular, but I love what I was able to do thanks to her inspiration.
BEFORE: I may be ready to say goodbye to Santa, but Mr. Fox is another story. He needs to hang out for a while longer and makes the perfect accent in my winter re-do.
I keep my moonlit winter scene up all winter long, but on my dry sink I replaced my Christmas decor with a small winter canvas that lights up, some winter greens and timer candle.
AFTER:
Don't you love this candlestick and ring? Thanks to the Speckled Hen.....where all the greens in this photo were purchased.
On the mantle I removed my beautiful Shelly Broughton gnome paintings, the twig tree with red accents and then rearranged what was left, adding a couple candles but leaving my twinkly lights. On the hearth I removed Santa, his reindeer and the white fur tree and left the woodsy accents. The live cat in the display comes and goes ;)
Here's the BEFORE:
AFTER:
You may have noticed that although the mantle is balanced, it's different on both sides. Maureen at the Speckled Hen has tried to instill that in my mantle decorating. Both of the candles and candle rings are from previous purchases at the Hen. If you look closely at the photos, you'll notice that I used a crystal candlestick of my grandmother's for one and a metal candle holder for the other, with different color candles and different candle rings. My OCD struggles a bit with that and I may replace the metal holder for the other crystal candlestick when I'm finished here, but I've actually gotten to like the variety which also carries through in the vases at either end of the mantle. Don't you just love that huge pinecone? Also from the Hen.
A gateleg table replaces the tree in the corner. As I've aged I've acquired an appreciation for antiques, especially old relics that have been handed down in the family. On the table is an old photo of my mom (subject of a blog post:
https://www.lifeasiseeitphotography.net/2014/11/the-photo-shall-remain-nameless.html, an old family bible, a photo of my dad when he was about 4, some old wire-rimmed glasses, my dad's baby shoe and a new candlestick and candle ring from the Speckled Hen.
In the family room, I left some of my snowmen and ceramic trees in the wall shelf, but brought back my crackle glass collection from my mom. I also left out my beautiful new Shelly Broughton painting courtesy of my wonderful hubby this Christmas. I replaced the Christmas decor on the bookcase with the grandkids new school pictures and some old books and ambient lighting.
I love my winter glass and greens display so I replaced the red balls with some blue, green and white ones and left the lighted garland. Back in the living room, unrelated to Christmas, I printed some new photos and updated the photos of me and John, Katie and Mike and the grandkids. This task was assigned to me by the grandkids who repeatedly pointed out that the photos were 'dated'. I think they've been hanging out with their Grandma too much!
As I compiled this blog post, I noticed my end result looks and feels much more Christmassy than Colleen's. I think the twinkly lights probably contribute to that and when all is said and done, I like the lights. The point of this post is certainly not to showcase my humble little abode, or to have you think I have any illusion that I'm one of those legit, talented design bloggers like Colleen and the many others who inspire me. The point is to share with you all that it doesn't matter whether your home looks like the magazine and blog photos that inspire you. The point is that they inspire you to use what you have to recreate a home that makes YOU happy, regardless of how much or how little it ends up looking like the inspiration you draw from. We don't have to be as perfect as the things that inspire us, we just have to be happy with the end result. Do you remember the HGTV show, "Design on a Dime"? I loved that show because they shopped in their own homes to repurpose pieces to create a new look. That's what I try to do.....and then I go to my favorite shops, like the Speckled Hen and Bluebird Home Decor, and occasionally a discount big box store, to fill in the blanks. All of us have sentimental pieces tucked away that we've inherited from loved ones, why not bring them out and incorporate them into you decor? At the end of the day when I sit down and take a moment to admire the view, a view that is filled with pieces of me and the people who came before me, I'm pleased with the cozy, welcoming atmosphere I've created and happy that the end result reflects me and my heart, not someone else's space. Does that make sense to you? People who walk in have no doubt who lives here or what matters to us. They know that family is first and that family extends to the generations before us.
By the way.....I changed out that candlestick. ;) Christmas may be over for another year, but winter is here for a while more and you may as well enjoy it in the warmth of your home! I hope this and Colleen's blog post inspires you to decorate your home for more than holidays! Thanks for stopping by! Come back soon to Life As I See It!
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