Holiday decorations - share your ideas, questions, and opinions! (mirror, drape, kitchen)
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Well, I'm enjoying a few cups of coffee before I delve off into the attic and start hauling down boxes! In our family, we don't go shopping on Black Friday - we start decking the halls!
This year, we're in a new house so I am sure I will run into many Christmas decorating challenges. Add to that the fact that I went on a murderous rampage last year and threw out most of my tattered and worn Christmas decorations...and let's just say that since we spent beaucoup bucks on our kitchen remodel, I'm probably going to be going a bit more minimalist this year! For me, anyway.
Share your pictures and opinions and ideas on this thread - I'll be back this evening with some updates myself. This usually takes a few days but today is GROUND ZERO.
I kidnapped my ten year old granddaughter, who LOVES decorating and who has an eye for it already, to help me. She spent the night with MiMi last night and she's sleeping in since grandbabies get to stay up really late at my house. But I saw her stirring in there a few minutes ago so we're about to get this party started!
I do the same thing, weekend of Thanksgiving is decorating time! No time for shopping ha ha. And this year because daughter is off at college I am getting my brother's granddaughter who is into fashion and design to help.
I do very little though compared to others. Just some greens and light over the outside door with a wreath. A little white metal tree with gold and white ornaments on an end table draped by the front window, modern. May do some around the mirror and over the patio door, white and gold tablecloth and dish setting. Then I do a 14" nativity set that I inherited decades ago with a building backdrop I made out of styrofoam that looks like an ancient wall with doors and steps. That's it.
Too early for me. I'd get sick of Christmas if I started decorating now (heck, I'm sick of it already just from advertising and retail displays!). I leave everything up until Epiphany, and I don't want to have a dried-up tree by early January.
I miss my old house - white clapboard with emerald green trim and door. Halfway there! Throw a wreath on the door, place automatic candles in the four front windows (can't do that now, because the cats will knock them over), and voila! All decorated.
I'll check back with you in a week or two after I remove the Thanksgiving pumpkins from the front porch and buy my balsam fir Christmas tree.
Ohiogirl, you are more of a purist than I am - I am DONE with the real tree bidness!
I do quite a bit of decorating (though every year I swear I'm going to downsize it!) and it's a lot of trouble. It usually takes me a full day or maybe even two. It's so much trouble that I put it up the weekend after TG because at least we can enjoy it for over a month. Like you, we leave everything up till Epiphany.
Which reminds me, I need to get the candles for our Advent wreath!
Also, even in December, my husband works two weeks on and two weeks off, so I try to let him feel as much of a "home Christmas" as possible. His time at home is limited and he LOVES Christmas.'
But also like you, I do get tired of Christmas decorations after awhile. I am always glad to get them out and always glad to put them up. I am really going to try to keep it simpler this year and be very judicious about how much I put out. I think part of my problem with it is that I don't like clutter, so it starts to bug me when stuff is just sticking around everywhere. I'm really going to try to keep things less blingy this year!
Well, the advent wreath does need to come out sooner rather than later.
I won't be home the entire week of Christmas, though, so maybe I'll put some stuff out a little earlier than usual. This year I'm going to set the dining room table with red and green and white Fiesta in the hopes that I won't use it as a desk/catchall. *sigh*
Another one here who says she is going to go a little more minimal on the Christmas decorations! Right. But to that end I've decided I've had it with hauling that big tree up from the basement and I purchased a slim pre-lit tree from WalMart a couple of weeks ago. I'm not planning on putting the ornaments on it either. I have so many after all these years and the idea just makes me tired.
But - the weather is gorgeous today and with snow and colder temps looming for the weekend, I need to get out in the yard NOW and do some more chores there. Decorating tomorrow maybe.
Well since I now have cat youngsters in the house........I won't be putting the single candles in the windows this year.
I can't set up the nativity on the buffet this year. I'm so afraid they'd cart off all the figures and damage them.
And as for the tree.......well......my older cats leave it alone. It's the first Christmas for the youngsters. I'm going to see if I can keep them away with balloons which the older cats hate. However, I have one cat youngster who is a "Dennis the Menace".. and I'm afraid nothing will keep him away from the tree.
I sorted through some tree decorations.......and I have plenty that I can lo-temp hot glue to the tree!
I never have the lights on when I'm not in the living room... so the cats would be supervised when the lights are plugged in.
Wreath goes on the door....no spot light this year.... not with this year's rate increases. Holy smokes!
And that's about it. It'll be a very low-key decorating season this year.
I live in a Victorian with a double parlor that demands to be decorated (and I love to do it). Front door, entry way, parlors and even the guest bath get that Christmas touch. Bed linens get changed to reds and greens and snowy whites and blues. Prelit tree goes up in the front parlor and the crystal garlands are strung. I cheat with the ornaments however. I always have a combination football game decorate my tree party. We spend the half time putting the ornaments on - this way I have help getting the top of the tree decorated.
The "tear down" party takes place in early January. "Just the girls" get together one evening and break every down and put it away. Its a great evening of gossip and giggles and since we are all trying to lose that holiday weight creative salads.
Mine will be minimal, but that's more than I've ever had. I'm just going to put a string of lights along my patio wall (which you can see from the street) and hang a lighted wreath in the middle. My condo unit is at the very end of a cul-de-sac, so as you drive up the street, my wall is front and center.
I never buy a tree, but I'm thinking of buying fake white tree branches, put lights on them, and hanging the whole arrangement on the wall over my fireplace. That'll be it.
OK, my house looks like a Christmas bomb went off in it. Hardly anything is actually put together, but everything is out - LOL. Man, my stuff looks like doodoo - it doesn't go at ALL in my new house. Hmmmmm...
So I've already made one run to Hobby Lobby and spent $125.
I am asking myself why I ever thought it was a good idea to have more than one Christmas tree...
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But I saw her stirring in there a few minutes ago so we're about to get this party started!
