National Decorate Your Home Week

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In the recent past, three people have asked me if I am looking forward to decorating our new home for the holidays and three times in a row, I said. “Meh. I don’t know. Kinda, I guess.” These vague responses can be loosely translated into, “Yessssss, buuuuuuut….. thinking about it and doing it are a little overwhelming and I don’t know where to start and I don’t have the time to do it plus how do I do it? And where do I find the right pieces?” and etcetera and so on and so forth. Then I learned of Big Lot‘s National Decorate Your Home Week, which is November 16th through 22nd (next week!) and I decided to go for it.

I’m conservative when it comes to holiday decorations. It’s inline with my conservative tendencies for all of our things, including everyday decor. It’s hard enough to keep our space open and uncluttered with three children (and MJ) so my decor is minimal. But, I found that minimal can still get the job done, can still have a big impact.

I centered the holiday decor in two places: the mantel and our dining table. The mantel is a common and high-impact place to decorate and it’s an ideal place to put things when there is a small and mischievous babe running about. I chose the dining table as well because gathering around a beautifully-lain table, eating delicious food with the ones I love the most is all I want for the holidays. Pipsqueak can’t reach it either. Haha!

In the past, my decorating tendencies are to blend pieces I already have with new pieces and pop in a few natural items because I heard some decorating genius once say each room should have a least one real, living thing. Whether that thing could be a dried version, I don’t know, but it’s my home and I’m calling it good. Since this is the first time I’m decorating our mantel, I over-purchased and at Big Lots, I found everything I needed (styles and assortment do vary by store, of course). The mirrors add depth to the mantel and reflect the light from the window. The double mirrors add an interesting texture and while I’m not one for symmetry, I like the sunburst mirror in the center as a focal point. I adore the metallic and glass candle holders and they add an elegance to the pine cones (real ones, from a forest out west), little pumpkins, grasses from the backyard and the dried hydrangeas. When I lit them in the evening, I stared with pleasure for a long time.

For the table, I again paired items I already had – place settings, napkins, chargers – with the new – a neutral tablecloth for our new-to-us table, a burlap runner and decorative pieces and those cuter than cute oval ramekins with apple crisp. I’m drawn to white for the table – white plates, white napkins, white-candles, white-ish table cloth and white decorations. It’s so clean-looking and it’s so sophisticated without being overwhelming. It’s also very easy. I think I like that the most.  My fancy dishes sat in boxes for six months while we were at the rental which makes me so giddy to have them out again.

I took Sweet J with me when I went searching for the right decor. Initially, he wasn’t enthused. However, the moment we stepped inside, he eagerly helped me fill the cart. I don’t want to say he was a bad influence but his idea of “necessary” differed slightly from mine. Haha! The pieces he picked out have grown on me because they make me think of him. Our turkey. Cute, right? :)

So here it is:

-Try not to get overwhelmed when decorating. Start slow. Start small.

-Keep it simple! A little can go a long way.

-Mix in your own pieces with the new and add in at least one living thing.

-Not sure what will work? Over buy. Experiment, tweak and rearrange until it’s right and take the rest back.

-Get it done early so you can focus on the important parts – being with loved ones and eating good food. Napping can be in there too.

Join in National Decorate Your Home for the Holidays Week November 16th through the 22nd and transform your home for the holidays!

Tell me: what is your favorite holiday to decorate for? Mine is Christmas, followed closely by Valentine’s Day.

Also, what is your favorite spot in the house to decorate? Never having a mantel before, I was nervous but I think I’m really going to like it! I’m already looking ahead to the next holiday…..

This post is sponsored by Big Lots. Thank you for being supportive of our sponsors.