Time to Spruce Things Up for Christmas

Hello, my lovelies! 

Are you one of those types who trim their tree just seconds after the last piece of Halloween candy is dropped into a bucket? Who moves immediately from pumpkins to sugar plums? Snowplowing directly past Thanksgiving all while blaring Mariah Carey and sporting their finest ugly sweater? 

Yeah, me neither. 

In fact, I have a hard "no Christmas until after Thanksgiving" rule. For some reason, I get very defensive on behalf of Turkey Day, maybe because it's so easily looked over nowadays and I feel bad. Or maybe because I think the month of November should be filled with Fall and not Fa-La-La-La-Las. 

With that being said, once it IS the proper time to celebrate the holiday season, I. AM. HERE. FOR. IT! 

I haven't bought new decorations in a loooong while. So since we'd be adding another stocking to the mantel, I jumped at the chance to "spruce" up (see what I did there?) the space above our fireplace to celebrate Harrison's first Christmas with new garland and trimmings! 

This year I wanted bottle brush trees. I've had my eye on these cute little creations for some time, and just love how whimsical they are. You can find them almost anywhere, but the large white ones in the photo all came from Hobby Lobby. They have quite the variety, and with all holiday decor 50% off right now you can't go wrong. 

Hob-Lob is also where I picked up the garland, lambs ear clips, owl pick (how CUTE is he??!!!), and gold tree picks. The red and green berry garland, lights, and "joy" sign I already had, and the small trees I ordered from Amazon. 

My process for assembly went like so; 
1. pour a cup of coffee
2. play Christmas songs 
3. start with the big stuff - garland, berries lights, sign
4. move to medium - white trees, lambs ears, gold trees
5. finish with small - tiny trees
6. before ANY of this, drop the baby off at daycare and take a personal day from work so you can actually be productive. 

When adding picks and such to garland, think about clustering your decorations in groups of three. Mix various heights and textures for dimension, all while keeping visual weight in mind so the whole piece is balanced. 

Holy holly berries that is FESTIVE! 
Such an upgrade from the sad little strand of plastic green garland I used to throw up there behind my knick-knacks. And isn't Harrison's stocking fabulous!? I picked it up at a local boutique, and grabbed three extra in case I decide Eric and I need to match. Or we have 3 more kids...whichever comes first. 

I can't wait for Christmas morning. I dont' think Harry will have a clue what's going on, but if his excitement is anything like when he met the big man...I think we're in for a jolly ol' time. 

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! 


Check out all of our home improvements and decor, by visiting the OUR NEST page.

All That Glitters...Will Go On My Dinning Room Table

Thanksgiving is over, and that means it's officially legal to decorate for Christmas! 

TIS THE FREAK'N SEASON BABY! 

Also, it's been like THREE MONTHS since I've blogged about anything...and well...it's about time. After the completion of our backyard, we've been taking things pretty easy. A lil something fun though...big shout out to Apartment Therapy for featuring us as a Before and After!!!! I'm a HUGE fan of that site, so seeing my own home as I scroll up it's pages feels AWESOME! You can read the whole article here.

But back to decking those halls! This year's theme? Mystical Christmas Mermaid.

Glitter? Pink? Sparkles? Mermaid! 

I've always had a fascination with those oriental looking ginger jars. I love the contrast of blue and white, so every time I spot one at the thrift store or antique mall I scoop it up. While normally my little collection sits on top of the stairs, when that space is needed for the Penguin Tree (we have lots of Christmas themes in this house), they get pushed to the side.

Sad day. 

So imagine my delight when I FINALLY figured out a way to incorporate them into the decorations. It was time to switch things up anyhow. 

Eric's response to my creation? 

"So. How exactly does this say mermaid?" 

Pssh. Men. 

The nontraditional colors of pink, green, and blue are really bringing me some happy vibes. I was given two GIANT tubs of these ornaments a few years back, and decided to bring them out again for funzies. I snagged the gold sequin table cloth from a friend who was selling her wedding decorations. It's huge, sparkly, and 100% worth it. 

And the best part? There's a certain time of day when the sunlight hits the table juuuust right, and BAM! The whole room is covered in beautiful sunny disco ball polka dots.

So the next time someone says "Ummm mermaids aren't really Christmas-y", blow some bubbles in their face and swim away, because nobody needs that negativity in their life. 

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!