Holiday Decor
This holiday season Doug and I made a major decision. No Christmas tree this year. My husband has an adorable, childlike love of all things Christmas which made the no tree call a very big one for us. Since moving in together over four years ago, we have always had a Christmas tree. Each Thanksgiving it takes everything in my power to convince him to wait a week or two to get a tree so it doesn't dry out before Christmas. So why skip a tree this year? We have a few reasons. We will be out of town from the 21st until after the New Year and felt we wouldn't be around enough to enjoy it. Also, with increasingly busy schedules this December anything we could take off our plates to help alleviate some stress was very welcome. While a Christmas tree is beautiful and makes our home smell heavenly it also takes a lot of time to set up and clean up.
Although we are spending this holiday season treeless, we still wanted to decorate our apartment to make it feel festive and seasonal. As you saw in my Holiday Party Video, there are many easy and chic ways to decorate for the holidays without a tree! With the help of my uber talented friend designer Jeffrey Phillip I was able to create stunning holiday decor in much less time than it would have taken to procure and trim a tree!
When decorating for the holidays think outside the red and green box! There is no reason to be limited to traditional colors. Instead, choose a color palette that matches your home’s décor. I added a splash of white and silver for a chic and modern holiday look!
While I usually do not burn candles in our home, it is true that everybody looks better by candlelight. Use warm, soft lighting to create an intimate atmosphere by incorporating votives and hurricanes. If you are like me and do not love burning candles you can still achieve the same warm, sexy glow by using flameless (battery operated) candles. I promise they do not look cheesy at all!
I love using natural elements in my decor such as orchids and cherry blossoms. Branches, flowers, berries and other natural elements help bring the outdoors inside and make your home feel like a winter wonderland. To take the wintry feel a step further create “snow” in your décor by using Epsom Salts. Later on, when the holidays are over you can use all of those Epsom Salts for a relaxing winter bath!
