Deck Your Halls: How to Really Do Up Your Property for the Holidays

 

Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, and decking out your home with décor is a fun-filled activity that can really help you get into the Christmas spirit. From all-out home upgrades to simple but effective décor ideas, this guide will help you transform your home this season. 

 

Upgrade Your Fireplace 

 

If you hate your fireplace and long for that quintessential look that you see in Christmas cards and movies alike, upgrade it. The best part of upgrading your fireplace now is that you can enjoy the character feature throughout the year. Since fireplaces are a focal point of the room, upgrading it with a vintage-inspired design can immediately transform how you feel in the space. You can opt for a brick fireplace or look into Victorian fireplaces for that stunning vintage look that will help you carry on that magical feeling of Christmas throughout the year. 

 

Buy a Potted Tree Instead 

 

Cutting down a whole tree just to dress it up for a few days is a waste, but plastic trees just don’t look, feel, or even smell the same. The solution? Buy a potted tree. You can either plant the tree after the season, or you can simply keep it in the pot for the next year. When you keep it potted, remember to increase the pot size every year or two so it has space to grow. 

 

Invest in Real Décor 

 

Real garlands and wreaths are put together from trimmings. If you live in the countryside or near the woods, you can go out and forage what you need yourself. If you are foraging your own materials, remember to carefully wash everything to remove the dirt and any bugs before you assemble these pieces to display in your home. 

 

If you want to decorate the outside of your home with real foliage, use chicken wire. You can wrap the chicken wire around posts and other structural elements outside your home,and from there, it’s as easy as weaving the trimmings through the holes. This is a common trick used by florists when creating any large display. 

 

Then Dry It Out 

 

You can actually preserve a lot of real garlands and wreaths so that you can reuse your purchase for several years. This will mean drying them out properly and having a safe space to store them, but when you consider that you can dry out pine leaves and other common holiday décor pieces like those red berries, you start to appreciate just how far that investment can go.

 

Shop Vintage 

 

If you want classic Christmas, you’ll either need to pay a lot for new items or commit yourself to the hunt for old pieces. If you do find something recently made that you absolutely love and that will withstand the test of time, then bookmark it and check back after Christmas to see if it’s gone on sale. 

 

Don’t just look for classic Christmas décor either. Brass candlesticks and other vintage décor are available year-round and add classy elements to your decorating. 

 

Thanks to Jonathan Borba @jonathanborba for making this photo available on Unsplash 🎁
https://unsplash.com/photos/vcX5AhBwk6s