Steps to create a cozy home for the holidays
Decorating your home for the holidays instantly lifts your spirit and puts you in a good mood.
Just a few simple moves can bring great holiday cheer to your corner of the world.
Precisely, there is no need to do a whole lot. Think of creative ways to repurpose what you have from previous holidays and only buy key pieces. To finish the holiday look.
How do you make a home cozy for the holidays?
1] Experiment with warm cozy paint colors
Pops of color can be a great way to add interest to a room in a subtle way.
For example, you can give your bookshelf or a side table a new look by painting it with a rich inviting color.
Also, you can use a rich color of your choice on the inside of a bookcase and behind glass cabinets.
There is also the option of using a fabric of your theme color on accent pieces of furniture or simply by painting all wooden areas and doors.
With little effort, you can see how a rich and popping color and paint will give your space a cozy and holiday feel.
2] Switching up throw pillows and blankets
Replace lightweight cotton and linens with cozy, chunky textures like knits and velvets or patterns like plaid on your sofa throw pillows.
You could also use a cozy fabric on the arm of a chair or throw pillows in fresh colors. These are little tweaks that create warmth during the holidays.
Not forgetting your bedroom, your beddings can make a huge difference as you adjust for seasonality. Swap your cotton sheets for flannel and add a blanket between your top sheet and comforter.
Even a layer of a throw blanket on the end of the bed can come in handy on an especially chilly evening.
The key is to bring in a pop of color in a location that makes sense to the space.
3] Switch up your art
Hang new affordable art on your walls that display seasonal colors or the theme of the holiday.
You can use a print that reads ‘joy to the world’ or a Santa picture.
Also, upgrade all your framed family photos so that visiting relatives can see what you have been up to during the year.
4] Work on your lights
Changing the lighting of your home is a classic way to add a joyous mood.
You could start with swapping lampshades fabric to linen fabric because of their natural elements. Which are completely versatile and when illuminated, they produce a beautiful soft glow.
Moreover, nothing is cozier than the glow of twinkling lights on the drapes, doors, and entryway.
Candles come in handy too. You could assemble them in various heights massed together on a large plate at the center of the dining table. Use the unscented ones here. However, create an ambiance and make any room feel cozier with scented candles.
Consider fragrances that remind you and your guests of the season. For example pumpkin, spice, and apple.
5] Making your home smell like Christmas
During the holiday, it is the best time to pile your roast dinner plate high with all your favorite festive treats. From roast potatoes, Brussel sprouts to turkey, chicken, and your favorite cookies.
Not forgetting the gravy, your special stuffing, and roasted lamb or beef.
All tantalizing aromas from dishes not eaten on a day-to-day basis. With passed down family recipes.
6] Invite nature inside the house
Use simple house plants like maidenhair ferns, orange lilies, green hydrangeas, and orchids.
Plants help people feel more relaxed and effectively purify indoor air by absorbing harmful toxins. And fresh greenery always warms up stark space.
7] Display your cut wood for the fireplace
If you have a fireplace, keep the cut wood on display.
Grab a natural seagrass basket or metal piece for storing the wood. This adds texture while keeping things tidy and convenient for cool evenings.
8] Feast on an exotic barbecue
Foreign food in a far-flung destination may seem appealing. However, nothing beats a mouth-watering cookout experience in the garden or backyard with family.
Among other things, there is laughter, dancing music, good chatter, and picnic treats.
With everyone participating and having a good time, the cookout creates a cooling and positive ambiance. Isn’t spending quality time a love language?
9] Give your backyard a facelift
This means that you have to apt the decor of the backyard or the garden. Consider items like a hammock fitted on bars to keep it open as a bed. Their gentle swaying nature while soaking up the sun, aid in relaxation and enjoyment of a book or a cold drink.
You could also add lawn chairs, wooden, metal, or wicker patio chairs. The swinging chairs also come in handy provided they have padded cushions to comfort.
When not cooking a great meal and making jokes, you could be playing games. For example chess, treasure hunts, and charades. They increase bonding which is always the purpose of having holidays.
Have you ever considered a garden camping adventure? Just in your backyard as a bonding activity with your guests.
All you need is an inflatable mattress, duvets, blankets, pillows, and cushions to give it a degree of luxury.
A borne fire would also come in handy Incase is a chilly night.
10] Why not tech out?
Technology plays a huge role in how we communicate, learn and think. It impacts our daily lives. Therefore it would be a great idea to incorporate virtual reality during the holiday. You could watch a movie with a PowerPoint set up in the backyard or in the house.
In addition to that, consider having a photo backdrop. You could use flowers in bright cheery colors, rainbow, and clouds, or a magical tulle fairy light backdrop.
These elements depend on your decor.
Being a holiday, your guests will want photos for memories, to post on social media and a great visual scene in the background will come in handy.
Do not be afraid to use metallics for they add timeless elegance. Go ahead and incorporate that silver bowl and gold frame in your design. A touch of brass and accents like a silver tray elevates the glam of the table.
When it comes to decorating your home for the holidays, put into consideration whether you want an upscale vibe or a layback chill vibe. And make sure your food mimics that.
So what are the different home styles and how do you get to decorate each.
1] Minimalist look design
This involves using the bare essentials to create a simple uncluttered space. It is mostly evergreen and involves pine cones.
This style is pretty monochromatic except greenery is the dominant color accented with metallics.
Moreover, it is aesthetically driven with strategic candles, heavy textures, and trees with twinkling lights. Here you keep table spaces simple with a monochromatic color palette.
The shades of the main color can vary greatly but the shared undertone is the common thread. Even in a small space, a tree always brings out holiday vibes.
The less the ornamentation the better for the minimalist.
How do minimalists do moody? By bringing the outdoors close to home. Don’t be afraid of a little black and white print for contrast.
2] Natural and cozy design
Here you will think of natural wood tones, big garlands, and flocked trees. It is a minimal design but elevated with earth tones and cabin vibes.
This design has cozy textures like sheepskin rugs. Consider linen tablecloth, cactus centerpieces, and terracotta earth tones to bring in the warmth of the holidays.
3] Traditional and rustic design
This is what plastic Christmas is made up of. Red, green, and white are the color palettes. Items like Christmas quilts, beary gallants, star tree toppers, wooden nutcrackers, basically all the whistles and bells of the Christmas vibe.
This is the maximalist design where you can go all out with no one to judge you.
In case your design is pretty neutral all year, inject fun colors come Christmas. A colorful monochromatic theme with dominant colors. Think all purple which is majestic and royal, or maybe blues which are known to be crisps and calming, or pink for a feminine and chic touch.
This design goes hand in with a gothic glam. Black spur feelings of sophistication, luxury, and glamour. No longer is it a color to shy off from during festivities rather, it has become more admirable.
You could go for a black Christmas tree with contrasting metallic trims. The gifts could also be wrapped in black paper.
Though the vibe is dark and moody, the relaxing and calming effect is one of my favorites. When paired with the faint glow of candle lights and twinkling lights on trees, makes the perfect recipe for the festivities of holidays.
4] The maximalist glam
This design is about more is more.
Every inch of space is covered with Christmas flocked trees with more ornaments than branches. There are also feathers, ribbons, and giant nutcrackers. You could also use feather boas to fill out the flock trees.
Basically, the house would look like you stepped into a Christmas boutique and bought the entire sample.
5] Modern and chic design
This design leans into the sculptural furniture and the elements of decor in your space. Then it strategically amps it up with holiday decors in the same tonal color. Therefore, it does not divert too much from your style.
How does it amp up your style? By adding candle lights, greenery, or maybe by dressing your tabletop in brass and high contrast table setting accessories.
Year after year you probably follow the same Christmas decorating routine.
You toss out any items that might have run their course and then decorate your Christmas tree with the same ornaments you have used over the years.
However, there is more to outfitting your living room than simply decorating the tree.
The bookshelves, coffee table, the couch can be decorated and make your home feel like Christmas.
Let’s begin with a makeshift fireplace.
In lieu of a traditional fireplace, you can easily hang a cloth mural with colorful stockings mostly red which embodies the spirit of the holiday.
Or, put a basket full of the stockings beside the fireplace.
Hanging a starry sky also creates Christmas vibes at home. You could create a three-dimensional focal point by hanging a mix of paper, metal, and wood stars in various sizes and designs.
When it comes to the bookshelves, apart from coloring it is a popping color as discussed earlier. You could turn it into a statement holiday display by wrapping the books in graphic paper.
You could also be dealing with a small space that does not have room for a Christmas tree. Simply place decorated pine, fir, or spruce branches in oversized clear jars and rest them in your living room mantel or fireplace.
Even when there are endless possibilities while it comes to decorating with eucalyptus. Draping a bunch along a round mirror is a good decor for festivities.
The kitchen is truly the heart of every home. It is the place where everyone gathers during the holidays. You could add just a few neutral Christmas decor like a frosted garland with a pine cone in the center, or some copper accents to the cabinets with glass frontier.
A pitcher filled with winter greenery and a wreath above the sink also scream Christmas without being too bold.
Hot cocoa and cookies are essentials in the kitchen when it is a Christmas holiday. You could do baking cookies as a family activity and decorating each batch differently.
Another stylish but cost-effective way to decorate during Christmas is using wrapped gifts as decor.
You would use colors that go with your theme with a wreath on top. It is a nostalgic piece of decor that is beautiful.
Nothing adds instant charm to your house during Christmas like adding decorations to your front porch. Whether it’s with wrapped boxes, greenery, or an old sled, it is a wonderful way to greet guests and make the porch seem welcoming.
There is no other time of the year like Christmas for feeling cozy and warm inside. All the festivities, family, and food make it a special time of the year.
And as an additional tip, during Christmas, you can use a spinning tree decorated differently on either side. Hence spun according to your mood.
In the end, do not overthink the decor, always go with your gut. Feel free to mix different designs provided they bring you merriment.