as the season continues to be filled with festive merriment, i wanted to share a glimpse into the winter wonderland i’ve created at home. when it comes to decorating for the holidays, one thing i gave up on a few years back was the decorating of a christmas tree since i really don’t have a place for it, or the ability to “make room” for one. instead i adorn just about everything in the house with a little holiday happiness. i’ve been gathering and collecting holiday decor for years, and each year i always seem to find a few things to add to my collection, and sometimes remove things. it’s no secret i’m inspired by vintage and when it comes to the holidays even more so. the nostalgia of childhood memories of this magical time of year appear in the graphics of vintage christmas decor, the chipped reflection of glass ornaments, the glisten of flaked mica snow, and the twinkling of fabric corded strands of lights – i love it all…
the mountains of northern arizona provides the perfect backdrop for the log sided home we live in. the outside is already filled with cool vintage things so adding a touch of winter wonder was all it needed. i created swags for each window using all faux elements: branches with acrylic icicles, pine, and juniper. there is an acrylic snowflake hanging from the center of each one…
an old wooden sled leans against the house and i just created a larger swag for it again using all faux elements (they look real though don’t they? thank you hobby lobby)…
next to the front door sits this old iron stove topped with a repurposed lantern and a smaller swag accenting the top…
also on the front porch is home to this collection of vintage washing machines and buckets also accented with a small swag of festive greens…
this old shopping cart also sits on the porch and is filled with what looks like hundreds of old christmas ornaments, but they are really made from metallic leafed styrofoam (i bought these last year in at tinsel trading company in new york – so awesome)…
when you enter the house you’re greeted by one of my new purchases this year, this printed burlap panel with my favorite holiday saying “it’s the most wonderful time of the year” (i bought this at a local antique shop)…
next is this vignette of worldly treasures including my favorite globe is decorated with cut sprigs of faux pine and wrapped with vintage cloth cord lights (i replaced the original vintage bulbs with safer low-heat twinkling bulbs). i always make sure the cloth cords are in perfect condition before using them, and i never leave anything plugged in when i’m not home…
i think these old christmas books are the perfect display on my vintage school desk for the holidays…
the fireplace mantle is decked with a woodland faux greenery garland with strands of tarnished silver beads hanging off of it. i created clusters of vintage glass ornaments (a weakness of mine) and wired them on to the garland in groups of two or three which makes it easy to secure. the base of the fireplace is a gathering of my collection of vintage christmas decoration packaging including light boxes, garlands, tinsels, and shiny brite ornaments (since it’s a small gas fireplace behind sealed glass, these items are perfectly safe to be there and not burn when the fire is on)…
here are some close-ups of some of those items including this jolly vintage paper mache santa (i have a couple of those), boxes of tinsel, and a giant mercury glass ornament all found from junking through my travels…
across from the fireplace in the living room is this great cubby cabinet i repurposed from my cha booth from the summer show. although this cabinet is displayed year round, this cool standing santa, faux greenery, cloth corded lights, and a scattering of small glass ornaments make this perfect for the holiday season…
this new treasure was recently given to me by my good friend may flaum. this foil wrapped chocolate santa is actually made of resin wrapped in foil and is something she posted on instagram last year that she found at a junk shop – i absolutely loved it. this year i received a wonderful christmas card with the sweetest note saying she was “gifting” him to me to add to my own collection (thanks again may)…
this old hutch has another garland with glass ornament clusters and a wreath hanging off the front. i love the way the lights reflect off of the collection of vintage glass seltzer bottles…
a resin snowman and more acrylic snowflakes accent this little end table along with more glass ornaments that fill a couple of old trophy cups. another strand of cloth corded lights wrap around this vintage child mannequin pinned with a glittered “merry christmas”…
another fun vignette is inside the dining room where this old world map hangs. here among the stacked suitcases is an old globe and another paper mache santa. you can see throughout the photos, i just tuck pieces of faux pine here and there to add a touch of holiday cheer…
this big glass box was perfect for displaying more of my overwhelming collection of vintage glass ornaments. i just filled this great container (also from hobby lobby) and closed the lid. i like the fact that if i want to take out some of the ornaments to use somewhere else i can…
the other wall in the dining room is filled with holiday spirit. the vintage hoosier and stove (it’s just an old stove for display purposes only mario doesn’t cook on that one) are filled with garlands, old blow-mold christmas lamps, boxes of my vintage mica snow collection, and my favorite piece is the hand-made ceramic christmas tree light my grandma made…
here are some close ups of my vintage mica snow collection (these boxes are all full of vintage mica – love it) and my prized glass ornaments. these are piled in an old scale so they can be seen and include all of the cool hand-glittered and various shaped ornaments…
well i hope you enjoyed this tour of my holiday decor. as you can see, i love vintage and what better way to enjoy all of these collected treasures for this truly most wonderful time of the year – enjoy your weekend…t!m
