Family Style Christmas Decor on a Budget

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Merry Christmas Friends!

I don’t know about you all, but I am really looking forward to having a little special Holiday Cheer in our lives over this next month. After what feels like the longest and strangest year ever, our family needs a little pick-me-up, and some bright, happy Christmas decorations are the perfect way to do it.

Before I dive though into sharing a few photos of our home, I wanted to take just a minute and address what, for me, feels like a big issue.

Is anyone else feeling overwhelmed by the pressure to have the “perfectly decorated” Christmas home?

Maybe I’m the only one out there with this insecurity . . . but man, it seems like with each passing year, as the social media world grows bigger and bigger, the standard of “good” interior holiday decorating gets a little bit farther and farther out of reach for me.

If I’m being 100% honest, even though I’ve been a home décor and DIY blogger for 8 years now, I have never felt like my own home was decorated well enough to share for Christmas.

And that feeling of inferiority seems to get a little worse each year, as I scroll through Pinterest and Instagram, looking at these magazine-worthy living rooms and Christmas kitchens passing by.

I’m not going to assume you have my same insecurity complex, but just in case you have felt a little overwhelmed in years past or like your holiday decorating maybe doesn’t measure up, I want to speak a word to you today . . .

The point of your Christmas décor is to provide a bit of cheer and love for your own family and friends. That’s the only standard you have to meet.

That means there is room for you to go big or go small . . . To decorate with the newest trends or the same things you have had for decades . . . To keep it all handmade or hire an interior decorator.

When it comes to Christmas décor, you do You, my friend! Whatever makes you, and your family feel loved and merry, that’s what you do. And let the rest go.

 

So now that I got that out of the way . . .

I would love to share with you our family-style Christmas kitchen!  

The kitchen is where I put all of our “fun” decor–all things Santa related, the red and green, and all the goodies my kids have made for me over the years. That’s why I’m calling it “family-style.”  It may not be super chic, but it makes me smile. 

I hope you will enjoy it as well!

I also want to pass along 3 tips for how you can add some holiday cheer to your home on a budget.

I’m a big believer that you don’t have to spend a fortune to have a beautiful and festive home, so I want to share how we “merried” up our kitchen this year for pennies.

 

 

# 1 Repurpose Items You Already Have

Look through décor items you already have, and pick out a few things that are neutral and classic. With a little greenery or some lights, you can incorporate those things into your holiday décor, or use them to fill in extra space in your display.

I used my collection of antique ironstone pitchers as part of my mantle display, stuffing a few greenery picks into the largest jar.

You can also use old green and red colored books, mason jars, birdcages or lanterns, etc. Rather than swapping every piece of décor out for a specific “Christmas” item, try using what you have in a new way.

 

# 2 DIY What you Can

Sure, pre-made wreaths and greenery are gorgeous, but they are also pricey! DIY’ing a wreath isn’t that difficult, and you can get a similar look for a fraction of the price.

The wreath on my mantle is an old grapevine wreath I’ve remade so many times. It started out hanging over my master bed, but now with some pine needle picks and red berries, it becomes a Christmas wreath!

The “Holly Jolly”  chalkboard sign is also an inexpensive DIY project (you can see the tutorial for that here).

There are tons of little decorations my kids made also, and when grouped together, they are adorable.

Even our Kitchen Tree is decked with handmade ornaments from years of preschool and Sunday school craft projects!

And here’s a secret—I don’t own a tree skirt!  The base of both of the trees in my house are just with a few yards of fabric I bought from the craft store. I can’t sew, so I didn’t even bother trying to sew a tree skirt—I literally just wrap the fabric around the base and call it a day.

 

# 3 Raid Grandma’s Attic or the Thrift Store

Of everything I have shown so far, only one thing was purchased in the last 12 months—the candy cane bottlebrush tree on the mantle, and it was less than $10 at Hobby Lobby.

Everything else I have set out was either handed down to me by relatives, made by my kids, or bought at a thrift store.

On average, I buy 1 new piece of Christmas décor each year, so my collection has grown, little by little each year. Otherwise, I use a lot of old items that were tossed out by others.

The red berries on my mantle were originally bought by my mom probably 30 years ago. They don’t really function as true garland anymore, because the wire is all coming undone. But I can still layer them up together to add some color and texture to a surface, I don’t see a need to get new garland when I can still use these!

So start digging through your mom’s old stuff or stop by some garage sales, and you will be surprised at what you can create for pennies!

I hope you enjoyed the tour of our Family-Style Christmas kitchen!

And I hope you feel the freedom to enjoy the process of your holiday decorating and let go of the expectations we may have added onto ourselves!

Remember this is a time to be merry–not to be stressed over the perfect decor.  And with a little creativity, you can add plenty of festive flair to your space without breaking the bank.

Merry Christmas!