Christmas Archives - Red Leaf Style

December 22, 2017

Tour a Stylish Victorian Decked Out With Natural Christmas Decorations

When you walk up to my friend Cara’s 1912 Victorian home, you can’t help but feel the holiday cheer. She decked out the home for Christmas. The wicker chairs on her porch got dressed up for the holidays with bright, red stripey throw pillows. And a green table runner draped over the table in front of them proves that you don’t need to spend a lot of money to get festive. A real evergreen wreath hangs on the door. But it isn’t the only greenery in sight. A galvanized metal bucket brims with sticks, holly berries, and evergreen and pine boughs clipped from her parents’ land and hauled back in her dad’s pickup truck. The door’s open but before you step inside, her sweet puppy Jude might come out to greet you. And then you’ll know you want to stay awhile. Vintage meets new Every year, the teeny town of Weston, Missouri, where Cara lives in her much-loved rental house, hosts a holiday candlelight homes tour. She decorated her house especially for the tour using vintage items, new finds and what she could forage in nature. Everywhere you look, her vintage-meets-new decorating style abounds. Like her collection of new...

December 14, 2017

How to Make an Easy Felt Christmas Tree Ornament

Inside: Take some time for yourself this holiday season and make this simple felt Christmas tree ornament to trim your Christmas tree. Do you ever get a little depressed the day after Christmas? Because the holiday season suddenly went into fast-forward mode and you feel like you missed it? One minute you were prepping Thanksgiving dinner and the next you’re taking out the trash loaded with ripped Christmas wrapping paper and wondering where the time went. You regret not enjoying the season enough. You didn’t make cookies or go ice skating like you wanted to. And every time you turned on Christmas music in the car and started singing along, you found yourself at a stoplight mentally going through your to-do list. Like emerging from a fog, you realize you were so busy planning when you’d fit gift shopping into your lunch break that you long missed everything after the first verse of Jingle Bells. The Problem with the Never-Ending Holiday To-Do List Checking off items on your holiday to-do list feels satisfying. But you know what will make you feel even better? Actually enjoying this time of year. You know, before the New Year ball drops. That means...

November 10, 2017

This Is the Absolute Best Time to Put Up Christmas Decorations

How to Decide When to Decorate for Christmas Without Stressing | redleafstyle.com

Inside: Is decking the halls stressing you out? Here’s the easiest way to decide when to decorate for Christmas. Every year, the great debate begins. When to put up the Christmas decorations. People have decided opinions about when to start decorating for the holidays. Too early and you’re labeled a fanatic. Too late and you have less Christmas spirit than Scrooge. But how soon is too soon? And, how late is too late? Usually, I ponder this question when munching on leftover Halloween candy. See I never stay in my own home for Thanksgiving. That means no day after Thanksgiving holiday decorating. And by the time I return home on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, I feel like I’ve lost precious holiday decorating time. But that pile of laundry won’t clean itself no matter how long I stare at it with Matilda eyes. And if I drag the Christmas tree from the garage that evening, we all know that box will sit unopened in the hall for at least a few days. So, do I wait until the following weekend to start decorating? Turning Christmas decorating into a weekend project makes sense. But then I’ll lose an entire week of...

December 23, 2016

Holiday House Tour 2016

Welcome to my home for the holidays this year. It’s actually my sister’s townhouse. What an amazing sister to let me live there while I’m house hunting. Despite her sometimes ‘bah humbug’ attitude when it comes to holiday decor, she also let me decorate her home for Christmas. (And, I might have gone a little overboard.) From a coffee filter wreath to DIY garlands to a few tchotchkes here and there (…and there…and there,) see how I decorated my sister’s urban townhouse for Christmas. It’s my holiday house tour 2016. All it takes is a few pops of red to make your home feel Christmas-y. Throw pillow covers, like these ones from IKEA, are easy to slip on when the holidays roll around—and easy to take off and store away once the season is over. A cozy, red blanket draped on the end of the couch (or over the back of it) is another simple trick to add holiday cheer. It’s also practical and not just for looks. My coffee filter wreath adorns the back of the balcony door. Along with a ‘Merry Christmas’ banner from the Dollar Spot at Target, it creates a festive focal point in the...

December 21, 2016

DIY Christmas Garland: Wood Chip Pompom Garland

DIY Wood Chip Pompom Garland | redleafstyle.com

This year, I took a cue from Scandinavian decorating to make a DIY Christmas garland to outfit my Christmas tree. (And it wasn’t just because I purchased the tree at IKEA.) Instead of a full tree dripping with ornaments, the IKEA Christmas tree encourages Scandinavian minimalism with its sparse branches. I’m not sure what it is about this look that works so well. But it does. Maybe fewer branches mean making more thoughtful ornament choices, since you only have so many branches to hang them on. Or, maybe it’s the deliciously rustic quality of it. As if it was a real tree—imperfections and all—chopped down just outside my door. Or, maybe the simplicity is what makes the tree. It’s not decked out in twinkling lights or shrouded in sparkly twine. Whatever it is, I needed an equally rustic and uncomplicated garland to drape on the tree. When looking at my craft supplies, I saw a bowl full of wood chips and a bag of pompoms and I knew I had to make a DIY Christmas garland using the two. Here’s how to create your own wood chip pompom garland. Gather your supplies together to make your DIY Christmas garland....

December 12, 2016

3 Festive Christmas Wreaths

Are you still decking the halls and putting the final touches on your Christmas décor? As Christmas gets closer, I keep finding ways to make my home just a little bit merrier. One Christmas decoration I can’t do without is a wreath. I tend to DIY my own every year. (I can’t stop at just one!) Wreaths are so easy to make yourself. And, you have so many DIY options. Cover it in yarn or fabric. Make a ruffled burlap wreath. Use candy canes, fake poinsettias or bows. There are so many ideas out there! If you need a Christmas wreath, then look no further. I’ve got you covered. Here are my three favorite festive wreaths that you can make yourself. 1. DIY Ornament Wreath for $10 or Less Add some sparkle to your front door with this ornament wreath made from dollar store materials. Besides saving money when you make your own ornament wreath, you can also customize it any way you want. You get to choose the exact color combination and size. Here’s how you can make your own homemade ornament wreath for $10 or less. Make your own ornament wreath. 2. DIY Coffee Filter Wreath Can you...

December 9, 2016

DIY Holiday Burlap Garland

You can certainly buy your own garland to hang over your mantle or wrap around your staircase railing this holiday season, but why not make your own? While garland made from real or artificial greenery is traditional, this ruffled burlap garland is more unexpected. And, it will add rustic charm to your holiday décor. Even better? You don’t need to be super crafty to make your own holiday burlap garland. It’s actually really simple. You’ll feel all cheery inside when you drape your completed DIY burlap garland along your staircase railing. Here’s how to make it. Made from 5-inch rolls of burlap fabric, there’s no cutting required. You’ll need just a few other supplies to get started. What you’ll need: – Burlap fabric roll (I used two rolls of 5 inch x 10 yards that I got at Walmart.) – String (a neutral color works best) – Safety pin – Scissors This is a great craft project to do while watching T.V. Once you get the hang of it, the repetition takes over, and you’ll be done before you know it! Step 1: Measure your string First, you need to determine how long you want your garland to be....

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