Day 1: 12 Days of Christmas Tour of Homes 2015

Hello Friends!

It’s hard to believe this is the third time I’ve hosted the 12 Days of Christmas Tour of Homes – crazy!  There are lots of great tours in blogland right now, and I’m happy that you’re here.

This year is going to be our biggest tour yet, and I’m excited to kick it off along with Amanda from Dixie Delights.  Each day there will be a new tour (or tours) on the list, so be sure to follow along – a full list of blogs and dates is included at the end of this post.

Let’s get to it!  Welcome!  I’m so happy you’re here!

This wreath is one that I bought from a local boy scout, and when they delivered it, they hung it on the hook that was already on the bench, and it’s been there ever since.  I love it – it’s perfect there, and the wreath is really beautiful.

For the front doors, I layered old with new.  The red cranberry wreaths are from Target (years ago), and I added new wreaths (also from Target).

Since I don’t have a traditional foyer, when you walk in the front door, the great room is to the right, and the halls have been decked.

Each year I keep thinking I’m going to change things up and go with a more neutral, natural look for the holidays, but when I found the truck + tree artwork at a local antique shop, it was all over.  I can’t get enough of anything trucks and trees this year – I’m a bit obsessed.  Can you blame me?

A Pottery Barn basket (from the outlet), with a bowl full of ornaments, mini lights, greenery and decorative berries is sitting on the ottoman.  If you don’t have any of these mini-lights, I highly recommend them – they’re so much fun and you can put them anywhere since they’re battery powered.

Now we’re on to the dining room.  Can I just tell you how much I’m loving my dining room this year?  My gallery wall in particular.  It’s the 12 Days of Christmas from Lindsay Letters – how fitting for this tour, right?  They’re so stinking cute I can hardly stand it.  That girl has skills.

You should come over so you can see it in person and really appreciate the full effect.

I think my favorite print is the Eight Maids a Milking, but really, they’re all adorable.

via Lindsay Letters

I bought the whole set from her shop (and they’re on sale now), downloaded the prints, and had them printed at a local copy shop on heavy card stock.  They look fantastic!

I’m going to have to find twelve more prints to put in these frames once the holidays are over.  I really love the scale they bring to my dining room.

For my buffet, I found bunches of fresh boxwood at Home Depot and mixed in some decorative pinecones and berries in this cute basket from HomeGoods.  The “Joy” letters are from Hobby Lobby.  This bunch of greenery also has the battery operated lights – makes for a nice glow at night.

I used a collection of Christmas trees for the center of the dining table, and added some boxwood as well.

The boxwood looks cute in my Cutlery Couture silverware pouch too. 🙂

And yes, that’s a(nother) Car + Christmas Tree salt and pepper shaker peeking out of the corner, thank you for noticing.  I bought it at Fleurish.

In keeping with my wreath obsession – I added wreaths to the backs of my dining room chairs.  I should offer a prize for whoever can correctly count the number of wreaths I have.  It’s crazy, I know.

In the kitchen, I kept it pretty simple, adding some bright red kitchen towels, a white pitcher filled with greenery from my yard, a wreath (of course) and a cute mat, in keeping with my truck and tree theme I have going.

In the basement, I change things up a little bit when it comes to the Christmas tree, since the tree on the main level has all of the kids’ ornaments.  I went with some gold, silver and green, with touches of black as well.

I recreated my “JOY” letters this year on the window looking out to the backyard.  It was a last minute inspiration, and I’m really happy with how it looks.  The wreaths are from IKEA – they’re really a nice size and shape, and for $10, they were an impulse buy on my way to the checkout.

Again, a layered tray of ornaments and greenery – how can you go wrong?  All from items that I already had on hand (or in the yard).

I have been wanting a champagne bucket in my holiday decor for awhile now, and this year I made the splurge (thank you HomeGoods).

12/2  Life & Home At 2102    Provident Home Design

12/3  Simple Details

12/4  The Pink Clutch Blog    This is Happiness

 12/7  Bless’er House The Tale Of An Ugly House

12/8  Classic Casual Home    This is Our Bliss

12/9  Primitive and Proper

12/10  Shine Your Light    Driven by Decor

12/11  Suburban Bitches     Our Storied Home 

12/14  Simply Sarah Style  Rough Luxe