a woodsy christmas

it all started with one endcap display at target.

this one. right here. what you don’t see in this pic is the craft brown accessories that go along with this theme. this is what made my decision that his years’ christmas theme would be a woodsy and warm one.

i usually do something bright or different. some years it’s red, pink and green. others have been black and white and silver (with a white tree of course).

but we’re going to the back woods this year…and i’m super excited.

so i began scouting out what target had. these berries and branches are delicious. but $12 is kinda expensive. 

are. you. joking right now? sweater covered stars? i have a ton of these stars already, so maybe i just need an old sweater and i can recover mine. because again, $20 is too much for these guys.

same thing here. i love these. the trees are so cute. and look at those white reindeer! eek. but my goodness, i would go broke redecorating my house this year.

so of course, i head to pinterest to see what i can make myself.

these pillows are going to happen!

i knew i wanted burlap and twine to be dominant in my decor. this gives me and idea….

at michael’s i found a million things i could use to make myself.

styrofoam cones (1 large and 2 small)
a 10 foot roll of burlap (6-inches wide with finished edges)
bunches of pinecones
a roll of twine
some greenery and a bird with holly and some bundled sticks
a bag of holly berries
cardboard 3d star ornaments
pack of kraft paper cardstock

i grabbed this branch from one of my backyard trees.

and glued a ton of these little berries on. cheaper than $13 and a lot more fun.

i had a huge roll of grey yarn from another project so i wrapped a large tree and a small tree with it. i wrapped the other small tree with twine.

the big one ended up on the ledge.

and that vase from earlier didn’t get the branch in it. instead, i wrapped it in burlap and it gets to hang out with the leftover berries and a votive candle inside. all 5 of my candlesticks got a little twine tied around them and one of my owls made down to visit.

a large mason jar makes a cute topiary for a little bird and some forest favorites.

a plain branch in a silver vase sits between the jar and my wooden letters.

here is the ledge from the other side where we hang our stockings. this green star was $2 (50% off so i snatched up two, the other one is on the front door.)

i made the stocking hangers from frames i spray painted red, burlap glued to the back and a clothespin glued to the front. i used a red fabric marker to hand draw the monograms.

my gallery wall got a nice little update.

pine cones. a vintage bike. candlestick passed down from my mom years ago. they used to be red. then they were turquoise. they’ve been black for 2 years. i like them black.

as always, the airplane stays.

my coke bottles make excellent vases. and not just at christmas time. i found an old brown frame and hot glued a piece of burlap behind it and hung it up. 

this is a shoebox lid that originally just had the fabric, ribbon and bow last year. i added a strip of burlap underneath.

 

these mice will always make an appearance during christmas, no matter what my color theme is. they belonged to my grama vera who collected mice while she was alive.

another strip of burlap added to a fabric wrapped shoebox lid.

wrote JOY on a burlap banner i made. i think the pen didn’t show up enough and that i might grab some red acrylic paint next time i’m at jo-ann’s to make them stand out better.

here’s that wall. sorry for the blur.

i also wrapped a few ornaments in yarn and twine. i ran out of twine or i would have done a lot more. plus, laziness washed over me at some point.

i found these next two at target for a dollar each.

 

my little village

i absolutely adore how warm and cozy this year’s theme feels. normally, i shy away from neutrals and warm tones and am proud of myself for going outside my comfort zone, running with it like crazy and loving it!

do you do a theme for christmas or do you just decorate with everything you have each year? i like making new things and using items i haven’t seen in a while.

hope you have a great week!