My Christmas Home Filled With Memories, Not Trends

I have been sharing how I decorate my house for Christmas here on the blog for the past 16 years. I love the holiday season and look forward to making my house as festive and joyful for my family as possible. I also like to use my creativity to create Christmas decor as well as repurpose items to create holiday magic.

As much as I love the season, I am a “only one decorated tree in the house person”. I also no longer decorate the entire house, just the kitchen, living room, foyer and perhaps a festive touch added to a bedroom.

Decorating With Christmas Memories in Mind

This year I am craving nostalgia, the colors and decor that remind me of Christmases I grew up with. I want this nostalgic feeling to take center stage instead of decorating using trending holiday looks like Ralph Lauren, which is beautiful, but the look holds no meaning or memories for me.

Vintage Christmas items have always pulled at my heartstrings. They bring to mind a simpler time in my mind. Santa faces, a red and green color scheme, glittered objects, greenery, battery-operated candles everywhere and twinkle lights on the tree. If I still had a train set, I would add it under the tree. That will have to stay a memory at least for this year.

Christmas On The Fireplace Mantel

I have lived in my current house for 10 years and have decorated the mantel for Christmas in a different way each year. This year it was all about repurposing decor I already had, some of it created with thrift store finds.

Comfort is also very important when decorating, especially for the holidays. On the sofa I like to see layering of cozy textures like the red fur throw and green fur and plaid flannel covered pillows. These soft textures make it hard to leave the sofa when the house is all cozy with Christmas music playing in the background, candles glowing and the tree twinkling.

Also when I decorate my house for Christmas, I constantly move items all around or room to room until I find just the right place for it, like the lit garland hanging under the mantel. I originally had it hanging above a guest room bed, but decided I liked it better in the living room.

What you see in the photos, I may change or tweak over the next few weeks if I see a better place or use for the item.

The backdrop on the mantel I created by covering 3 thrift store frames with Walmart gift wrap that looks like birch bark.

I bought the small trees at the Dollar Spot area in Target a few years ago. I have used them in various ways over the years.

Two years ago I made quite a few plaid Christmas stockings so everyone in my family would have one.

I created the glittered glass Christmas trees when I first started blogging. You can see them in this Christmas around the house decorating post. They are glass candy jars that I bought at the thrift store. I cleaned them up and then glittered them.

A few years ago I displayed them in one of the guest rooms.

At night I can turn the battery-operated candles on inside with a remote. To vary the height of each glass Christmas tree I used tree trunk slices leftover from my daughter’s wedding as risers.

I haven’t stuffed the stockings with little gifts yet, but like to place them on the tray on the ottoman since they look so pretty, why hide them when they can add to the decor, right?

Oh… and the ottoman got a festive change for the season with the same fabric I used to cover my kitchen chairs.

One of best things I did to decorate my small kitchen for the holidays was to make plaid flannel slipcovers for the chairs. They make quite a statement and don’t add any clutter to the space.

I want to find more plaid plates to fill my plate wall, but am a patient collector and will keep my eyes peeled when out and about. I found most of these at HomeGoods for under $5 a piece.

I have placed the tree in different spots in the living room over the years, but like it best right between the living room and kitchen where the lights reflect in the sliding glass doors and windows tripling the twinkling lights.

Nestled Candles and Ornaments in Greenery

Nestling greenery, candles and ornaments in a bowl or plate is so easy to do and always looks festive no matter if you have a long dough bowl, a platter, plate or any bowl you own. The only thing that would make me like this even more is to add some glitter. :-)

Add a Sprig of Greenery – Real or Faux

One of my most cherished Christmas decorations I ever made is the Photo Cube on a Pedestal that is filled with Christmas morning photos of my brother, sisters and I on Christmas mornings.

I have 3 huge cedar trees in my yard and cut many sprigs over the holiday season to tuck here and there around the house.

Put a Ribbon on It

Ribbon, even a small leftover piece of ribbon is all you need to make anything look like it is decorated for Christmas – you don’t even have to tie it into a bow.

I like using red velvet ribbon as it says Christmas to me.

I bought two recycled glass vases at a church bazaar a few weeks ago. I only had a spot for one though, but I am sure I will find a place to use both eventually. I was going to buy cranberries to place in the bottom, but to keep things simple, putting a red velvet ribbon on it was all it needed. Notice – no bow. Glue Dots hold it on.

Ribbon on wreaths of any size.

On faux or real pets. :-)

Adding a few jingle bells to the ribbon takes the festive holiday style up a few notches and is easy to do by twisting a few bells together with wire and attaching them to the ribbon… jingle jingle.

I used Glue Dots to attach this ribbon to the large candle holders in my foyer.

I even make ribbon by ripping strips of fabric to decorate my tree.

When Nostalgia Becomes the Best Christmas Decor

As I walk through the house each evening, I’m reminded that Christmas decorating isn’t really about how many trees we put up or how closely we follow what’s trending. It’s about recreating those small, sparkling moments that will make the season feel special like when we were young. A glittered jar here, a scrap-of-ribbon there, a sprig of cedar tucked in just about anywhere at the last minute. Somehow these little touches hold more meaning than anything I could buy new.

So if you enjoy decorating your home for Christmas this year, let your memories lead the way. Pull out the pieces that whisper childhood, repurpose something that makes you smile, and let your home become a mix of cozy textures, glowing candlelight, and stories that have lived with you for years.

I’ll keep tinkering and tweaking as I always do, moving things from room to room until everything feels “just right.” And as the lights twinkle on the tree and the music plays from one of my Spotify Christmas playlists in the background, I’m reminded once again why I love this season so much.

Here’s to creating a home that feels festive, meaningful, and wonderfully your own, one ribbon snippet, thrifted treasure, and nostalgic sparkle at a time.