Happy holidays, my friends!
I found myself with a little extra time this week, so I grabbed the hand-me-down Cannon camera my mom gave me a few years back and snapped a few shots of our festive living room!
Photography is one of those things I'd LOVE to get better at. I took photography back in high school, and I feel like I have a pretty good sense of photo composition, but gosh, getting the lighting right is so tricky!
My photographer ladies—Alyssa Wagner + Sydney Kamaloski—make it look so easy to get those dreamy bright images...but it's hard work!! So I apologize that these aren't nearly as dreamy as their photos!
I'm not big into holiday decor, but I feel like our home has just the right amount of cheer this year! Above is a Nutckracker I've had since I was teeny tiny. My mom had to perform plastic surgery on this guy several times, as his nose popped off several years in a row.
This year I convinced Larry that we should get a fake tree (finally!!). While I did love having a real tree the for the last four Christmases, I grew up with a fake tree, and I love that I can put it up early (first week of November, baby!) and leave it up through the new year. I'm also glad to avoid the hassle of dragging our dead, dry tree through the living room, spilling needles everywhere, and having to remember to buy a tag so the city will take it...UG. Problem avoided!!
Added bonus—this time around I went for pre-lit! It was SO EASY. I'll be kicking myself when the first chunk of lights dies on me, but for now, I LOVE IT. I actually could have gone with a taller tree, but I do really like the size of this one. It doesn't take up too much floor space and it looks incredibly real.
I also went over to Joann's and picked up a few strands of garland for the mantle and doorway. I strung some lights through the mantle garland, and was pleasantly surprised to discover they lights had different settings! The setting I chose glitters everrrrr so sloooowly (you can't really tell unless you sit still and watch them very closely), and it's super meditative!
The bells above the doorway were from a Christmas when I was five or six. I had asked Santa for one of his sleigh bells that year, and these were tied to my stocking Christmas morning! I was so excited that I had gotten not one, but two of Santa's sleigh bells! They still feel magical to me, so they've stuck around all this time. Christmas is such a sentimental season, so I love having a few staple decor pieces that have been with me since I was a kid.
So what about you? How do you like to decorate for the holidays? Are you pro-fake tree or do you love a real fir? Are you sentimental and traditional in the holiday season, or do you like to try new things and celebrate in different ways?
I'd love to see some photos of YOUR holiday decor as well! Share a photo of your space below!
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