It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Well, for me, it actually started looking a lot like Christmas the morning after Halloween when I drug out the boxes of decorations in preparation for the Holiday Tour of Homes. It took many cups of coffee and mega-decibel playing of Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” to get me in the holiday spirit, but I got there! I’ve been sharing snippits of the two homes I decked out for the tour over on Instagram – and even had them featured in the Dallas Morning News and Richardson Living Magazine – and now I’m excited to share with you the full home tours with all the special little details that wouldn’t fit in an IG caption.
The two homes on the tour have completely different styles and personalities, which made it all the more fun for me and hopefully for the folks who came out on the tours. Up first is the High Canyon house, which is full of color, fun, and funky vintage charm. Come on in!
The first hint of what’s to come are a pair of DIY wreaths I crafted when I couldn’t find something ready-made in stores. As with most of my projects, I’m rarely without my sidekick and intern Max (age 3) at my side. I whipped up a pair of wreaths while Max napped on my client’s sofa. In the dark. With several hot glue burns. Sooooo if the wreaths look a bit wonky, that should explain it.
I kid, I kid. The asymmetry was totally intentional.
The living room is the first room you see when entering the house, and it’s chock full of color. My favorite touches in this space are the pom pom garland, pom pom pillows, and pom pom throw (sensing a theme here?) all from Target. While there are roughly a billion colors on display here at the HC (cool kid slang for High Canyon house), the primary palette for the holiday décor is pink, red, green, icy blue, and metallic of all shades.
Another awesomely inexpensive yet hugely impactful decorating project – swaging a garland across a mirror and hanging teardrop ornaments from it. Always use an odd number, folks. It pleases the eye.
This mid-century cardboard house display is from my stash of Christmas goodies. My Grandma was an antique dealer back in the day and was always collecting the BEST stuff for her girls. My design skills and propensity for hoarding vintage hardware can be traced directly back to her. Thank you, Betty Jane! Another fun fact - those little deer under the cloche used to decorate my dad's birthday cakes when he was little. He just turned 60 this weekend, so yeah. Vintage.
I have been on the hunt for a vintage tinsel tree for roughly 10 years. In my dream world, I want a silver one with the spinning color wheel, but until I find that treasure of the Sierra Madre, this gem that I found at Canton for $50 will most definitely suffice. For this season, though, it will make its home here at the HC.
In the kitchen, a bit more of the homeowner’s personality comes through via witty signs. If you can’t have a little fun in the kitchen, then where can ya?
OK, time for my most favorite room on the tour – the master bedroom. I started design work with this client 3 months ago, and arguably the biggest transformation happened here. Not every room can handle a big o’l canopy bed, but this space was just begging for a big statement. When it came time to add holiday flair, it only made sense to play up the rooms best feature. 3 sets of Oh Joy! rose gold-dipped lights and a pair of pine needle garlands make a huge impact.
Styling tip – everything looks better under a cloche. Ev-uh-ree-thing. Even teeny tiny baby Jesus.
These snow globes were a DIY from a girls crafternoon a few years back, and are some of my favorite holiday decorations. You can find little miniatures like these at craft stores or Etsy.
Sometimes ornaments are even prettier in the box than out of it.
Last up is the teenage girl’s bedroom that we all wish we had, complete with a pink velvet armchair, furry footstool, and mirrored desk. I’m not sure if it’s sad or awesome that a 33 year old woman like myself could make myself totally at home in this room, but I'm in good company. Every woman that walked through this room turned into the heart eye emoji at the sight of that pink velvet chair.
You don’t always have to go over the top to give a room a holiday vibe. All I did here was add a couple of pink tinsel trees and a strand of lights. I’d bet my bottom dollar that these lights will stay in place long after Santa squeezes himself up that chimney.
That’s it for house number one! Come back next week to tour house two for a cozy, classic, natural Christmas.
