Holiday Open House Series ~ Christy’s House

Phew!  If you’ve been following our Holiday Open House series, then you know that I have some BIG footsteps to fill as I post today (biting nails)!  We’ve had a hugely talented line-up of bloggers for you over the past week and a half, and I hope you’ve been inspired as you decorate your own homes for the holiday.

I’m still working on my own house, but I did the bulk of it right after Thanksgiving, as I was hosting a gathering at our house late last week and wanted to be (mostly) decorated by then.  In fact, we’ll be entertaining through most of the Christmas holiday–and if we’re lucky, Amy and her family will be our guests for some of that time!  I’ll post my kids’ rooms next week, but for today, I’ll show you around the downstairs.  Come on in!

My front door opens right into the dining room and a very small entry hall area.  I have a lot of white and gray in here, so I stuck with a white and silver palette.

I love my starfish in a chicken wire basket, and just tossed a few ornaments and snowflakes in there to dress them up for the holiday.  I almost put them on my Christmas tree (we do live right near the beach here in Savannah), but maybe next year!

Most of my vintage decanters were my grandmother’s–and they fit the festive mood in the room.

I bought very few new items this year, but I always like to pick up a few rosemary topiaries for the holiday.  They smell amazing, and then when Christmas is done you just plant them outside.  I stashed this one in a hotel silver wine bucket.

I mixed gold, silver, and white in the tablescape, and I think that will work well for New Year’s Eve dinner, too.

On Christmas Eve, we always eat fondue (the kids love it), and on Christmas Day, I make a standing rib roast (my husband loves it!).  I’ll probably put a delicious dessert under the cupcake domes when the big day arrives.

My kids adore opening holiday crackers, and so we usually have them for Christmas.  I even bought some for Thanksgiving this year!  They look so festive in a champagne bucket on my entry table and can serve as last-minute gifts as needed.

The gorgeous thrift shop chair that I painted {read about that here} gets a Christmas pillow and my grandmother’s vintage Santa cups decorate an old spice rack.

When you head into the living room, I shift the color scheme to gold tones.  The tree is decorated with gold, burlap, olive wood ornaments (from a family trip to the Holy Land), cotton bolls, and white twinkle lights.  Sunny has decided not to move, despite my best efforts, so he’s my photobomber of the day!

Of course, I had to put a “B” on top of the tree this year!

Not everyone appreciates my efforts. Even though she has her own tree to decorate in her room, my ten-year-old daughter is very disapproving of my ornament choices.  She tells me she patterned this after Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses…seriously!

Another photobombing dog…my pillows are always smooshed!

Even the deer head above the TV gets decorated:

I’ll post my living room again after the holidays, but let me just say that the blues in here make it a tricky color combination for Christmas decorating!

This mantel isn’t done yet…and I might move the creche, but we’ll see.

I made the “Noel” banner a few years ago from chipwood letters I bought at Hobby Lobby.

I think most everyone who reads the blog regularly knows that this stained glass window is from the church in which my parents got married.

This gorgeous free printable is from Jennifer at My Fabuless Life:

I used magnolias extensively in my outdoor decor this year (of course!!) and put a few branches in the garland going up the stairs:

The kitchen and living room are open to each other.  If you’re new (and welcome, by the way!), then let me just tell you that this is military housing and when I asked nicely if I could paint the kitchen cabinets, they laughed in my face!  So we’re living with the brown…

We eat most of our meals at this antique table that I found on Craigslist five or six years ago…it’s almost like the one my grandmother used to have.

I love using Ball jars for drinking glasses–even before it was cool!

My scrawny little Charlie Brown tree might grow to be a big Georgia pine one day!

The “Merry” garland is another one I made, and last year it was on my front door instead.

My vintage produce scale holds more crackers.  These are Nutcracker-themed and will go to my daughter’s ballet friends the day before their big Christmas performance, along with some red velvet cupcakes.  Dancers run on sugar, after all!

Doesn’t every kitchen need a tiny cooking-themed tree?  Yes!

My Ikea plate rack sits between two windows, which makes it tricky to photograph.  It gets a little dash of red and boxwood for the holidays.

The vintage silver is here year-round, but it’s festive enough for the holidays.

I love my kitchen cart–it’s so useful–and I have a great time changing the styling around for fun.

There’s way too much good stuff to eat at this time of year!

And to drink, too!

Which one are you?

Finally, here are some shots of the outside.  I used magnolia and pine (both cut from the woods behind our house) and burlap (of course).

Here are some daytime snaps–it was raining all morning and by the time it cleared enough to photograph, we were getting direct sun.  Grrr!

And here it is at night:

Come back next week if you’d like to see the rest of the house!

Here is the rest of the Open House line up ~

Last Week:

Tuesday ~ Everyday Occasions

Wednesday ~ Dixie Delights

Thursday~ DIYShowOff

Friday~At the Picket Fence

Sunday~Surprise Home!

This Week:

Monday~ Celebrating Everyday Life with Jennifer Carroll

Tuesday~ Housepitality Designs

Wednesday~ 11 Magnolia Lane {Christy}

Thursday~ 11 Magnolia Lane {Terry}

Friday~ 11 Magnolia Lane {Amy}

 

Follow all the inspiration from this series HERE via Pinterest!

And keep up with the Season of Giving HERE.

{Sharing at Jennifer Rizzo’s Holiday House Walk }

Thanks for stopping by!