Share & Win Holiday Decorations for the Home

I am addicted to HGTV to get ideas. I love the decorating ideas on there.

Each year, the kids (including husband ha ha) and I decide on a 'theme' for our Christmas tree. Sometimes we do it all in coordinating colors or designs and once we have the house made up with that theme..we make a matching plate as a centerpiece which will go on our dinner table for Christmas morning Love that closeness in the early mornings with warm cinnamon rolls & kids coo'ing over all the newest gadgets. The centerpiece is usually a plate we picked up at the dollar store and then we add in matching pieces that we glue on it. Purple candles matching beads.. the kids decide on how to make it beautiful. It's so inspiring to see how the plates change over the course of the years, as they grow older. They will also bring back not only memories for them when they are married with kids of their own, but will be something they can cherish long after we're gone & the stories we share on the internet have long since been replaced with new traditions.

My best holiday decorating investment has been inexpensive clear plastic storage bins. Sorted by holidays (Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentines, St. Pats, Easter, & Patriotic) it's easy to see which decorations are inside. Placemats, napkins, candles, decor: you name it--so easy to pull off the basement shelf and carry upstairs to unpack. I can pick and choose, varying my decorations from year to year. It's just as easy to pack everything away at the end of each season.

A simple idea to hang lightweight items, stockings on the mantel for instance or maybe some garland on the railing is to use either Christmas ornament hooks or to simply bend a paperclip into an S shape and use them for hangers.

Pine Cone Wreaths are a great decoration for the holidays. You can glue them onto a pre-made wreath form or you can make your own to match your style. Just cut out your favorite shape from heavy cardboard and hot glue pine cones on. You can even spray paint your pine cones first in any color and even add glitter. This is a simple and cost effective way to make your home special for the holidays

I host a Christmas morning brunch for the family every year. I like to think my 'go to' table decoration tips really add to the presentation. I layer the table by putting upside-down pots under an additional table cloth. I stagger the height to make it interesting. Because they're pots, they're big and strong enough to hold anything that I'd like to place on top. I also like to add the mirrored trivets under the flowers or anything that sparkles to really add a pop!

A great snow day idea for the kids is to let them make their own ornaments. Get plastic, clear ornaments you can buy from a craft shop. They are very inexpensive. You can also use glass ornaments if your kids are old enough. Then buy acrylic paints and glitter and squeeze bottles. Let them spray paint inside for splattered dots or pour it in and then let it run down the insides. Put glitter in them, or draw on the outside of them with permanent markers. Dry them upside down. Let them make one every year and put the year on it. Then they can see their artwork for years to come.

One way we like to decorate every year, and it doesn't cost much, is to gather pine cones that have fallen in our yard and spray paint them and use them as a center piece. We have spray painted them red, gold, and kept some brown for fall, and then white, green, red, gold, and silver for the winter.

Our holiday tradition starts on Thanksgiving when we spread all the Black Friday circulars on the table, plan our shopping experience and head out to the stores. The Saturday after Thanksgiving is when we start decorating the tree with the new ornaments we bought and then decorate the outside of the house. Every year brings a new ornament for each member of the family.

I always turn to Good Housekeeping for inspiration. I love to keep my decorating fresh and new each year. My kids love to do the do it yourself projects and we display them every year. Thankfully we have only family over every year, so our decor is always very relaxed and kid friendly. If something gets broken, not a big deal.

For an easy ornament idea, use candy canes or bake up some gingerbread cookies and cut them in holida shapes. The tree is simple and classic.

I like to cut some fresh pine from our trees and make a pretty door wreath.

I love the Christmas holiday, it's all the decorations, great food, and quality time spent with the children and other family members. I love to get my daughter to help me decorate the tree, she enjoys it as much as I do I believe. Just watching someones eyes light up after getting that special gift is great too. I also love to look at the neighbors houses they have decorated with lights and all other things, my daughter and I go a few nights before Christmas on a drive to look at them all.

I love to involve my children in our holiday decorating. They love to place all their homemade ornaments and decorations all over the house. They love when we talk about when they were made and received. Every year we make gingerbread men for the tree and peanut butter fudge for friends. Involving the kids is so much fun and they get so excited knowing that we will be doing these special things every year.

My holiday decorating ideas are simple. Sparkle - sparkle - sparkle. I'm very much into snowmen and most of them can be purchased with glitter and sparkle already but if I see one that I love - whether stuffed, made of wood, resin or any other material - I add my own touch. I purchase a spray can of adhesive glue and my favorite little container of glitter that can be purchased at Jo-ann fabrics - Michael's etc.. I go out on my deck - spray the item - add glitter - tap off some of the excess sparkle and there you are! Perfect for your own home decorating and my friends love getting a sparkly holiday gift to add to their holiday decor. I love the holidays and enjoy adding my own little touch to make it that much more special for my family and friends !!