DO YOU JUDGE A BOOK BY IT'S COVER? - Day 12 Holiday Decor

Well I must admit that I do.   Not so much people but there houses, especially during the holidays.   I somehow in my mind think that if you don't take the time to decorate the outside of your home then, you are a bit of a Scrooge (just my opinion)


I was thrilled with the huge floor to ceiling bay window in the front of the house.   However it was blocked with 2 off centered shrubs (which also were the home to bees and their lovely hives.)

Today, my husband finally cut down the shrubs (YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)  He was motivated by the tree cutting crew who also came today and cut down the ugly tree in front of our home.

Here is what my holiday window looks like, Im not sure I will have time to add anything else outside with another storm coming in 2 days.

Tall zinc container w/ Christmas tree and a lil snowman

Vintage galvanized bucket w/ Christmas tree and tall snowman

My White Christmas tree w/ladder of lil helper to decorate the tree

So if you drive by my house....know that Christmas is my favorite holiday and inside you will find 8  more trees  and decorations to prove it.

Do you decorate the outside of your house?

-MJ

MINOR HICCUP - WHAT HAPPEN TO DAY 10

Ive been doing way to much, and it finally caught up with me.  I totally needed a day of rest so I missed on posting Day 10 Holiday Decor.

I don't pretype or schedule my posts.  I did that when I started blogging 3 yrs ago but it became so overwhelming...I decided I would post when I had something to say or share.

So since Im still feeling just worn out...Im going to share some Holiday Decor from a shop I styled earlier this month.   It's called Painted Past Designs and they are located in Madison, NJ.  Owner Donna is a fabulous furniture refinisher, she takes old pieces and gives them the most amazing makeovers with eco-friendly paints that are Made in the U.S.A.

Take a look and what we put together for the holiday up at her shop.  Also you can check out Painted Past Designs on Facebook HERE

-MJ

THE TREE............ - Day 9 Holiday Decor

Well 1 of the trees in the house this year.    My husband insists on a REAL tree but I like to start early so a FAUX tree is best for us decorating addicts.  

There is a battle every year at Christmas on who gets to decorate the tree and why do I have the need for a theme...blah...blah...blah.

My solution... FAUX tree will go in the Family Room and the kids will decorate it with whatever they want (well of course from my hoards of collections...lol) I have to have some control people!  The new house has a Family Room and Living Room so I get the REAL tree (with my theme)... YAY!

So here is our Vintage Junky Ornament Tree in the Family Room.  All ornaments on this tree are handmade, they are also family heirlooms from my grandmother's house and thrifted items.

This is a 6 ft faux tree from Family Dollar

My prized position at Christmas...the manger that my Grandfather Sal made so many years ago.  It goes under my tree every year!

2 of my 3 youngest girls decorating their tree.

Here she is...in all it's funky glory

Top to bottom....it's all vintage awesomeness!

Do you have any ornaments that were passed down, do you have a special ornament in your family?

This is from my Instagram account, this filter reminded me of an old 60's photo.

-MJ

RUSTIC TABLETOP - Day 8 Holiday Decor

After working on projects for our Christmas tree I decided to jump in early and put together a little something for the dining room table.   This new house has a big room at the back with is where our 2nd living room (family room) and our dining room are situated.

I placed the Christmas tree in between both rooms, next to the back door (which is only used for puppy walking) lol

This is this year's REAL bare tree.

I asked the guy to give me the branches he cut from the bottom of our tree.

Still keeping my burlap runner on the dining table, grabbed this little wood tool box insert for the table

Filled with my cinnamon scented pine cones (love the smell)

Cut and stuck in clippings from the tree (again great smell)

Some vintage brass candleholders and Shabbat candles (I use them often)

Added a gold glass ornament, here and there

The glow is so pretty and the setting is so simple

This year is simple, rustic with a touch of vintage glam.

Here is a shot from the living room side looking into dining room.

So cut some branches, grab a box and some pine cones and have at it!!!!

-MJ

WHAT'S THAT ON YOUR TREE - DAY 7 Holiday Decor

Well the tree branches have settled nicely.  Last night while everyone was asleep, with a pounding migraine I strung clear lights (my pet peeve) on the tree.   Today I was still struggling with exactly how far I wanted to take my theme this year.

In that thought process I came up with some fun additions that will be going onto the tree this year.  Quick and easy and you most likely already have these items in your house right now.

Twine & Candy Canes ($2) and that's for about 2 dozen candy canes with the twine

Add a drop of hot glue to one end...and wrap away...and another drop to seal

C'mon doesn't get easier than that....great project for kids to do (use low temp glue gun)

Again, don't forget to check back to see what the final REAL tree will look like.

-MJ

HANDMADE TREE DECOR - Day 6 Holiday Decor

While Im not always the Queen of DIY, I do like to find less expensive ways of doing things.   This year in the new house...I wanted to decorate the tree with what we already had.  

I save my ornaments every year and had built quite a collection, unfortunately due to the move, many were broken and damaged.   But that's not going to stop me of course.

There are a few trees in the house this year.   As of right now the count is 5...not all large but I will be sharing the final trees the week of Christmas.

Im a huge fan of burlap as anyone who follows this blog or my IG and FB pages knows..lol    I wanted to incorporate some burlap in my tree this year....which I have never done before.   However spools of burlap ribbon are kinda pricey, not in my holiday budget this year.  

Sooooooooooooooooooo what do I do............  Break out the burlap scraps from the closet.

I just completed a wedding project of 12 ft burlap runners ( I ordered extra burlap for my own runners)

Nice sharp scissor needed for cutting

I cut approx 4 in strips (my runners were 12 in wide)

I then pulled a center piece of burlap thread and scrunched it down, then knotted at both ends.

Easy and simple....you can buy a yard of burlap at Jo-Ann's for approximately $3.99 and don't forget your coupons people (40% off single cut is big savings)

Check back to see how this looks up on the tree and what else I have planned this year.

- MJ

JUNK VIGNETTE - Day 5 Holiday

For some reason that I was not able to publish this post last night....so Better late than never!.  

This is a little holiday vignette I put together in the Family Room.   I love the red metal cart, so that was the inspiration and base holiday color.   I then added my awesome vintage typewriter in it's case.  Our faithful mistletoe ball sits atop the keys.   Also I have to have a nutcracker in a holiday vignette, a vintage camera and a metal candleholder.   The zinc box underneath is still holding pounds of Halloween candy...lol

Do you have a special area in your home where you create your Holiday Vignettes???

-MJ

JOY TO THE WORLD - Day 3 Christmas Decor

Here is another little project I worked on this week in our Family Room.  I still havent done a reveal of the new house, so this is a sneak peek too.   The decor in this room expresses by love of junk and vintage.   It's like my indoor prop room and shop all in one.  Mama's junk spot!

I dug into my stash and pulled out some simple pieces for an entry Holiday Display.

Gas Station Letters

Some Made in USA clipboards (yes I left that sticker on proudly)

Bam....here is my JOY

The Joy of collecting junk

Joy to the World

-MJ

CHANGE OF THE GUARD - Day 2

I don't have an "official foyer" however the way my sectional is set up in the family room it sort of creates an entry way hallway.

I had the table set in place the 1st week we moved.   This week I pulled out my collection of nutcrackers and mixed them in with some snowflake pails and my vintage radio.  I also had some map covered books and a turquoise clock.

this was for Thanksgiving Day

My husband and I have been searching for the right artwork to go over this table.   Since the entire room is vintage, junk theme we were thinking of going extreme opposite of that with a NYC photo with bright lights.

This is a contender from IKEA

  We have yet to agree on one that we like equally.So here is my solution for now....I took one of my props out of the garage!   I use this one for table seating charts or menu's.     However it was the perfect scale so this is how it looks today.   Tomorrow it will probably change, and many more times until Christmas arrives...or the new artwork.

-MJ

OTTOMAN MAKEOVER - Day 1 Christmas Countdown

We moved to the new house....I had this ottoman that was extra seating and storage in the other house.  The top had been torn apart by my then 2 year old.   So I decided to recover it and use it in the family room in the new house.

I purchased some denim fabric from Jo-Ann's and just simply stapled in underneath.  I already has a black liner on it so Im going to leave it as is....Oh by the way it's a flip open ottoman.

I used a light denim because the feel of this room if junky vintage collectibles.  So this to me was like a worn pair of jeans.

This is how the top turned out..not bad.   The bottom is still in fair condition and matches the section we purchased last November. 

Here is some tabletop adornment for the holidays.

I will be posting a Christmas decor/craft everyday from Dec 1 - Dec 23

-MJ