decorating....

wanted to surprise my husband today

with a house decorated for the holidays,

Christmas music on and fresh cookies.

and i did.

my mom came over to help out

we got all the fall decor taken down

and the house clean so we could decorate.

i love re-doing my house but who has the money

to go out and buy new furniture or art,

or time to paint the walls.

it doesn't have to be expensive or time consuming.

it can be as simple as changing the drapes,

adding a few throw pillows and blankets.

we placed our wood saint Nicholas collection 

on the mantel with some greenery.

replaced the art work above the mantel with a large mirror

to add reflection and light during these long dark days.

in the dining room, 

i changed out the runners on the table and side board

to red stripe and lace doily

that i made by sewing a few doilies i had collected over the years.

filled a antique white porcelain bowl

with pine cones picked up last winter on walks

with the dogs and white candles.

added a few small evergreen trees with faux snow

and pine cones on the built in to top it all off.  

we even added a few small touches through out the other

rooms like the kitchen and bathroom with an

advent mitten calendar my mom made

and little glitter vintage elves.

just like that the house took on a festive 

feeling with out much time or money.

tomorrow the tree and the house

will be ready.

my husband was pleasantly surprised

and starting to feel the holiday spirit.

tomorrow i'll post some pictures.

want to get the tree up.

you understand. 

ciao,

f