How we decked our halls.

This was our most edited holiday decor to date, and oddly enough, I think my most favorite. Tommy is almost two, and while he might not have pulled the tree down on top of him, I just didn't feel like spending the weeks leading up to Christmas scolding him. So, we set out to beautify our home without the typical giant live tree in the corner.

When I proposed the idea of lighting the sail of our sailboat, I got a wincing look from my husband, but after a few minutes, he helped make my idea come to life, and in a much more streamlined way that I would have.

With no tree this year, I had to figure out how to use my tree skirt that my mom lovingly made with precious care.

I love to think of my mom and her buddies all making these for their kids together. I adore it, and the fact that she took so much time to make it. I also treasure my stocking that my Grandmother made when I was little.

 It was my husbands idea to tie in the antler into our festive decor, and I think it worked great, and balanced the composition of our mantel.

No Christmas decor would be complete without the traditional nutcracker. The walnuts are resting in a silver dish that was part of my grandparents wedding silver.

Of course we couldn't go with no tree at all. It was fun to get out our Champagne chiller and shine it up (well, Greg shined it actually) to glam up the base of our tree.

Now, it should be known that no husband has ever come to a marriage with more Christmas decor than mine. Greg comes from Swedish decent, and apparently they do Christmas big.  The apples and pine cones are Swedish tradition, and I love how they brighten up our tree every year. This year, it was nice to scale back, and think about which ornaments meant the most instead of putting out every one we own.

Another Swedish tradition are these gorgeous orange hand painted horses. I particularly like them paired with our turquoise shutters, because I cannot get enough of this color combination lately, and I don't like sticking within the Christmas parameters of green and red. 

What's great is the Greg has all of these things lined up on timers, something I would never take the time to do. Every morning when we come downstairs and it's still dark, the festive lights put you in an immediate mood to give presents, be with family and see Santa.

Wishing you all a festive and bright holiday with your loved ones! xx