CHRISTMAS
As a child, my mother decorated each room in our home, including our bedrooms complete with our own personal trees. One of my favorite memories that I looked forward to every year was getting to decorate my very own tree and loved falling asleep to the warm soft lights each night. While the rest of our home looked beautiful and festive, my bedroom was my very own little Christmas wonderland! Now that I have my own children, I want to give each one of them those same memories and a little piece of Christmas in their own spaces.
I knew that at least for now, I didn't want to place an actual tree in Emmalyn's room since she is a toddler and is prone to touching anything and everything that glitters and sparkles, so I set out to add winter touches in various spaces of her room instead.
The result is a soft and sweet winter wonderland nursery that coordinates with the neutral tones in her decor. Below I have linked sources, or similar items that I have used in her nursery.
*This post contains affiliate links
One of the most frequently asked questions that I receieve is where we purchased the crib?
Here is the direct link to her exact crib from RH Baby & Child
While the price tag can be a shocker, here is how I was able to get this crib for only $399!
1. I waited until they held their yearly sale (usuially around black friday).
2. I knew that this was the crib of my dreams so I stalked it for months... I noticed that there was a distressed cream colored option on clearance, I hopped on and purchased that during their yearly sale. 3. I then had a coupon code that you could use on top of the sale price.
4. Plus a $50 gift card from our baby shower.
5. RH has member rewards program that is totally worth it to save even more
Therefore bringing my dream crib down to a price that I could afford!
We are far from financially well off, most months we barely pay the bills and buy food to eat, so when it comes to decor and the "extras", I have to be very creative with the money we spend. We don't use credit cards, if we can't afford to buy it with cash, we don't get it.
I say this because I get so many of you asking about her nursery and dreaming of affording the items I have used. I am not an affiliate or partner with Restoration Hardware, nor have I ever been sponsored by them. I am just a customer like anyone else, and if it weren't for their sales and buying creatively, I wouldn't be able to afford it either!
If you are on a time crunch and cannot wait for a sale to roll around, I have linked a handful of my favorite similar cribs at a lower price:
SHOP THESE LINKS
As for the other items in her nursery, I found the majority of it at Hobby Lobby in the Christmas department. All of the ornaments are unbreakable! The cute little signs are from one of my favorite makers, Nicole, at Grace Filled Farmhouse. The crib sheet is from the Garden Floral Collection apart of the Monique Lhuillier Collection with Pottery Barn Kids but unfortunately that style is no longer available in a crib sheet, only the crib bumper. Crib bumper (not shown) and skirt are apart of the Washed Velvet Ruffled Bedding Collection from RH Baby & Child and is ON CLEARANCE so run and grab it while you can! The curtains are also from the same line but unfortunately only come in pink now, I will link them HERE if interested. The glider was also one of those big ticket items, but was able to get it at a great price during one of their sales. Tiered tray is from Painted Fox Home. The dresser and armoire were both craigslist finds that I refinished and the mirror is a family heirloom that is over 100 years old, but will link similar items that I love below.
EVERYTHING ELSE I WILL LINK HERE
We moved into this home back in March, so this year is an entirely new challenge for me when it comes to decorating for the holidays. On top of it being a new home, my style has seemed to evolve this year. In our last home, I would say my style was much more "farmhouse-y" with a touch of french country. In this home I really wanted to explore decorating with a more elegant french rustic flare. And that set the theme for this year's holiday decor. Elegant with touches of rustic. I set out to use warm luxe textures such as faux fur and velvet, along with mixed metals and rustic elements.
*This is a sponsored post in collaboration with King Of Christmas
I was fortunate enough to collaborate with King of Christmas and to feature one of their gorgeous artificial trees in our home. We have always been real tree people, each year I look forward to that fresh tree smell and the tradition of picking the perfect tree, but I don't look forward to the fact that having a real tree is limiting on how long you get to enjoy it for, and not to mention the mess they leave behind. Year after year we drop nearly $100-$150+ on a tree, just for it to die in less than 3 weeks. Being a blogger, or just the fact that I am a mom and have a million and one things going on in November & December, I enjoy being able to decorate the tree in early-mid November and enjoy it for longer than just 4 short weeks.
King Of Christmas has a huge variety to select from, they have trees to fit every budget!
The tree that I selected is the 7 Foot Unlit Cypress Spruce
I selected unlit, mainly thinking that I already knew how I liked having my lights strung and woven inside and outside of the branches to really make it sparkle! But... I have to admit, I really wish I had chosen their pre-lit version after seeing the rave reviews on their lit trees. Maybe next time?
Overall, this is such an amazing tree. Like I stated above, I am a real tree girl, but this tree is real in all the right ways when it comes to looks, and without the mess. The detail on the branches is done to perfection. I have had to stop many visitors who have entered our home this holiday season and stop them to tell them it's fake! They have to touch it to believe it!
While I may sound like I am ranting and raving about this tree, I assure you that I am a picky one when it comes to artificial greenery. I only share with any of you, products that I fully love and would purchase myself. While blogging may be my job, it is also my job to bring you the real facts and only back items that I trust in myself.
Let's move onto the rest of the decor...
I really wanted to make the tree and the mantle, the focal point this year, so by placing the sofa at an angle, it faced the mantle straight on and framed the tree perfectly. When changing up your furniture layout to accommodate a tree, keep leading lines in mind, which means: what draws your eye to the tree?
Keeping with the luxurious winter vibes, I made sure to add rich furs and velvets throughout the room. From the ribbons tucked into the tree, the faux fur tree skirt, to the velvet and faux fur pillows and throws. Everywhere you look, the coloring and textures are consistent. Of course it's Christmas so you always have to have a bit of sparkle, so I finished off the design with lots of sparkly ornaments, picks in the tree, and champagne colored elements.
King Of Christmas has a huge variety to select from, they have trees to fit every budget!
The tree that I selected is the 7 Foot Unlit Cypress Spruce
I selected unlit, mainly thinking that I already knew how I liked having my lights strung and woven inside and outside of the branches to really make it sparkle! But... I have to admit, I really wish I had chosen their pre-lit version after seeing the rave reviews on their lit trees. Maybe next time?
Overall, this is such an amazing tree. Like I stated above, I am a real tree girl, but this tree is real in all the right ways when it comes to looks, and without the mess. The detail on the branches is done to perfection. I have had to stop many visitors who have entered our home this holiday season and stop them to tell them it's fake! They have to touch it to believe it!
While I may sound like I am ranting and raving about this tree, I assure you that I am a picky one when it comes to artificial greenery. I only share with any of you, products that I fully love and would purchase myself. While blogging may be my job, it is also my job to bring you the real facts and only back items that I trust in myself.
Let's move onto the rest of the decor...
I really wanted to make the tree and the mantle, the focal point this year, so by placing the sofa at an angle, it faced the mantle straight on and framed the tree perfectly. When changing up your furniture layout to accommodate a tree, keep leading lines in mind, which means: what draws your eye to the tree?
Keeping with the luxurious winter vibes, I made sure to add rich furs and velvets throughout the room. From the ribbons tucked into the tree, the faux fur tree skirt, to the velvet and faux fur pillows and throws. Everywhere you look, the coloring and textures are consistent. Of course it's Christmas so you always have to have a bit of sparkle, so I finished off the design with lots of sparkly ornaments, picks in the tree, and champagne colored elements.
My husband is a hard one to buy for. Each holiday or birthday that comes around, I am left stumped on what to give a man who only likes tools, boots and flashlights. (Seriously though, what is with men and flashlights?) This year, I was determined to find my husband a meaningful gift that would be just for him, not something that he needs, but something that he wants.
This man of mine is a builder. He has served 10 years in the Marine Corps and now serves our community as a Police Officer. He works hard, and in his down time he "relaxes" by doing even more work. Yes, my husband's idea of relaxing is working with wood. While he may say a few cuss words along the way of any project he is working on, he enjoys the process. And what better gift for a man who loves working with wood, than a watch made out of wood.
* This post is sponsored in collaboration with Jord Wood Watches - Watch Gifted
I have always been a long time admirer of Jord Watches,
and after narrowing down the options for which style to get for my husband,
I decided to go with The Hyde Series - Ebony & Iron
I loved the dark wood tones and black face of the timepiece.
Upon delivery, I opened the package to find a gorgeous and quite masculine, I might add, wooden box. The box itself has a magnetic closure lid, and a small storage drawer underneath for extra links, and cleaning tools. Then, I opened the lid...
I was blown away by the quality and craftsmanship. Each link is made out of wood and comes tailored to the size wrist that you specify before checkout. They even have a dandy printable ruler that will help you determine the size that you will need.
I was able to gift my husband this watch right after his police academy graduation. I have to say, for the first time in 7 years, I found a gift that brought a tear to his eye... a slight tear, but still a tear!
So if you have a difficult man in your life that is a hard one to buy for, let this be a test drive for you, skip the guessing and go with JORD.
YOU CAN FIND MORE MEN'S WOOD WATCHES HERE
AND SHOP WOMEN'S WOOD WATCHES HERE
Luxury Wooden Watch
and after narrowing down the options for which style to get for my husband,
I decided to go with The Hyde Series - Ebony & Iron
I loved the dark wood tones and black face of the timepiece.
Upon delivery, I opened the package to find a gorgeous and quite masculine, I might add, wooden box. The box itself has a magnetic closure lid, and a small storage drawer underneath for extra links, and cleaning tools. Then, I opened the lid...
I was blown away by the quality and craftsmanship. Each link is made out of wood and comes tailored to the size wrist that you specify before checkout. They even have a dandy printable ruler that will help you determine the size that you will need.
I was able to gift my husband this watch right after his police academy graduation. I have to say, for the first time in 7 years, I found a gift that brought a tear to his eye... a slight tear, but still a tear!
So if you have a difficult man in your life that is a hard one to buy for, let this be a test drive for you, skip the guessing and go with JORD.
YOU CAN FIND MORE MEN'S WOOD WATCHES HERE
AND SHOP WOMEN'S WOOD WATCHES HERE
The holiday season is fast approaching and while some may not want to see the sight of anything Christmas until their Thanksgiving turkey is cleared off of their table, I will apologize in advance, because this is just the first Christmas project of many to come in the weeks ahead!
I was fortunate enough to collaborate with the lovely ladies of THE HOMESTEAD HAVEN for this post. Amanda & Renee create these adorable SHIPLAP MINI SIGNS, and when it arrived on my doorstep I couldn't wait to get to work on a little wreath to adorn it with.
I am a sucker for some cute packaging, and loved how they packaged
their product with attention to detail and their logo attached.
HERE IS WHAT YOU WILL NEED:
- 1 mini embroidery hoop
- linen ribbon
- Christmas greenery
- floral wire
- hot glue gun
- hot glue sticks
- twine
- sicssors
- wire cutters
- letter stamps
- stamp ink pad
1. Start by laying out all of your supplies.
2. With most faux greenery garland that you get, you can pluck the greenery right off of the plastic stem. This saves you from having to cut or waste. Remove approximately three to five pieces of greenery off of the stem for your wreath.
3. Once your greenery is ready, cut approximately five to six inches of wire.
4. Place your greenery on the embroidery hoop where you desire it and then begin wrapping the floral wire around the greenery and the embroidery hoop beginning at the base of your greenery and working upwards.
5. Wrap the floral wire about 2/3rds of the way up your greenery piece, leaving the top portion to flow naturally.
6. Take your smaller pieces of greenery and hot glue them on the opposite side of the hoop as well as on top of where the floral wire is showing.
7. Cut your ribbon two to three inches longer than each side of your hoop. This will give you enough allowance to center the wording on the ribbon properly inside of the hoop once you are completed stamping.
8. Pick out the letters that you desire for the word(s) that you would like to spell out and hand stamp them onto your ribbon.
9. Lastly, place your ribbon inside of the embroidery hoop
and pull tightly on the ribbon as you are closing up the hoop.
(TIP: I actually recommend adding the ribbon into the hoop as your FIRST step. I chose to not show the ribbon added in my first posts so that you could see the step by step details clearly.)
10. Add twine and tie around the hanger placed on the back of the SHIPLAP SIGN.
That's it! A super simple project while the kiddos are napping or at night while watching your favorite show with a glass of hot chocolate (or wine)...
I just love this little shiplap sign so much and love how versatile it is year round! Keep a look out for more seasonal mini wreath tutorials that I plan to make, which means, YOU NEED ONE OF THESE SIGNS to put them on! And just for all of you loyal followers, the ladies at THE HOMESTEAD HAVEN are offering you a 15% Discount on THIS SHIPLAP MINI SIGN ONLY. Using the code SIMPLYCIANI15 at checkout.
(*coupon expires November 11th)
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