The V Spot

Rants, observations, and home decorating... from a woman with no time for a blog.


  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • Home
    • Privacy Policy
  • All Blog Posts
  • Crafts
    • All projects
    • By Project
      • Accessories
      • Artwork
      • Before & After
      • Cheap & Easy
      • decor
      • Floral Design & Centerpieces
      • Furniture
      • garden & outdoors
      • Glass
      • no-sew
      • Upcycle – Recycle
      • Wreaths
    • By Season
      • Spring
      • Summer
      • Fall
      • Winter
    • By Materials
      • corks
      • epsom salt
      • fabric
      • Mod Podge
      • Paper
      • Spray Paint
      • Sticks
    • Round-Ups
  • Holidays
    • Halloween
      • Pumpkins
    • Thanksgiving
    • Christmas
    • Valentine’s Day
    • St. Patrick’s Day
    • Easter
    • Cinco de Mayo
    • Mother’s Day
    • 4th of July
  • Food & Drink
    • All recipes
    • Breakfast
    • Appetizers
    • Side Dish
    • Main Dish
    • Desserts
    • Drinks & Wines
    • Tables & Decor
  • Real Life
    • Family
      • Grant
      • parenting
    • Tales To Tell
    • friends
    • Keepin’ It real
    • Tips & Tricks
      • cleaning
      • Health & Beauty
      • Let me help you
      • organization
    • Just Funny
      • No Mom wants to hear…
      • Exchange of the Day
      • Snarky
      • wacky strangers
      • Big Time Fail

Christmas Home Tour: Red and Black holiday decor.

December 19, 2015 1 Comment

OK, so I am a little bit bugged.  For the first time in forever, my Christmas decor does not look the way I saw it in my head.  Don’t get me wrong, I am still very happy with it, but it just isn’t exactly how I wanted it.  Last January I received a swag bag from the Plaid Crafts company.  It was filled with plenty of goodies, but the thing I loved the most was the bag itself.  I had just cleaned up Christmas 2014, but the minute I saw this adorable bag, I knew I wanted to do red, black and plaid for Christmas… in just 11 short months.

This cute bag!

red and black buffalo check bag filled with fresh greenery for Christmas

I took two large empty jars, filled them with pebbles (to weight the bag) and water and then added fresh greenery.  Some of my fresh greens come from my yard, but the rest comes from my local tree lot.  They are always happy to have some crazy lady take loads of their “trash” off their hands… and I am happy to take it.   I use it to fluff my fake garlands and wreaths to make them look real.  I always end up getting more than I need, but I love how it looks sitting around, just tucked into buckets, vases and even boots.

Fresh greenery for Christmas

I don’t even think it necessarily needs anything added to it.  To create the little vignette with the boots, I did the same thing with the glass jars and water.  Southern California temperatures tend to dry the greenery out if it is not in water.

The tree is never “done” as I continue to fluff and tweak it all season long.  But for the most part, I’m happy with how it turned out.
red and black Christmas treeI couldn’t find the red and black plaid ribbon I saw in my head, so I ended up going with this black and white buffalo check and red Deco Mesh , then plenty of red and black ornaments and  sprays of red berries.

I kept our mantel pretty simple this year.

Red wreath with antlers mantel decor

I attached this red berry wreath to the shutters with more of the buffalo check ribbon and HH used a little fishing line to secure the antlers in the center for me.  The 25 is made from vintage gasoline pricing numbers.  I picked them up at a wonderful antique store with my friend Bev from Flamingo Toes this past summer.  It’s simple and bright.

Christmas tree and mantel

In addition to the “main tree” we have the “kids’ tree” but this year, Grant renamed it.  As he was looking through the handmade ornaments he said, “I know this is the kids’ tree, but I think what it really is is the Memory tree….”  And so it is.

The memory tree

This tree has the kids’ handmade ornaments and I display our previous years’ Christmas cards.  I love to look at them each year.  Can you believe how much Grant (on the left) looks like Conner?

brothers handmade Christmas ornaments

It’s nice to enjoy these memories while sipping hot cocoa.  I set up an easy “help yourself” station right next to the Memory Tree.

Help yourself hot cocoa

The dining room is kept pretty simple.

Christmas dining room buffet

I love to decorate with holiday photos from Christmases gone by.  A little greenery, my sweet photos and some fresh green wreaths work for me.

And keepin’ in real here… I work at our dining room table.  I usually just angle my photos so you don’t see the mess behind the camera, but I thought it would be kind of funny to see the real deal.

Christmas dining room decor

Instead of constantly trying to put away the wrapping mess, I actually made a centerpiece out of it.  A plate stand with ribbon, gift tags and a few other wrapping supplies allows for easy access but still being kind of festive.

On the way out the door, my beachy bookcase gets a Christmas treatment.  My favorite Fitz and Floyd Santa and some displays of red candy bring it together.

holiday decor using red candy

By the way, no one in our house is really a fan of candy canes and peppermints, so this is actually candy from 2011.  I store it in ziploc bags with my decor and pack it with silica gel.  It keeps just fine. (I do this with black licorice and orange gum drops for Halloween too.)

Storing christmas candy for use as decor

Our exterior is pretty simple too. We are going for “merry and bright” around here. Simple white lights and lots of greenery.
Front porch Christmas decor

We have a funky little ledge right outside our front door.  That has a simple garland and just like these DIY plaid wine glasses, I used the same treatment to add a little red plaid to these potted trees.

DIY plaid Christmas flower pots

So that’s pretty much it.  Merry Christmas to you and yours, and a very happy 2016!

Christmas decor

 

Filed Under: Christmas, decor

Comments

  1. Carolina says

    December 21, 2015 at 7:22 PM

    I love it! I don’t know how it differs from what you had in your head, but I think this looks beautiful!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

you might also like:

A Black and Gold Christmas: Holiday House tour
Last minute Christmas decorations in no time flat.

Quirky Christmas decor: a winter chair makeover with paint and epsom salt!
White and Gold Rustic Holiday Mantel Decor

Let It Snow: DIY Glitter Christmas Sled
Elegant and Easy Jeweled Fruit Wreath.

Holiday entertaining doesn’t need to be stressful… {5 Simple tips.}
clippings, Christmas trees, branches, greenery
Simple Christmas planters. (Using Christmas tree clippings.)

Make an easy Yarn Tree… in less than 5 minutes.
Holiday decorating using your own photos.

Recent Posts

  • Spooky porch decor and a Halloween Chair.
  • DIY Plaid Wine Glasses
  • Easy Sand-N-Sea Flower Pots
  • How to use an indoor chandelier outside.
  • Quesadillas made with slow cooker Carnitas. (Pork in a crock pot… nothing is easier.)
  • No Sew Project: How to recover your outdoor cushions using fabric and a glue gun.
  • Upcycle project: plain flower pot into decorative ceramic planter.
  • An easy Valentine’s Day globe.
  • Simple, winter themed decor. (Using what you already have, of course.)
  • Easy Goat Cheese Appetizer Recipe

Amazon Associates Disclosure

Vivienne Wagner is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Popular Posts

  • Cleaning Stove Burners & Grates using Ammonia (The best...
    Comments (617) | Jul 07, 2011
  • Easy Dessert Recipe: Oreo Cheesecake Bites
    Comments (64) | Mar 04, 2014
  • How to store fresh produce – From A to Zucchini.
    Comments (114) | Jan 25, 2012
  • No Sew Project: How to recover your outdoor cushions using f...
    Comments (101) | Mar 03, 2018
  • DIY wine bottle crafts.
    Comments (10) | Aug 22, 2013
Privacy

Copyright © 2023 The V Spot · Website by Houndstooth Media Group