Merry and Bright Holiday Tour

Hey everyone! I’m so excited to be a part of my first Holiday Home Tour with some amazing bloggers. If you’re here from Amy Howard Social, welcome! Wasn’t her tour so much fun?

My name is Yuni and I’m a wife and mama to 3 spunky kids. I blog here at Love Your Abode about life, faith, and my love for all things home related. I love making our house a home and am always up to some DIY shenanigans! I hope that these tours inspire you to not only prepare your home but your heart for Christmas. Grab a cup of coffee, or if you’re like me, a cup of tea and come on in! 

Here’s our entrance area. As you can see, I decorated with a lot of greens this year. I put up an artificial garland above our doorway and let’s just say for a while it was the prickly garland vs. Yuni. I’m glad to say I finally won in the end after many attempts. I highly encourage wearing gloves when handling garlands as they can irritate your hands. I looked around the house and gathered things I thought would look good outside like the large rustic star, white metal basket, tall wicker vase, and logs from the fireplace. 

I used black and white ribbon and boxwood clippings from the backyard to decorate inside and outside the house.

A thrifted lantern filled with a variety of ornaments adds a touch of rustic charm.

The large wicker basket was taken from our master bedroom and I filled it with icy branches and hung jeweled ornaments off them. 

I took an old tray and made it into a chalkboard. Now, it displays a handwritten greeting to our guests. 

I created this door wreath last year for Christmas and hot glued DIY card stock leaves, artificial berries, and jeweled ornaments. 

When you enter our home, you’ll see the toy room on the right and our dining room turned office on the left. We have a long entryway with 2 separate staircases that lead up to the middle landing. 

The layout on the foyer table can vary as I keep mixing and matching things. It can take a few tries before I’m happy with the final result.

I love adding bits of vintage decor here and there like this old coke crate. I filled it with ornaments and just placed it on a chair that I reupholstered with plaid fabric a while back. Three years ago, I sewed red plaid stockings for our family. I usually have them hanging on the mantle but decided to hang them on the stairs this year. 

I continued the black and white ribbon theme to hang up the stockings.

I finally decided on a more simple table with less decorations. I got the topiaries for free when I visited a garage sale. I painted the bottoms white and tied sage colored silk ribbon around them. My sweet MIL brought me the red poinsettia the other day, so I put it next to the basket. She also gave us the santa pillow. Isn’t that pom pom blanket amazing? It’s from Nordstrom Rack and is the softest blanket ever! 

I was excited to have our very first nativity! I found this one for $2 last year after Christmas! My youngest loves to play with it and so sadly, Mary has already been broken and glued together once. Nothing a little glue gun can’t fix!

In the toy room, we have a large bay window area where we like to put up our big tree. I let the kids go to town and decorate it however they want. I give them free reign so they basically use every last ornament they can find. I just put up the burlap ribbon and ornaments on the hard to reach areas. I have to remind myself these are the memories they will hold onto to. Even my youngest was old enough this year to join in on the fun!

Special keepsake ornaments are all hung on this tree. I love taking these ornaments out every year because they are so sentimental. 

The kids had a blast and were proud of their tree. They did a great job! 

We also started our Advent tree yesterday where we learn about the names and attributes of for God. The kids take turns placing one ornament on the tree everyday. I provided a free printable so that you can print out your own set of ornaments!

We’ve already started to put a few Christmas gifts under the tree from extended family. I used simple wrapping that I’ll share in another post soon.

I love how it looks at night from the outside!

On the opposite side of the toy room, you’ll see my office area.

I kept it relatively simple with some mini faux trees wrapped in burlap and long candle holders.

I love to cook, bake, and entertain, so I have a thing for cake platters. 

As you walk down the hallway, it leads to our family room. We have a smaller tree that we like to keep in this corner of the room. I used a buffalo check ribbon from Michaels for the tree and kept the ornaments on the metallic and pink shades. My in laws used to own a flower shop and a home decor importing business so the majority of our Christmas decorations came from them. I know… lucky us! Last year, I made a simple white felt tree skirt with black pom poms after I saw Courtney at A Thoughtful Place do it for her tree. A silver reindeer sits atop as the tree topper. 

Because we have a very bold pink rug in this room, I wanted to go lighter with the decor as to not compete with the rug. Who says you can’t mix gold and silver together? I think it looks especially beautiful when it’s incorporated into your Christmas decor. 

I love using simple wooden crates or baskets to hold extra ornaments. It’s just plain pretty! I really loved putting together this palette of colors into the tree.

I knew I wanted to have a large chalkboard on top of the mantle. I took a big piece of plywood and just chalk painted over it. I typically use chalk markers but for this, I used regular chalk. It was harder to write with but I was going for a more free hand, imperfect look.

I used a simple artificial garland from Walmart and hung some dollar store gold ornament garlands off the sides. Simple white pitchers add a country touch.

I also hung my DIY pom pom garland on the mantle. I love incorporating books into my decor. 

That awesome garden chair used to live in our parents’ flower shop. 

These cool antler candle holders were our souvenirs when my husband and I went to Myrtle Beach last weekend. 

Here’s how it looks all lit up!

Right next to this room is our open kitchen. We have an open floor plan which we love. 

I have a bit of a wreath addiction. I just love having them everywhere! I cut up one of my husband’s old plaid pajamas and used them as ribbon to tie around all the wreaths in the kitchen. Resourcefulness is my middle name. I kept this shelf simple with some pinecones and a recent picture of the kids. 

Another bowl sits pretty on our Asian console table with jeweled and fruit themed ornaments.

Our tiered wooden tray holds some cinnamon sticks, fresh rosemary, and other decor that transition between Fall and Winter. 

Fresh rosemary from my SIL’s backyard adds a simple touch to the counter. I changed out the previous burlap ribbons on the wreaths for plaid ones. It adds a subtle Christmas touch.

A Christmas tea towel sits on my rustic vegetable basket. 

When Christmas draws near, I bring out my huge wooden bowl and place it in the island and fill it with all kinds of fruit. I find that we eat a lot more healthy snacks when they are readily available and visible.

This is our first Christmas in our home after our DIY kitchen makeover.

Christmas mugs are out for daily use near the coffee and tea station. My Instagram friend, Stephanie from Simply Lovely Lumber gifted me the beautiful sign a while back. 

I change out the wording on our DIY chalkboard once in a while. I cut some boxwood clippings from outside and made a mini wreath and added it here with some black and white ribbon. I love having scripture placed throughout the home and it’s one of my favorite ways to decorate. There’s something powerful about reading these truths day in and day out. 

Thank you so much for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed the tour! I didn’t do anything upstairs because honestly, it’s a mess up there! A little disclaimer: my house does not look this clean the majority of days! I have 3 kids and a husband so keep that in mind when touring my home and all the others in blogland. These tours are for inspiration and my hope is that it inspires and encourages you to use your own creativity as you prepare your homes during this advent season. 

Don’t forget to go to the next tour on the blog hop at M Jones Style! You don’t want to miss it! 

*Edit* Here’s Part Two and Three. Make sure to check out my tablescapes and other ideas I put together! 

Here’s the lineup of the other awesome bloggers!

 

<><yuni

You, O LORD, reign forever; your throne endures from generation to generation. Lamentations 5:9