Here are some easy and creative ways to decorate for winter even if you’re broke after Christmas.
Hello everyone and Happy New Year! I absolutely love January 1st! I firmly believe that you can make changes to your life at any time, but there’s just something about a new year that feels like a fresh new start. It’s a totally blank slate and a time for new beginnings. To me, the new year feels clean, open, and filled with child-like anticipation for what’s to come.
??????I’m so ready for it…2019- LET’S DO THIS!??????
With the start of the new year, I’ve begun taking down all the Christmas decor. I love the process of decluttering and simplifying, but I can’t help but miss the twinkle lights and the cozy warm feeling that the Christmas decor adds to our home.
If you missed my 2018 mini Christmas tour, you can check it out {HERE}.
Maybe you’re also feeling like your house is looking a tad stark and cold as the Christmas decor is getting tucked away.
In that case, I’ve decided to share with you some easy and creative ways to decorate for winter even if you’re broke after Christmas. Let’s just be honest here…who could benefit from a little “No Spend January” to add a bit more cushion to the bank account this time of year? I know my hand is raised! ?♀️?♀️?♀️
Here I rounded up a little collection from Amazon to show how easily you could decorate for winter. The resources are listed below for your convenience, but you’ll probably find that you have similar items already without having to buy anything new. Hooray to that my friends!
This post contains affiliate links. You can read my full disclosure {HERE}.
Sources:
- Fur Throw
- Gray Throw
- Cable Knit Pillow
- Fur Throw Pillows
- Birch Logs
- Winter Glow by Yankee Candle
- Mercury Glass Twinkle Lights
- Winter Wreath
- Flocked Pine Cone Garland
- Lantern
To decorate for winter, there are a few elements that I’d like to you to keep in mind, but first, let’s do a little brainstorming activity…
Let’s Ponder the Idea of Winter (bear with me, ya’ll!)
When I think about winter, my brain automatically thinks of a snowy landscape. Close your eyes and play along with me here…
I envision bare trees with their woody branches showing, snowy hills and mountains, and a gray winter sky. It’s just about dusk and the stars are starting to twinkle through the hazy clouds.
There’s a cute little cottage not too far off and I can see the warm glow of the interior lights shining through the windows. The cottage has a fireplace and there’s smoke swirling out from the chimney and I can smell the smokiness of a wood fire.
Are you envisioning??!! Mmmmm, dreamy right?!! Now take my slightly over-exaggerated vision of winter (ha!) and bundle up all those ideas to implement in your home.
Here’s how you could do it…
Bring Nature In:
In order to bring nature in, think of greenery, logs, wood tones, and decor elements in grays and whites. For this, you could easily leave up some of your Christmas garlands. Obviously, you’d want to remove anything that screams ‘Christmas’ or that has red berries or jingle bells, but anything that resembles those bare or evergreen trees are a win here.
If you have evergreen trees in your yard, consider snipping off some branches to use as a centerpiece on your coffee or dining table. You could also line this up along your fireplace mantel if you have one. This could also be done with bare tree branches. Cut a handful of bare twigs in different lengths, arrange them in a vase to create a wintery centerpiece for your dining room table.
I found this pretty winter wreath, pinecone garland, and set of birch logs as an example of some other decor items that could help bring in those natural elements.
Use Gray and White:
It’s no secret that I love decorating with gray and white. But again when I think about winter, I think about white snow and that gray winter sky. You could use pillows, throws, placemats, or crisp white bedding to bring in those same colors.
The great thing about decorating with grays and whites is that they are neutral, meaning, that they coordinate with any type of decor. No need to make a huge shift in your home decor, just bring in a few items in these colors. Shop your own house to do this, I’m sure you have things that you could already use!
Think Cozy!
In winter we want to feel warm and cozy. While I like my clothes to feel warm and cozy, I also want my house to feel that way too. In addition to decorating with grays and whites, think about the texture of the materials you’re using.
I like to use faux fur throws, cable knit pillows, and plush fuzzy pillows. It’s like our human form of a winter fur coat! I also like to decorate in layers for winter-kinda like how you would dress up to go out in the cold. You want lots of layers, fluff, and dimension to your decor.
An example of this would be how I might decorate my living room sofa and chairs. I’d probably start out by fluffing up my sofa to make it look nice and plush. I’d then drape over one or two faux fur throws, and then add on another layer of cozy throw pillows. These would be in different textures of cable knit, faux fur and perhaps velvet or velour.
You’re getting the right idea! Cozy. Soft. Warm.?
Decorate with Fire:
Gah, sounds a bit dangerous! But bringing in some sort of fire element reminds us of a warm and crackling fireplace. It also adds light and ambiance. If you have a fireplace, light that bad boy up and use it often throughout the winter. If you don’t have a fireplace, you could easily add in the fire element by using candles-either real or LED, twinkly lights, and sparkly candle votives. I don’t have a fireplace, but I do love to use the WoodWick brand of candles (there’s actually a scent named Fireside!) to give me that same crackling sound.
The candle below is from Yankee Candle, I have this in my house and it smells delicious.
If you haven’t put away all of your Christmas decorations yet, I’d leave out a few strands of your white twinkle lights and string those around your house. My favorite place to use these is on top of my china hutch and TV armoire. I also like to string them along the top of my curtains or even behind my curtains to sparkle through.
If you have any decor lanterns in your home, bust those out too. You can fill them with LED candles to get a pretty flicker, but you could also add outdoor elements in these too. Try using pinecones, evergreen twigs, or small wood logs.
A word of caution here, I’d just stick with the flameless candles if you were adding the natural elements in your lanterns.
Mercury glass is one of my all-time favorite metals to use during winter. If you have any mercury glass items, pull them out and make them the front and center of your winter decor. Place lit candles around it and watch as the mercury glass reflects and twinkles from the flames. Above, I’ve found a set of twinkle lights made of mercury glass. Gosh, could you imagine that gorgeous glow! Lovely!
Time to Snuggle In
Alright friends, I hope you’ve found some creative and inexpensive ways to decorate for winter, especially if you’re feeling a little broke from Christmas. Most of these ideas can be used with natural elements you have in your yard and/or decor items you already have in your home. Let me know in the comments below what ideas you’ll be using in your own home while decorating for winter.
Sources:
- Fur Throw
- Gray Throw
- Cable Knit Pillow
- Fur Throw Pillows
- Birch Logs
- Winter Glow by Yankee Candle
- Mercury Glass Twinkle Lights
- Winter Wreath
- Flocked Pine Cone Garland
- Lantern
Thanks for playing along with me as we pondered the idea of winter together. I encourage you to go cozy up your home before we all settle in for Ol’ Man Winter.
Now let me log off here and get the rest of this Christmas decor packed up and get my own home ready for the new year.
Wishing you a cozy winter home and a fabulous new year!
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