I told my husband the other day that my whole goal in getting dressed each day was to wear clothing that feel like I have on sweats but that don’t actually look like sweats.
Don’t get me wrong, the minute I get home I’m eagerly pulling on those glorious elastic waistband pants (come to mama!) and an over-sized sweatshirt that gives a detailed map of all of the paint colors I have ever encountered.
But, I’ve decided that when I’m out in public (for the most part!) I’m going to attempt to wear what would be considered non-work-out wear.
That doesn’t mean it can’t be soft and comfortable though!
And when it comes to decorating my house for winter, I’m taking the same approach.
I want my home to look like it has on ‘real’ clothes but feel like my favorite warm and comfy sweats…minus the paint stains of course!
Winter decorating has always felt slightly intimidating to me. But not this year! Why you ask?
Well, I gave myself a wonderful gift and it all began back when I started decorating my home for Christmas.
I was intentional. I was determined. I was a woman on a mission.
I was going to make that transition from Christmas decor to Winter decor as seamless as possible by using items that would do double duty.
For example, Christmas time in my foyer included a monogram themed tree and a table top with a winter sleigh in faux snow.
When it came time to pack everything away, I simply kept out the sleigh, took the top part of the monogram tree off and placed it in a basket. A mercury glass candle adds a bit of sparkle.
My living room mantel looked like this all dressed up for Christmas.
All it took was removing the garland and keeping the urns with branches and dried hydrangeas to help it transition to a more winter-y feel.
And with a few simple changes my family room went from this…
To this.
The soft glow of these (battery operated!) candles make this room so cozy at night.
You see, decorating is supposed to be fun. It’s supposed to come from a desire to express your personality through your home.
It’s not supposed to be complicated, stressful or anxiety inducing.
So, I do things like this…placing ornaments in a wire basket for Christmas…
…and then, after packing those ornaments away, placing some ball thingy-ma-jigers (that’s totally the technical term by the way!) into that same wire basket without it ever having to be moved.
Pine cones placed inside these trophy style pieces have been sitting there, just like that, since Fall.
So really they are doing triple duty working for Fall, Christmas AND on through Winter!
If the rest of the house is like glorified sweats, then the dining room is like the pretty scarf or necklace that you throw on to try and distract people from the glorified sweats.
Just a tad more fanc-i-fied but still requiring very little effort.
Want to know a secret? Sometimes I don’t want to go through all the work of getting out of my grubby sweatshirt and leggings to run errands or pick up the kids from school so I will just throw on my cute black rain coat over them, add a fun scarf and my black riding boots and I’m good to go!
Of course, I pray that no one asks me to sit down and take my coat off because otherwise they would get to see the map of all of the paint colors I’ve used over the years! 😉
To me, winter is the time for hibernating. For hunkering down together as a family and just being.
We spend more time actually inside our home during this time of the year than any other.
And I want it to be a place that envelopes us…like being wrapped up in a warm and cozy blanket.
I want to feel a sense of calm and peace after the hectic holiday schedule.
To curl up on the couch with a good book even if I get interrupted a million and one times.
I used to feel that I just had to ‘grin and bear it’ through winter. Just bide my time until Spring.
But now, well, I’m determined to try and appreciate each day. Even the cold, dreary rainy ones.
Because, hey! At least I get to spend them in my sweats!
I’m so excited to be joining all of these amazing bloggers for this Creating a Cozy Home Tour!
Here’s the line-up for the week and I encourage you to pop over and visit these ladies for tons of ideas and inspiration:
Monday, January 13th
Tuesday, January 14th
Wednesday, January 15th
Thursday, January 16th
Friday, January 17th
And, as always, I’m so thrilled that you took the time to come and visit me here today At the Picket Fence,
we must look like twins somedays except I think I have a few more paint stains! great ideas to transition the home from christmas to winter. Your home is beautiful Vanessa.
I’m all with you on the clothing attire! I’m also trying to better out in public! LOL! Your transition from Christmas to winter is just beautiful! Thanks for the ideas! ~Christy
Gorgeous. I love your vignettes and the transition is seamless and so beautiful. Hugs, Marty
Beautiful!
You have beautifully transitioned from Christmas to Winter so effortlessly….looks so very warm, cozy and simply enchanting…
Love your easy transitions from Christmas to winter!! Your home is gorgeous, and you have so many easy, yet beautiful ideas to emulate.
Mary Alice
I love your simple changes and way of thinking, Vanessa. Cute post!
I loved that little basket when it had ornaments in it…but the decorative balls are even cuter. 🙂
Happy day to you,
karianne
PS I have one of those shirts, too!
Vanessa your transition from Christmas to Winter is absolutely beautiful!! I LOVE the way your mantel looks with just the urns filled with hydrangeas…so pretty!!
Beautiful transition from Christmas to Winter…and I love the baskets on your mantel! Glad to be touring with you today!
I was totally going to do the same type of post!!!! Until we tore apart my craft room and I’ve spent the last week we’ve a sick husband and kid, traveling 2 hours a day to take my kids to driver’s ed. Needless to say, there are no new decorations in my house, just the old ones waiting to be placed elegantly (like yours) since Christmas!
Where did you get those beautiful plates on the wall in the first photo? Gorgeous!
Vanessa – you were so smart and did a masterful job of thinking ahead when you were decorating your home for Christmas. All of your winter touches are beautifully cozy. I really enjoyed partying with you this week at the Cozy Home Tour!
I would love to know where you got all of your small boxwood? So pretty!
Vanessa, I adore the way you showed us all how you went from the holidays to winter. Your mantels are amazing! You home looks so well appointed and cozy! LOVE the soft wintry colors colors in your home!
How fun to see how you went from Christmas to Winter decor! Beautiful, lovely ideas.
Totally agree. The moment I get home I though on the workout gear! lol You did a nice job on the house. Looks wintery but not Christmasy..
Heather, I think I had asked you before about what you were doing to acheive your weight loss. I can’t remember what program you said it was. I live in Louisiana and don’t know if that is possible here. Could you email me or call me 985-630-4785 and give me a heads up on what you’re doing. You look fantastic!
Your home looks beautiful, what a lovely transition from Christmas to winter! Love your beautiful vignettes. Perfect touches for a cozy home♥
Love that curvy mirror above the fireplace! So pretty!
Girl, I am so with you about making home (and yourself) cozy and comfy in the winter. I’m taking a cue from my 7-year-old, who is currently refusing to wear any pants with buttons! Sweats and elastic waistbands all the way!
I’ve tried to be intentional with my winter decorating, as well, repurposing what I could from Christmas. When I shop the after-Christmas sales, for instance, I always look for things that have legs beyond December. I’m living with lots of silver and mercury glass, pine cones and snowy accents right now.
A lot of people say the house feels cold or empty after Christmas, but I kind of like taking down and packing up Christmas and living with less. Less to dust, leaving more time for snuggling and relaxing by the fire.
Lovely tips, as always.
Such a cute post and I love your decorating style….your home is beautiful and timeless!
Signed,
I’d dress in yoga pants every day if my family would let me 🙂
Vanessa –
I love how your transitioned your decor from Christmas to winter with such ease! You’re right – decorating doesn’t have to be complicated or time consuming! Sometimes I get too caught up in the details! You definitely captured the cozy, relaxed look you were going for!
Me too! I dread winter and wish it away every year…but this year I determined to embrace it and enjoy the quiet, reflective days.
Your home looks beautiful…like a blanket on cold day. 😉
Really the ideas are adorable and they look absolutely fabulous indeed 🙂
I love how you seamlessly went from your Christmas decor to your Winter decor with just a few simple and do-able changes. The two mantels are my FAVES. But I also love the foyer and especially those monogrammed ornaments. TOO, too cute. Have a great weekend. xxoo, Barb
Vanessa I just absolutely LOVE these ideas!! I always feel a little down when I’m packing all the fun Christmas stuff away, but leaving some “winter” themed decorations is an awesome idea! Thanks for your beautiful, inspiring home!
Beautiful Winter decor! So happy to be on the Cozy Home Tour with you!
I love how easily you made the transition from Christmas to winter! Everything looks so cozy! Have a great weekend!…hugs…Debbie
Love how you transitioned from Christmas to winter warmth Vanessa!
I love decorating for Christmas, but I’m starting to really fall in love with the transition from Christmas to winter. It’s refreshing to take everything down and replace it with something clean and simple. Your winter decor is gorgeous!
Vanessa, I love the simple changes!! AND I totally do the “throw on coat and scarf to hide what’s underneath” bit! 😉
Your home is so beautiful!!
~Angela
Everything is so beautiful! I just LOVE how you’ve decorated your foyer 😉
Hugs,
Jamie @ somuchbetterwithage.com
Vanessa, I love how you showed the Christmas scenes then how you changed everything up for January. It’s all very warm and inviting no matter what the season is. Beautifully done my friend!
Somehow this January decor has been much easier due in part I think to all the great decorating blogs and a little preplanning when I did my Christmas decorating. Now I have left some mercury glass candle holders on the mantle, pine cones and faux evergreens and some little white lights woven in my ficus tree. Also have some beautiful white Amaryllis in bloom that adds to the winter white theme. Will probably add a Valentine vignette in February but will leave winter decorations up till March.