A Traditional and Classic Christmas Home Tour

I love to decorate my home in classic style for Christmas. The holidays for me are about time-tested Christmas traditions, family, and making memories. Traditional decorations conjure up that feeling of warmth and nostalgia for both you and your guests. Today I'm sharing the living room, entryway, and laundry room and tomorrow, I'll show you the basement and craft room. 

Christmas is the one time of the year when I decorate almost every room in our home. It doesn't have to be anything elaborate - sometimes some greenery or adorning decorative objects with ribbons is enough to make a space feel festive - but I love seeing touches of Christmas cheer around the house (like this one).

Let's start the tour in the heart of our home at Christmas, the living room.

The living room is where we entertain guests throughout the Christmas season and it's where we open gifts on Christmas morning. It's also the first room you see in our home so it deserves an extra special dose of the holiday spirit at this time of year.

This year's decor is all about plaid, velvet, and a palette of neutral greens and browns with accents of red and blue. Nothing too trendy or modern, it's classic Christmas decor that feels timeless and familiar. 

I decorated the Christmas mantel with equestrian touches and layered faux garlands. It's lush without being overwhelming. The velvet bows and cable knit stockings add texture and softness to the structured fireplace mantel.    

The striped rug is a new addition. It's from the Chris collection in the Chris Loves Julia x Loloi Rugs collaboration. I was surprised at how much brightness it brings to the space. It's plush and textured with a 100% wool pile and will stand up to the heavy traffic this room gets. The stripes are a classic pattern and fit with our overall preppy trad style.

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I love this view into the living room. Pocket doors will forever be my favourite old feature of this house. This room feels especially cozy when the doors are closed and the fire is roaring. Cue a snowfall outside and I never want to leave. You can even glimpse the Christmas wreath hanging outside the window.

Another view I love is this one towards the bench seat. Getting these custom built ins was the best decision we made when renovating this living room. It helped shorten this long room and created a focal point on this side of the space. The window bench seat is inviting year round but with decorative pillows, a chunky throw, and hot coffee within reach, it's irresistible.

This year, I've been more conscious about reusing the decor I already had. I did add just a few items but  sourced them from antique and thrift stores. It's a great way to make your decor feel fresh and unique. This vintage Santa is a new favourite. Judging by his tam o'shanter hat and plaid dress, I'm guessing he's Scottish.

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The bookshelves also contain some new-to-me old vintage items. The swan planter, the red berry wreath, and the pair of brass horn candle holders were all thrifted. The frame on the top shelf was thrifted as well and I've used it to display this free downloadable vintage art.

I've replaced my usual lamp with this vintage trophy lamp I inherited from my mother in law. It needs a new shade but I love the worn patina and adding a striped bow gives it a holiday spin. 

In fact, everything on this table is vintage. The books were from also my mother in law and the brass candle holder, the footed bowl, and frame were thrifted too. The art is another free download which you can find here. Mixing natural elements and items of different sizes and heights is one of the best creative ideas for effective styling.

What's your Christmas tree style? Do you love a flocked tree and snowy white Christmas ornaments? Is a minimal tree with natural accents and simple twinkling lights more to your liking?

No matter what color scheme or theme I have, I tend to follow the same steps in decorating our tree. Traditional Christmas decorations including round ornaments, picks, pine cones, and ribbons combine to create a textured and interesting look.

I've complemented the tree with presents wrapped in plaid giftwrap. Gift wrap is an easy way to reinforce your color palette and plaid is a classic pattern that works with most any type of decorating style. Here, the plaid colours work with the traditional red, blue and white of the tree.

We can always use extra seating at Christmas so I've placed two ottomans in front of the tree. Don't be afraid to mix patterns. I've got plaids, two sizes of stripes, and buffalo check in this room alone.

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We have a small entryway in our home. There's always people moving in and out of this area so any decorations have to be simple and keep out of the way in this small space. 

The stair garland is one element I incorporate every year. You can use real or artificial garland and follow this simple method to hang garland on your stairs without doing any damage.

I've tried different looks over the years but this one with bells and a long bow is one I keep coming back to. The stair garland is lovely on its own but its even more interesting when you see it in relation to the dining room and the mercury glass globes. A fun decor idea to try: put LED fairy lights into your dried hydrangea.

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You might not think to decorate a laundry room for Christmas but we just finished renovating ours a few months ago and I thought it would be fun to give it some holiday cheer.

Simple additions to the peg rail like a string of jingle bells and faux pine branches in a basket bring Christmas cheer. And yes, that is a burn mark on the custom ironing board cover. The same ironing board cover were I designed the fabric, had it printed, and spent a day sewing the cover myself. My husband says he left the iron down for just a second but you know, we're not going to talk about it anymore, lol.

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We're constantly doing laundry so I didn't add too many decorations that would just get in the way. I've hung another free vintage art print above the sink and the wood frame adds some warmth to this crisp and clean room.

Faux branches, a small pine tree, and a gingham tea towel lend a rustic country feel to the space. The Christmas pajamas are washed and folded and just waiting to be put away.

I hope you've enjoyed the tour of these spaces in my home. Come back tomorrow to see the craft room and the basement. 

Now head over and check out the rest of the homes on the Christmas Home Tour. Click on over to Mansa's house at This Is Simplicite and see her cheery and modern holiday home tour.

  The Happy Housie / Rambling Renovators / This is Simplicite / Modern Glam

  Life is a Party / Confessions of a Serial DIYer / Clean & Scentsible / Paint Me Pink