Happy Monday all, and welcome to the holiday weekend wrap up.  It was a busy one!  This weekend I finished decorating, baked my favorite gingerbread as well as soft sugar cookies (that taste as good as they look) and wrapped gifts.  I am focusing today’s post on holiday decorating and Buffalo check style finds but promise to share my recipes and gift wrap ideas in the coming days.

It’s a Buffalo Check Christmas

As I shared before in my wreath tutorial (making your supermarket wreath look good:) I love this year’s trend of buffalo check.  I am craving a homey, warm Christmas atmosphere inside and out.  The cheerful red combined with the black check fits the bill.  Never one to be reticent I will admit right now that I may have gone overboard.  Is it bad to buy a matching buffalo check scarf for your dog?  GG and I had some fun (and there were plenty of treats for her patience!).  I found both the dress and scarf at Old Navy which is always a good source of affordable fashion and usually right on trend.  I bought a sweater too.

Buffalo Check Ribbon

I love using ribbon to decorate, and I used the buffalo check ribbon to trim my garland on the deck and found an adorable basket with…you guessed it buffalo check.  I picked up some bright red pillows too.  This little scene is what I see from our kitchen sink so I try to always have something cute to look at for every season.  As I mentioned in my how to make your supermarket wreath beautiful – I also used the buffalo check ribbon and trimmed the wreath with berries and pine cones.

Deep Red Berries in a White Pitcher

It is the small things in life right?  And, sometimes the best decorating is simple and inexpensive.  I found these artificial stems at Michaels and put them in this white pitcher. The pitcher was a wedding gift and from the Museum of Modern Art in New York (I like this one from Target too)  I love the deep red of the berries next to the white pitcher. I keep moving it around the house as it adds such a nice pop of color.  I could see these berries in vintage jars as well.

Holiday Tablescape

We had a nice family dinner Saturday night.  I adore the white village theme that Pottery Barn showcased this year.  I found these mini ornaments with a similar look at Christmas Tree Shop (see below).  Paired with a pine cone, some red candles and with my jacquard Santa and his sleigh Williams Sonoma tablecloth, it made such a cozy and festive table. 

Ornaments are a fun way to add some festive touches to your holiday table and are often inexpensive and easier to store than an entire village.

Holiday Mantle Decorating Tutorial

Lastly, I love using natural products to decorate.  First, I like to support our local farms and nurseries.  Second, I do not have to store anything – I just add to our compost when the holiday is over.  If you are in the Fairfield County area, Town and Country nursery has a lovely Christmas shop.  I purchased fresh magnolia and boxwood bunches.  I prefer these greens as they do not leak sap!  One year it took me forever to remove the sap from the mantle after using pine branches.  Here is how I decorated our mantle (see below for pictures):

1. Lay down the magnolia branches.  Step back to see what it looks like and adjust the leaves accordingly.  Also, trim any errant stems.
2. Layer on the boxwood using the same technique of stepping back.
3. I love candles and use our existing candles to flank either end.  chasing some faux lighted candles.
4. Add touches.  You can be creative here.  I used some vintage looking ornaments from Magnolia home mixed in with some pinecones and silver ornaments sprinkled throughout.
5. You could add some lights too with a strand of white battery operated lights.

Well I hope you enjoyed this post on holiday decorating and Buffalo check style finds. Please check back in for some recipes and more and I would love to hear about your holiday decorating and planning.