15 Days and Counting!!

I think I may be one of those few folks who just loves the Christmas holiday season. Mind you, when I lived in Manhattan, I quickly grew tired of the season, what with all the pre-Christmas shopping, ads, and commercialization. Now that I live in an actual house though, my opinions about Christmas have changed entirely.

I can't wait for Friday, November 23 for two reasons: 1. Black Friday sales. 2. I get to decorate the house for Christmas. I'll post my joys about Black Friday in another post. This post is about the No. 2--boy, do I love to decorate for Christmas.

Last year, I gathered myself for a trip to the dollar store (you'd be amazed at the deals you can find there that don't cost an arm and a leg). Actually practically everything I bought for the Christmas decorations came from the Dollar Store, the sales rack at K-mart, and a trip to Kirkland's (a discount home store).

If you are smart and careful, you can decorate your entire house for Christmas (assuming you already have a tree) for under $25. See, while I do remain against the commercialization of Christmas, I am in favor of decorating to the hilt!!

Last year, I did up the house and front porch. I had fake garland ($5.00) on my fireplace mantel surrounded by candles (given as gifts from various dinners I've thrown). I put up a fake Christmas tree in my living room (I am allergic to real/live Christmas trees). I put up red ribbons (3 at $1.00 ea) on my porch railing. I had individual artificial candles in my windows (3 at $1.00 ea). My place screamed Christmas every day and I listened to Christmas music on my stereo and piped through my computer on Pandora (free).

This year, I may do all the above again with a few changes. I want to repaint my fireplace a deep velvet red, (it's pink right now because of a mixed up understanding with the paint store and my originally intended salmon color). The pink actually accents my mahogany furniture nicely however, I am thinking it's time for a change and what better time to do that than during the Christmas season. I am also going to put red swaths of fabric on my curtain rods.

And, I want to put up more things on my mantle to include: a wooden Merry Christmas decoration, the old garland, a Christmasy picture, I'll try and have something nice and cheap from The Christmas Shoppe (right now I have a modern interpretation of the Lord's Supper, a gift from my last congregation), and two lanterns I saw at Target the other day.

Besides the Christmas tree indoors, I am going to put a fake silver tree that I purchased from UrbanOutfitters on the front porch decorated with small and cute ornaments. I'll put back up the red ribbons on the porch railing and might also string lights on the railing--I have found anything that I like just yet. Ideally I want these Christmas lights I saw somewhere (I can't remember where) that are solar-powered thus not having to run a power cord through my window on the porch.

I'll also put Chrismasy decorations throughout the house. And, to help make the Christmas spirit ring even truer, I'll have an open-house Christmas party for the church.

I just love this kind of decorating. My Thanksgiving decorations were fun too and the place looks and feels very fall-like. Although I think it's past time to discard the pumpkins. They are starting to turn. Yuck.