by Brian Simkins
As folks get ready to decorate their homes for the holiday season you will see the true flavor of their decorating passions come to the forefront. While some choose to decorate their home in way that emphasize their traditional cultural background, others choose to transform their homes into a holiday wonderland by recreating the ambiance of a certain time period. However you choose to express yourself, here a few ideas that can help to fire up your imagination. Take your holiday decorating several steps beyond the few poinsettias that you usually put on the front porch.
The use of foliage is one of the most popular ways to create a feeling of holiday festivity in your home. Clear glass jars of winter berries and leafless branches are a great way to give your home a wintry feel without overloading on the holiday specific decorations. You can use holly to decorate over doorways and fireplace mantles if you prefer a more traditional holiday decorating scheme. Of course, no collection of holiday foliage would be complete without the mistletoe hanging over the doorway.
Smells are another way that you can add to the ambiance of your holiday inspired home. Fresh greenery such as pine boughs and pine cones work well. Not only does the fresh pine look warm and inviting, but it makes your home smell fresh and you may find the smell works very well to stir memories of holiday seasons past. A pot of potpourri simmering on the stove will fill your house with warm smells of cinnamon and peppermint. A huge variety of scented candles make it possible for you to flood your home with whatever smells you find to be the most pleasant, and the firelight in each room only adds to the warm feeling of holiday cheer.
If you are looking for a unique way to add to your holiday decorating collection, then you may want to consider a miniature holiday scene. Many folks find a great deal of joy in pulling out their holiday themed miniature villages every year and creating an entire small town of figurines, buildings, and complementary scenery. Even if you live in the tropics you can create your own winter wonderland right inside of your own home. How much space this kind of display occupies is entirely up to you. Additionally, this type of display can be something that you enjoy adding to every year. Make it a point to keep your eyes open for miniatures throughout the year and watch the size, scope, and detail of your display grow every holiday season. In many families these types of displays become heirlooms and they can be enjoyed every holiday season by the generations that follow you.
In many homes, the tradition of crafting hand made decorations every year is part of the holiday fun. Using hand made items like popcorn strings and paper ring chains to decorate you tree, banisters, and mantles will not only give your house a comfortable and lived in feel, but it is a great way to get the kids involved in the decorating process. You can use ideas like these to build your own family traditions when your kids are very young. You may be surprised some day to see them carry on the same decorating traditions with their own children someday. As an added bonus, you don’t have to worry about expensive decorations getting broken. If the kids are making their own special holiday decorations then you’ve really got nothing to lose, as they can just be remade next year.
Don’t get caught in the trap of thinking that there are no original holiday decorating ideas left. Turn on your creative self and get your kids to help. You will most likely find that they are full of great ideas and that they are more than willing to participate. Not only can you transform your home into the holiday retreat of your dreams, but you can have a great time doing it and begin establishing some long term family traditions that will burn brightly in the memories of your loved ones.
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