Christmas 2014 and a House Walk Link Party

Welcome to our Christmas 2014 Home!

Just like last year, I am linking this up to Jennifer Rizzo's Link Party. If you missed the house walk, where amazing bloggers show off their Christmas homes you can check it out by clicking HERE.

 Christmas came early this year when we had our carpet in the front room and dining room replaced with hardwood. Original honey oak (eww) hardwood throughout the entry, hallway, kitchen and powder room was sanded down and all the hardwood was refinished in ebony with a matte finish. I am IN LOVE with my new floors, I could not be happier with how they turned out. And it made dressing the house for Christmas oh, so fun.

 You will notice there are no area rugs yet. Two reasons for this, I heard you should wait 6 months to put down area rugs after having hardwoods done or refinished. This will not happen folks, can't wait that long, but I promised myself I could wait a couple months at least. Secondly, I have to be patient because I asked the big guy in the red suit for a beautiful rug for the front room and I've tried to be extra good so fingers crossed for Christmas morning...

 I like a VERY neutral palette. I am all about whites, grays, and beige that I can add pops of color to. Simple white couches from IKEA do the trick and adding pops of red and nature's green are set off against the neutral background. 

Many of my finds are from vintage shops and shows around my Pacific Northwest home. My favorite finds this year: the vintage gray toboggan that brings back childhood memories of my dad taking me and my siblings down the snowy hills and the amazing vintage trophy I found for a steal ($12!) 

 The Dining Room still holds my favorite piece of all time. The table I created from an old crate my dad has had lying around for nearly 20 years. He had a large machine shipped from Germany and it came in a crate that weathered nicely over the years. I sanded and cleaned up a piece of it, added legs and I absolutely never get tired of looking at it, or dressing it for holidays. My favorite new finds: the rustic, chunky Christmas tree I found recently at Home Goods, and the church pew I found at a vintage show. It was a nasty green but with lots of sanding and white paint I made it mine.

 Our family room is the heart of our home so decorations have to stay a bit more relaxed here. This is where Christmas morning will happen. We kept the room cozy and didn't take up the carpet, too much wrestling and playing goes on here, hardwood would be rough on little knees. Loads of burlap and simple nature greens give it a homey feel. The laurel leaf wreath stayed...I have challenged myself to do year around mantel decor without removing it. Adding my daughter's old skates gave it the Christmas pop it needed. Christmases that hail back to a simpler, more humble time is what speaks Christmas to my heart and my decor in this room is intended to reflect that. Homemade stockings, natural fibers and fabrics, brown paper packaging, tubs and crates from days gone by.

 And on our way out, our porch.

Again, hailing back to simpler times with a vintage sled and crate, vintage inspired banner, wreaths and natural greens.

Merry Christmas from my family to yours.