Timeless Christmas Decorating

Trends come and go, but it can be exhausting and expensive to keep up.

I prefer a timeless Christmas decorating approach for a classic holiday season home.

When I was a little girl, Christmas decorating was the highlight of the season. Our everyday home was transformed into a holiday wonderland full of tinsel, lights and great anticipation.

My brother and I would rifle through boxes of red and green, peeling away layers of newspaper to uncover sentimental favorites, while my sisters assembled the tree.

It was a lovely time that I can still recall in great detail, even though I was less than a decade old.

There were no rules, my mom gave us free rein with the decor and we always went crazy, covering every surface with elves and Santas and nativity sets.

In my childhood home, there was no such thing as too much Christmas.

It's a motto I lived by as a homeowner, as well. For years, I shopped obsessively, buying holiday decor at a rapid-fire pace and I can't say I was very discerning. For the right price, I bought it all.

Then, like my mom, I would pack away my everyday decor and fill the empty spaces with my own elves, Santas and nativity sets.

Once the kids came along Elmo, Charlie Brown and the entire cast of Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer joined the scene.

Until.

A few years ago, my fabulous, full, Christmas house and all its trendy decor began to smother me. I'm not sure why exactly, but for some reason, it all needed to go. I barely wanted ornaments on the tree.

Since then, each year when the buckets come out, I cull a little more, keeping only the most treasured pieces and a few adorable sentimental favorites.

What I have in my home now, are timeless Christmas decorations. Santas, white lights, candles, trees, flowers, nativity sets and the color red. They're things that have been in style forever because they're classics.

And with just a few of them peppered about my small home, they stand out more so I can truly appreciate them.

Santa is a Christmas icon, so I have several. I used to have a lot more, but this year, I tossed all the junkie ones, the broken ones and unless they were vintage pieces, the older ones.

Oh and for the record, timeless doesn't have to be expensive.

A few weeks ago, I picked this fun pair of the Mr. and his Mrs. up for a buck and they're currently my favorites.

They decorate my kitchen along with a few other aforementioned holiday staples, flowers, candlelight and red. In this case, I've used apples.

Sitting atop a faux wreath and coupled with a pair of votive candles, which were also a buck, I've created a warm and festive centerpiece that would look at home in any decade.

In the background, I filled my white pitcher with grocery store flowers.

Roses of any color add to a room no matter the season, but I find that I'm drawn to white ones at Christmas.

Maybe it's because my husband gave me a dozen of them on our first Christmas together.

Maybe it's because they compliment the lights that I have hanging in my windows or maybe it's the fact that they play so well against the red.

Perhaps it's all three, but I guess the bottom line is that I adore the way they look in my kitchen.

They're cheaper than evergreens, which don't bode well with my allergies and can be messy after a while, but they bring life into the room and a sophisticated air.

I usually buy two dozen of them, for about $15 and split them up around the room.

I find that the repetition of a certain element leads to a clean, cohesive look, so I do the same with my faux apples.

They're on my island, on my pine server and on my desk, snuggled up in my half a pig bowl.

Of course, the best part about all of these holiday accessories, is that they're not really Christmas decorations.

So packing and unpacking is not a big deal.

The majority of these items are thrown away (like the flowers) or just reused throughout the year.

They are timeless decor pieces that when paired with a little greenery or a Santa and some lights, become extremely festive.

My family room decorating was even simpler, since the majority of that room is already red and green. 

Convenient, huh?

There are lights in the windows, a small pre-lit tree and the apple candle ring I made this fall, more repetition.

Other than that I just added a new pillow cover for some seasonal flair.

Pillows will never go out of style and the covers are so inexpensive now, it's something I can afford to splurge on...especially since a pattern like this one will look current forever.

I used the same trick in my bedroom this year.

A new pillow makes all the difference, just enough to bring the season into my master, but it doesn't clutter the space.

And again, this pillow and its pattern will stand the test of time.

The living room is the place where most of my Christmas decor resides.

However, even this room has been put on a decoration diet.

While my house was built for summers at the beach, this particular room was made for Christmas.

It's all about that stone fireplace and ceiling beams and by cutting back on the Christmas decor, the room itself is the star.

Like a beautiful woman in a black gown and simple strand of pearls, the room is elegant and understated dressed in less.

It may not suit your particular taste, but there's no arguing, it's classic Christmas.

The tables are clear except for a lighted church, a nativity set my mom gave me and my grandmother's gold gilded glasses that I recently dug out of storage.

They hold tiny votives and look just dreamy.

I decided that they needed to be seen.

Tucked away in a box or a cabinet was no way to enjoy them. And with less in the room, these heirloom beauties take centerstage.

The tree is topped with a red cardinal, a gift from my cousin, in remembrance of my mom.

And the evergreen branches are decorated with very few red bulbs and only a handful of our most special ornaments.

The lights are the true star of this season.

The packages are decked out in traditional red and brown paper and while I originally bought these bags to make Christmas signs, I decided that I didn't really need any more decor.

What I needed was a stylish place to keep my wrapping supplies.

So that's what's hiding inside.

A few more votives, red paper stars in a galvanized bucket, my Merry Christmas sign, a couple of cherished Santas and an unadorned pair of old wooden skis.

Another gift, from a dear aunt and uncle, surround the fireplace.

Sometimes, I sit in here and think that this room could've looked exactly like this when the house was first built, way back in the 1920's.

Simple touches to celebrate the season.

A tree illuminated by the warm glow of a few candles.

Packages wrapped in paper.

Perhaps a Santa sitting on the mantle or a bouquet of flowers on the table.

Classic decorations.

Timeless symbols of the season.

Once again at home, in my home.

And what could be better than that?

Merry Christmas, Friends!