Favorite Christmas Traditions Series: Santa Exploded

Every year, Santa explodes in my house.  Ok, Santa Clause didn't actually explode in my house, but it sure looks like he did!  I do Christmas decor in a major way.  If it can be decorated, draped, hung from, or otherwise decorate-able, it is.  Every square inch of my home is decorated for Christmas, which has led to my family (and friends) describing it as looking like "Santa walked in and exploded all over everything...twice."  It may sound obnoxious, but I feel that there's only once a year when I can get outrageous with my decor, so I may as well go big!


Welcome to Part 2 of my 10-part series highlighting my family's favorite Christmas Traditions.  If you missed Part 1, go ahead and read it.  :)

I have collected (through yard sales and church sales) 3 Christmas trees.  I put one in the front entry as my "show" tree.  I decorate this one with all the really pretty, coordinated decorations I've collected over the years.  I put the second in the living room as the "family" tree.  This gem has all of our family favorite ornaments and all the ornaments the kids have made over the years.  It's a hodge podge of ornaments and garland, but it somehow works and is usually the tree with the most character each year.  My third tree is a much smaller tree that I put in a large open area at the top of my stairs.  This one is decorated with whatever ornaments and such that's left over from the other  trees.  We've collected, made, and been given so many ornaments over the years, we easily have enough to fill all three trees.  the upstairs tree is to decorate a usually left-out area of the home, the upstairs hallway by the kids' rooms.  I wanted them to go to bed each night and wake up each morning to a colorfully lit Christmas tree. 

I drape garland, ribbon, lights, and holiday table cloths over everything.  My kids' favorite decoration is very simple (isn't that always how it works).  I simply wrap all my pictures in wrapping paper and add a quick bow.  It makes it appear as if my walls are covered in Christmas presents.  It is such a simple, cheap, and effective way to add some serious holiday flair to your home. 

I don't "collect" many things, but my family knows that I have a huge soft spot for adorably round snowmen.  Each year, I usually purchase or are gifted one or two.  I now have a table dedicated to displaying their big round bellies and cute little smiles.  So, if you have a collection of anything related to winter or the holidays, don't be afraid to display it somewhere prominent. 

My favorite part of my Christmas decor is hanging simple ornaments from my ceiling.  This works especially well for hallways and archways/doorways.  I have 9ft. ceilings, so I have room to hang them with long ribbons secured to the ceiling with tacks.  But I think at any length, hanging an ornament with a ribbon is really pretty and makes the area feel like walking through a Christmas tree.  My inspiration for this comes from one of my absolute favorite Christmas cartoons.  It's a Disney cartoon with Mickey and Pluto bringing home a tree with Chip and Dale in it.  They emerge from the tree after it's been decorated.  Of course, Pluto is not happy about this and the silliness begins.  Anyhow, I've always thought it would be so amazing to be small and walk around the inside of a Christmas tree, surrounded by giant lights and sparkly ornaments.  If you decide to try this, I highly recommend using the unbreakable, plastic ornaments.  They can be found for super-cheap. 

Perhaps the most time-consuming, but really effective piece of Christmas decor is hanging ribbon on my wood blinds.  I simply use safety pins (as a clip, not a pin) to attach wide ribbon to the two outer, vertical "strings" of my wood blinds.  The horizontal strings that hold the slats in place keep the safety pins from sliding down the vertical strings.  This really dresses up my windows.  You can see them in the picture below, just don't mind my daughter acting like a zombie and eating her dad's arm...

I does take a solid day to put up all the decor (when I do it by myself) but to me, it's worth it.  I just take the day after Thanksgiving, make a pot of hot chocolate, put on some Christmas music and enjoy the official start of the Christmas season making my home sparkle... literally.  My family expects nothing different on Black Friday. 


What do you do to your home to dress it up for the holidays?



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