I got my Christmas tree decorated over the weekend!  It has been hanging out with just lights, a star, and a skirt while I thought about how I wanted to decorate it this year.  I don’t do things dramatically different from year to year, but my main tree slowly evolves.  A few new ornaments and decorative elements come in and a few leave.  This year I decided to use my living room mantel as a springboard to create what I’m called a “hydrangea & homemade” Christmas tree. I started out by getting rid of any ornaments that were tired, broken, or were just generic and I wasn’t in love with them any longer.  I wanted to nudge the Christmas tree this year into mostly homemade ornaments, my Wallace Sleigh Bells, some , and dried natural elements like dried orange slices and hydrangea blooms. The first thing I did to create

For one of my freelance articles this year, I needed to share an alternative to decorating a front door with a wreath.  I immediately pictured some kind of a basket. Maybe bike basket, market basket, wall pocket, a woven backpack, but what I was really hoping to find was an antique trapper basket.  I knew it would make an amazing statement.  I searched around on and for a few weeks and finally purchased a beautiful antique trapper basket.  I had such a wonderful time styling it for the article in a few different ways. I’ll share a link to that article when it’s live on HGTV.com. (I bought these Nordic knit mittens from .  I have it on my to-do list to knit a pair myself this winter.) Anyway, It was perfect for the photo, but I didn’t want to leave it hanging on the front door all winter.  It

I don’t typically have plans for exactly how I’ll decorate when the holiday season rolls around.  I just start working with my things and see what inspires me and what Ideas spring up.  I find that I end up in more interesting decorating territory if I let it all happen organically.  And, that’s exactly what happened as I started decorating our living room mantel with a classic Christmas and slightly southern feel. It started when I decided to change out the art above the fireplace.  Both of the paintings I’ve had hanging over the mantel had more of a spring/summer feel, so I shopped around the house to see what might be a good seasonal alternative.  I tried a mirror and a few other things, but nothing was quite right in shape or scale.  On a whim, I grabbed the antique Jenny Lind portrait from the guest room and tried