I’m squeezing in the last room decorated for Christmas just before Christmas Eve.  When I started sharing Christmas content in November, it felt really early, but now I remember why I do!  I end up crunched for time in the last week and don’t have the time to share everything I had planned.  Sadly, I have a few project ideas that I didn’t photograph.  Those will get kicked to next year.  Anyway, I wanted to show you how the kitchen looks this year.  In most ways, it’s very similar to how I’ve decorated this room for Christmas the last few years, but I always make a few small adjustments.

Before we get into the pictures, I wanted to share a dose of reality.  A woman from our church asked me this week how I keep my house so pristine all the time.  I had to smile and reveal the secret.  I don’t.  It’s not as clean and tidy as it looks, but I explained that it’s like having guests over.  You shove the mess into the closets, run the vacuum, wipe down the toilets, and a guest might assume your house is always like that.  When I’m taking pictures, I put the water bottles, mail, and sunglasses in another room so they don’t clutter up the counters.  I vacuum, fluff, and style, so things look nice, since I’m inviting a few thousand people to my house!

Despite my efforts, I still had to remove some spots from behind the sink digitally, as well as a Goldfish cracker that fell on the floor when I was making Nuts & Bolts on Sunday.  I left it in the picture below.  Can you spot it?

I think I’ve discovered a fun new game to play with my readers.  Spot the cracker.

Anyway, life happens here, along with dust, clutter, spills, splatters, dirt, and everything you deal with in your house.

So, back to the Christmas decor.  When I pack away the garland for this window each year, I keep it intact and labeled.  I always forget that I do that, and then I always appreciate my past self giving me that gift and making it easy.  I hang it on small nails tacked into the top of the window frame, so any nail holes are hidden when the garland is taken down again.  The garland is secured to the nails with florist wire loops.

I knew it before, but it became really obvious to me as I was taking these pictures, that I need to give my myrtle topiaries a haircut!  I’m just proud they have been alive for almost two years in my house, but they need a little more attention than watering at this point.

In the past, I have hung little swags of greenery with ribbons and bells from the sconces, but those are too tempting for Esmé, and she bats and pulls at them, so I left them off this year. The garland adds enough on its own, although I might include some ribbons next year.

marble board | brass faucet

pot rack | pine garland

I thought about doing something different on the range wall, but I love the wreath and the swagged orange slice garland so much that I used them again.  You can find details on how I made the wreath HERE and the orange slice garland HERE.  I also added an LED candle to the shelf on the back.

brass cabinet pulls | glass knobs | vintage rug source | brass pot rail | staub coq au vin

Did you spot the cracker?  Are you still playing along?

This is one of the ways I miss Sebastian.  He was always my clean-up crew, so I knew there would never be crackers on the floor in my photos.

Ilve range | Ilve range review

I love it when oranges with their leaves and stems still on show up at the grocery store.  I bought a box so I could use them in still life paintings.  They are a nice prop for photos, too, and then they can be a snack.

ironstone milk pan | one of my favorite cookbooks

If you remember, I removed the shelves from the eating area, and I haven’t replaced them with anything yet.  I think a painting will go there once I either paint one or find one.  That is why I started oil painting in the first place.  I wanted to be able to paint just the right piece for the right wall in my house.

I do feel like this wall needs something, and I think a painting will be perfect.  I’ve been considering adding a chair rail to this room as well, just to add a bit more interest to the walls without cabinetry.

Here is the view into the kitchen from the living room…

For the little sprigs of greenery on the cupboard shelves, I dismantled a faux pine garland.

The antique portrait in the foyer is substantial enough to support an entire cedar garland…

Along with the pine sprigs on the shelf, I added some salt dough houses, real wax LED candles, and brass sleigh bells.

You can see how I secure the candles in these little jars HERE.

And here is the view into the dining room.  (You can see the dining room decorated for Christmas HERE.)  The entryway is just a small area, but I love adding a few touches for Christmas, like the little tree in the crock, and some Selbu mittens.  Of course, Jeff is like, “Can I still hang my coat here?!”  You would think he would learn by now that I sanitize spaces for the photos, and then life can continue as usual when I put the camera away.

You can see how we built this custom shelf HERE.  You can find my Selbu miten tutorial HERE.

And, of course, we have Sebastian’s leash by the door—a reminder of the best dog, who is greatly missed.

Well, I have to get back to Christmas prep.  I made pâte sucrée yesterday for tarts, and it was a fail.  I pulled it out of the fridge today and dumped a mass of crumbs on the counter instead of a nice disc of dough.  Clearly, I didn’t bring it together enough, and a miracle didn’t take place in my fridge overnight.  So, I need to make more dough, Rosa’s fruit salad, and some other things to get ready for the big day…