I’ve been in something of a funk lately. Nothing is drastically wrong, per se, and on Thanksgiving, I certainly had plenty to be thankful for. But at the same time, the holiday had some stress before and after that made me not quite as thrilled with Thanksgiving as I usually am. Tomorrow is the first day of December, though, which means the holiday season is truly upon us – and it’s time for me to cheer up and start fa-la-la-la-la-ing with the best of them.
One of the things I did really enjoy this weekend was shopping for Christmas decorations at various Black Friday sales. At Michael’s, I got a beautiful 7.5 foot pre-lit (fake) Christmas tree for just $99 – definitely a splurge, but I’m looking at it as a “house investment” that I can use for years. (Since apparently no one does real live Christmas trees anymore? Oh well; it’s certainly convenient to just keep using the same tree rather than buying new ones.) I also picked up some pine garlands (only 99 cents for nine foot lengths) to wind around my banister, and a bunch of ornaments that I will eventually use to decorate the tree. In Poland, where my dad is from, the tradition is not to decorate the tree until Christmas Eve, so I’m using that family tradition as an excuse to wait a bit on the ornament front.
Before I became a homeowner, I used to hate going to Home Depot. I thought it was the most boring store ever and couldn’t imagine why anyone besides contractors would go. Now, I make multiple trips per weekend (evidence here), and I feel like there is always so much to see and consider. (Currently eyeing some sparkly chandeliers to potentially replace the ugly-and-on-the-fritz fluorescent light in my master closet. Too much?) This Friday, I stocked up on Home Depot’s Black Friday doorbuster special: 99 cent potted poinsettia plants, which I scattered all over my house. It was a great way to make things a little bit more festive in every room!
I didn’t make any drastic changes to my house this weekend (well, except for the stupid $200 plumbing bill when my shower sprung a torrential leak… #JoysOfHomeownership). But even so, the little decorations made me so much happier when I was home – and I was pleasantly surprised how quick/inexpensive it was to put up those seasonal decorations.
It’s long been known that your environment can affect your mood, but up a month or two ago, I had never really done much in the way of decorating my own home. I’m fairly utilitarian, and kind of dismissed a lot of decorating as something for people with too much time and/or too much money on their hands. (Even my NYC apartment, where I lived for seven years, had almost nothing on the walls!) Now, though, I’m starting to embrace my inner Martha Stewart, and wishing that I had more time to craft and DIY.
I’m in Dallas for the week, and then off to Phoenix on Thursday, so I won’t really be home much to enjoy the fruits of my decorating labor. (And even if I weren’t traveling, I don’t expect all my problems to go away just because I’m feng shui-ing my house.) But I have to say, the decorations definitely make it nice when I do get to go home 🙂
Definitely lights on the banister too. You’ll appreciate the twinkling at night when you are home 🙂
Awww probably very true 🙂
You don’t have to craft and DIY to decorate your home. Just buying a table cloth, a scented candle, cute dish towels, etc. will warm up your home and make it feel more cozy.
That’s what I’m learning! But I am still waiting for sales to stock up for next year, since it’s more expensive than DIY 🙂
I keep saying that I’m going to do a live tree, but then I realize that I don’t really like the smell of them and they’re a pretty big fire hazard…. Sooooo, I just keep using my fake one. **shrugs**
Oooh I LOVE the smell of the live tree! When I was a kid we used to go pick one out in the woods and cut it down, and I always thought that was super fun and a big part of Christmas. However, this way is certainly more environmentally friendly!