Cottage Style Christmas Home Tour - Easy and Affordable Decor

GRAB SOME HOT COCOA, FIND A COZY SPOT TO SIT, AND COME TAKE A LOOK AT OUR COTTAGE STYLE CHRISTMAS HOME TOUR! I’LL SHARE SOME EASY AND AFFORDABLE DECORATING IDEAS THAT YOU CAN USE TO MAKE YOUR HOME FESTIVE WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK.

Hey friends!

Thank you for visiting the blog today! Christmas is my favorite holiday, and growing up my parents made it such a special time of year. While decorating for Christmas is something I enjoy so much, it should never be the most important thing.

More than the beautiful tree and twinkle lights my parents put up every year, I remember the feeling of Christmas so much more. Coming home to Christmas music playing, cookies baking, the smell of the Christmas tree, the warmth of the fireplace…Christmas was so so special at our house.

I have this one memory of my mom baking Christmas cookies as the 1947 version of The Bishop’s Wife with Cary Grant played in the background. She had moved a small box television into the corner of the kitchen so she could watch while she rolled out dough.

Isn’t it crazy how we remember certain things like that?

Creating these special moments and memories with my own children is so important to me, and it’s something I have to purpose to do. It’s easy to get wrapped up in the busyness and the t0-do lists, but these small moments that we purpose to create can leave lasting impressions.

Most importantly, I want Christmas at our house to be centered around Christ – the reason for the season.

So before we begin, I hope to inspire you as I share my decor and explain how I’ve decorated on such a low budget. But I also want to encourage you to purpose to create those special moments with your family this year that they will remember for years to come. 🙂

COTTAGE STYLE CHRISTMAS ENTRYWAY

Let’s start off in the entryway! If you follow me on Instagram, you know that we decided to get rid of the bench in our entry and replace it with these fun number hooks I found at Marshall’s.

I loved the piano bench but it always felt off center to me because of the large window. These hooks feel so much more balanced and they have been so perfect for winter coats and snow-pants and backpacks!

EASY AND AFFORDABLE DECOR TIP NUMBER 1

You guys know how much I love to thrift, and I’m no different when it comes to Christmas decor! SO much of my Christmas decor came from second hand stores.

I wanted to be able to see some twinkle in the entry when I sat on my couch, so I decided to look for a small Christmas tree for that corner. Well, I scored this one for $6 at a local thrift shop! It’s the perfect size and I love it there.

I got really lucky with this tree, but it’s usually best to shop for Christmas decor at thrift shops out of season. Once Thanksgiving has passed the Christmas section is pretty picked over.

COTTAGE STYLE CHRISTMAS LIVING ROOM

The main focal point in our living room is the fireplace, and while I usually stick to neutral tones, I introduced a pop of red here and there in this year’s decor.

I found this lovely faux cedar garland once again at Marshall’s (I had a gift card in case you’re wondering) and those red berries were just too pretty not to keep.

EASY AND AFFORDABLE DECOR TIP NUMBER 2

While decorating with antique snow shoes at Christmas time isn’t original to me by any means, I just love the ease of simply placing them next to my fireplace for a rustic, wintery feel.

I found this beautiful set at an antique store for an amazing deal because they were missing the leather binding straps, and I just love them so much that they might stay out all winter long.

The same concept can be used for anything that evokes winter. An antique pair of ice skates, an old sled or toboggan, some snow skis…talk about easy decorating.

You could kick it up a notch and add greenery or bows to these items, but simply setting them out at Christmas makes for the easiest decor. There is so much beauty in simplicity.

COTTAGE STYLE CHRISTMAS TREE

You may have noticed the red tricycle under the tree. A sweet lady in our church gave it to the boys. It was once her granddaughter’s and she wondered if my boys would like to have it. Of course they loved the bike, and I felt like it was the perfect pop of Christmas red under the tree. Since the sidewalks are covered in snow I kept it inside of the house and I love that it adds Christmas cheer! Again, easy decorating!

I kept the tree so simple this year and only added a few handfuls of my very favorite ornaments. I then used some ribbon and a simple DIY hymn garland for the rest of the tree. That leads me to my third tip!

EASY AND AFFORDABLE DECOR TIP NUMBER 3

When you’re able to, DIY it! Seriously, you can save so much money by getting just a little creative with your decor. For example, the hymn garland I made was free because I already had all the materials!

If you see something you love but it’s outside of your price range, ask yourself – “Is this something I could make?”

Believe me, I know the answer won’t always be yes. Unfortunately there are just some things we can’t recreate. But the whole reason I ended up making the hymn garland is because I saw some ribbon with music notes that I thought was so pretty, just a little pricey.

COTTAGE STYLE CHRISTMAS DINING ROOM

The simplicity continues as you enter our dining room. Some faux eucalyptus and pine mixed on the buffet and chandelier add the perfect festive touch.

EASY AND AFFORDABLE DECOR TIP NUMBER 4

When you group things together they make more of a statement, and that’s exactly what I did on my buffet. I used what I already had (three wooden candlesticks mixed with some thrifted reindeer) to create a beautiful winter vignette.

Sometimes people think they have to put all of their “regular” decor away and replace it with all Christmas decor. That’s not true at all!

Use what you already have and add a ribbon or some greenery to make it feel festive.

That’s exactly what I did with my cutting board display. Some pretty branches tied with ribbon was all this space needed.

COTTAGE STYLE CHRISTMAS KITCHEN

The low budget decorating continues throughout the kitchen with a thrifted wreath, some vintage cookie cutters from my mom, and a rustic sled that I found at antique store for $12.