It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

I LOVE Christmas! Hands-down, it's my favorite holiday. I love the meaning behind it, celebrating our Savior, the warmth and glow it creates, and sharing that love with my friends and family. (and also cookies. Man, I love cookies).

Unfortunately, our apartment is just too small for a tree this year (boo), but I thought I'd share the rest of our holiday decor. 

We have tall shelves in the living room, and this is what they looked like originally:

 I really like my fauxpiary (faux topiary - totally stole the term from Sherry of Young House Love), but I thought it looked too naked up there, so I decided to make a garland.

 Inspired by this garland from P.S. I made this, I made mine out of pretty fabric I had lying around and rick rack (rick rack rocks!). I pulled my color palatte from reds, pinks, blues, greens, and yellows to create a fun, colorful swag. I cut 8-inch by 1-inch strips of fabric with pinking shears and tied them onto an indoor light string (the LED light string is from Target). 
 

 However, I was told that my female nutcrackers (Clara and Alice) were too girly (thanks, Mom) and I needed to make my Christmas decor more man-friendly. So off to Target I went! 

 I replaced the ladies with a wooden reindeer, a geometric white ceramic fox, and a cool metallic nutrcracker. Much more gender neutral. Also on the top shelf are two of my Moravian stars. I LOVE Moravian stars. The multi-faceted points are so pretty; I went to grad school in Winston-Salem, a city founded by Moravians, and these stars were always everywhere.

On the next shelf down, there is another one of my Moravian stars (this one was a gift from a friend who bought it in Historic Old Salem), a frame of fine paper that I switch out with the seasons, a white ceramic 5-opening bud vase, kraft letters spelling out "Noel," a tiny wooden chest I got from a super cool secondhand shop in North Carolina, and a small globe sitting upon a mercury glass holder (a little nod to world peace).

The third shelf features my original Nutcracker. I got him when I was 8 years old after my mom took me to see The Nutcracker for the first time, danced by Ballet Met in Columbus, Ohio. I fell in love and all I wanted for Christmas that year was my own Nutcracker. Isn't he a handsome fellow? I used to sleep with him like a teddy bear (definitely not very cuddly, though). Next to him is a teeny artist nutcracker that my mom got me while I was in grad school - so cute. 

 

On our coffee table, I placed this Christmas house dome - it's so sweet and reminds me of It's a Wonderful Life - my favorite Christmas film. I'm a huge fan of Jimmy Stewart. 

 I also added some lights and pinecones to the barcart and some small ornaments on our other shelves. 

 Though we don't have room for a tree, I really wanted some real pine in the apartment this year, so we got a fresh wreath from Whole Foods and adorned it with salt dough ornaments painted by Jason's niece and nephew. Too cute. And it smells a-mah-zing.

And because I couldn't resist:

Merry Christmas!