Christmas starts early in the home of Emily Welch, home content blogger and influencer. “As soon as I was an adult and out of my mom’s house, I was like ‘November 1—that’s when I’m decorating for Christmas. I don’t care what anyone says.’”
For the winter months, Welch’s home isn’t just a house. With the use of garlands, DIY accents, pastel colors, and twinkle lights, her home is transformed into a whimsical winter wonderland. The playful aesthetic channels both maximalism and cottagecore elements. It reflects the homeowner’s personality and feels lived-in rather than stiff and “too perfect.”
Learn how Welch adds whimsical style to her home during Christmastime—and how you can, too.
1. Embrace Playfulness with DIY Projects
Part of the charm of whimsical Christmas decor is its emphasis on playfulness over perfection. For Welch, this means incorporating DIY projects into her home decor. “I love to DIY ornaments and dried oranges,” she says. The low-lift projects add to the playful, crafted feel of Welch’s home.
Welch shares many DIY decor projects on her TikTok page, like paper chains, dried orange slice garlands, and yarn ornaments. She notes that lots of trendy Christmas decor items like velvet bow ornaments, garlands, and stockings are easy to make yourself and often budget-friendly.
Related: Make the Viral Anthropologie Bow Garland for a Fraction of the Cost
2. Hang a Variety of Garlands
Flocked, evergreen, dried, and felt garlands are all on display in Welch’s home during the holiday season. A mixture of garlands makes a space look lived-in and cozy—two core tenets of the whimsical design aesthetic. Welch layers textures (think an evergreen garland mixed with a decorative gold one) then loosely wraps twinkle lights around the garlands.
3. Add Celestial Elements
One of the main elements that separates whimsical Christmas decor from other holiday decorating styles is out-of-this-world elements. Consider adding celestial motifs like stars, glitter, and gold accents. For her tree, Welch uses gold star ornaments and finishes it with a celestial tree topper.
Another easy way to add celestial touches to your Christmas decor is with twinkle lights that resemble stars. You can find twinkle lights in nearly every room of Welch’s house, where she uses them to warm up spaces year-round. In her kitchen, twinkle lights line floating shelves that display glasses with metallic stars.
4. Upgrade Mundane Areas
For a whimsical winter wonderland, spread Christmas decor throughout your entire home. If you’re stumped on where to start, try decorating a mundane area you use daily. For example, add Santa-shaped mugs to your coffee bar or miniature wreaths to your kitchen cabinets.
Welch adds colorful bottlebrush trees and snowflake-shaped cutting boards to shelves in her kitchen. In her bedroom, she adds garlands to her canopy bed frame and a gingerbread man throw pillow. Easy additions make a big difference in making your entire home feel like a whimsical wonderland.
Read the original article on Better Homes & Gardens
