I know that most of you today are scrambling towards the finish line and likely not here to read a long post. Hang in there. We are so close to the most magical week of the year – the days between Christmas and New Year’s, where the world goes quiet, and the high expectations are over. It’s a collective sigh and snuggle. So today is a quick progression of the holidays over the year. Perhaps it can remind you that decorating takes time, that you have to be in the mood to do it (I wasn’t in 2022), and that the internet is a rabbit hole of ideas that I promise you, you don’t need to do unless you want to. A big part of my job is to literally decorate my house and I have a team to help, so if you are any sort of comparison cycle (I get in to those, too) know that this isn’t normal and certainly not “effortless” (we are done with that word!) but maybe it can distract you or inspire you depending on what you need today. So here is the farmhouse throughout the years…

In 2022, we had just moved in (In August), and I just couldn’t get there with the holiday decor, but I did my best to add some bits of joy around. Seeing this post is fun because you can really see the evolution of the layers.

I LOVE this entry so much, and I finally felt like it got its moment in this shoot. We didn’t change a thing for 2024, so we didn’t shoot it, but then this year I added another layer or two.

…And I’m obsessed. I think the punch of the red in the throw and pillow, the glass bauble garland, and the plaid silk dupioni fabric just make it all come alive. I also think that we shot it later in the day, where the light was warmer, and I love it so much more. Kaitlin, you are a dream!

This is certainly more minimal but sweet (if not cold). This was before our house was furnished, so I kinda just put things in places for now.

GAH! I’m just now remembering that I have those awesome Schoolhouse stackable candles (similar) in the prop garage. Going to snag them today. This vignette was also sweet, but not really my favorite (that awesome French antique piece I got at Round Top just looked like a side of the road find over here, and I don’t know why!).

This year, we didn’t shoot that vignette on its own (it was cute, but not really worth the time). But you can see that I added lit greenery and some white villages.

I really loved this vignette and shot (and still do). I think I miss the boro fabric cafe curtain, but I also love how we did it this year:

There is something about the shot above that feels more intimate, but I think it’s just a tighter angle. I LOVE this chaise, rug, and Santa photo collection here. It’s certainly more “stuff” which I originally intended to have NONE of in this house (LOLOLOLOLOL) but turns out I like “stuff”, y’all.

In 2023 (and last year), I had our Santa photos all on this piece, but I love them in the gold frames more (they started in white frames at the mountain house, which worked well there).

Year one Christmas here didn’t feel as “me” as I wanted in the kitchen, and yet I look back here, and it’s still really pretty. It’s on the more minimal side (for the internet, this is ample for normal people).

The next year, I made it a bit more “me” and I really loved that ribbon combo and colors.

We didn’t shoot the kitchen this year, but you can see it in the background. The cafe curtains certainly add warmth. Gosh, I really love this color palette with the sofas! We switched them to our Green Alice’s for the holiday magazine shoot we just did, and it also looks good, but I think I love the lightness and soft colors of these sofas more.

In 2022, we had more placeholder furniture, and it looked sweet for sure. Also, the popcorn garland took hours and hours (and we had to cheat most of it for this shot). Paper chains for the win 🙂

I still can’t decide between this more bare, Scandinavian-style tree or the fuller one that we used in 2022 and this year (same tree). Brian prefers the fuller one, but the lights are a little cooler. I think I prefer the more Scandi one, but I can see that it might be more bare? Both are pretty great, though. It’s just a style preference.

Admittedly, 2025 looks warmer, a bit happier, which might be that it’s just more layered, a warmer glow with warmer colors. There is a lot more color variation and texture, which I love.

2022 looks a bit sad here, but it was also fine! 2023 looks more filled out, for sure, and yet…

There we go!! I mean, I thought it would look too “extra” because we just kept layering and layering, but nope. Just looks happy, playful, and warm.

2023 (and 2024) was really layered, too, but with way less warm tones and warm light, so it indeed felt colder. Especially when you compare it to…

We shot this later in the day, so we had to turn the lights on, and while this is typically a photo faux pas, I’m so into it (and I believe the trend is changing). Maybe it’s the fire and the pup 🙂

I hope you enjoyed a quick little memory lane tour. For me, it’s clear how I was feeling mentally every year:) It’s also clear that more layering is the way to go, with warmer colors. So we’ll see how this holiday magazine shoot turns out (I’m writing this the day before we are shooting, on the 16th). So which one do you like the most??

Opening Image Credits: Photo by Kailtin Green | From: Christmas In Our Home 2025 – Whimsy, Color, And Non-Traditional In A Really Cozy Way

Alright, y’all. Today is a quick post that might spread a little bit of holiday cheer, I know it does for me. I got pretty emotional writing this, not because of how beautiful it turned out (it’s cute though:)) But thinking about the moms living here during the holidays and what that must be like for them. It’s an immediate shutdown of all my overwhelm and puts things into place pretty quickly. This is our third year of decorating the Family Promise Shelter for the holidays with my kids (and this year, like 12 of their friends:)). The building is a former La Quinta hotel that has been turned into a shelter that houses and rehabilitates 70 families (each family has their own room or adjoining room, depending on size). The angels that work there help them to find permanent housing and jobs, and we witnessed so many kind and tender moments between the families and the employees while we were there (if you are a social worker, god bless you, seriously). It was recently renovated, and we helped furnish the lobby last year and have some ongoing projects in other spaces, but adding the holiday layer was so fun, fast, and fulfilling (and something my kids can be involved in). It’s honestly a huge gift to me to be able to do it, and it has become an afternoon that I really, really look forward to during the busiest time of the year. It’s a huge reset and reframe that I personally need to get me out of the stuff that doesn’t matter and back down to what does, so thank you. I’m so grateful to Family Promise for letting me bring this very respectful and excited crew in for a few hours last week after school. More at the end of the post on how you can help, should you be able to.

The Lobby Pre-Holiday

Desks | Desk Chairs | Woven Bench | Leather Armchairs

The lobby is newly updated and was a blank slate for us. A huge shout out to AllModern for gifting the furniture a couple of months ago. Gretch helped pull this together, and it’s obviously not accessorized yet, but having nice-looking furniture versus random pieces that are donated makes a huge difference. We chose high-quality, easy-to-care-for pieces that look good together. The employees were so, so grateful.

The Dining Room Before

While we didn’t furnish this room, it’s so nice that all the pieces match (they didn’t last year). It was tricky to figure out how to decorate all the rooms without putting anything on the walls (except one nail for a wreath that they approved). Having been newly renovated, the operations manager didn’t want even command strips or blue tape on the walls, so we needed to get creative on the window and columns. (Most people don’t know how to take off command strips properly, so we fully understood the fear of damaging the new walls… I mean, I begged and promised at first, but ultimately our job was to make their lives easier, not harder, so we came up with some creative solutions.)

The Bonus Room Before

The bonus room is for the older kids to do homework and hang out (plus it houses the pantry food for the families to select from behind the blue tarp), and they have a lot of programming, so they asked us just to do this corner, and again, nothing on the walls, but we could do the windows.

The Plan

Gretch and I spent a couple of days shopping, and I had to plan out kid-specific projects. Then we set everything up so that when the kids joined, it would be organized (and not chaotic – the goal was for the kids to only be there for 2 hours). I needed easy, doable but still fun projects for them, so here is what I came up with:

1. Paper Chains – Duh. A real no-brainer here, and while we couldn’t put them on the walls, we were allowed to command strip them to the windows or rig them in the ceiling tiles.
2. Window Paint – We created the template so it wasn’t a free-for-all, and they did patterns within the “ornaments,” and then, you’ll see, they went rogue, but it was so hard to stop them! Easy to clean after, I promise.
3. Magnetic Paper Trees For All The Tables – Opening them up and arranging them all (I thought these would be easy to take down and store as well, taking up so little space).
4. Decorate The Trees With Curated And Shatterproof Ornaments.
5. Column Fun – Gretch and Marlee figured out how to wrap the columns with elastic tied at the top to hold the lightweight ribbon in place without even using tape 🙂

I also really wanted everything to be easy to either dispose of (paper chains) or store in an organized way per room, so that next year we can do the exact same thing without shopping (most of the stuff we bought in the past got all jumbled together so we gave that all to the families to use in their rooms which they were so excited about and started fresh this year so it would look more pulled together). I wanted it to be easy to clean around, take down, and put back up.

The window painting was the biggest hit. I found inspiration on IG, and Gretch drew the template so that the kids could fill it in.

We did three different color palettes per room – more of a traditional red/green/white in the dining room, an icy winter wonderland in the lobby, and more of a Dr. Seuss colorful vibe in the bonus room.

We tried to sequester the kids in here so that the families had privacy. In the past, some of the kids living here have wanted to help, but I am super sensitive to the fact that most kids feel awkward being around other kids (especially tweens and teens), so we were quiet and fast. Ninja elves!

The kids were the most delighted about this room (the colors were so fun). They had a fun dog training session (where the kids can help train their own dogs – the shelter allows pets, which I think is so wonderful), so we had to be out of here early, and I got to hear a few kids squeal.

The Dining Room

Kaitlin came with her girls to help, too, and she snapped a few very quick photos to show you. It was 6 pm, no light and no time to style-to-camera, but you get the vibe 🙂 We put clusters of foldable paper trees on each table and drew on all the windows. We used Posca paint markers and these fat ones (the internet told me they’ll easily wash off). Then Brian hung these Santa hats from the corners of the ceiling tiles. It felt festive and high-impact considering all the constraints.

We added that potted tree in the corner (from Target) and two lamps to the computer tables (that will stay permanently), along with some holiday village houses, holiday pillows, and a throw. Then Gretch figured out how to hang these stars with paper clips from the ceiling tiles. The tree we bought last year fit perfectly in this little nook, and we used mostly blue, silver, and hits of burgundy (the bows) on it.

I really didn’t want it to look messy or overly cluttered since it’s the first thing people see, and there can be a lot of deliveries, packages, and people in here, so we kept it minimal. Foldable trees, a few large velvet nutcrackers, and villages.

Table Lamp

The Bonus Room

Last year, we bought this light-up leaning nutcracker and presents, which the kids really loved. They had a tree for in here, but as soon as we opened it that day, we realized it was missing a few pieces, so we popped down to Lowe’s and bought this cluster of flocked trees (literally the only 6′ trees they had left, so we added two smaller ones to fill out the corner). But I think it turned out so cute!

A big thanks to the these elves for helping, but mostly thank you to the shelter for appeasing me and giving me the gift of being able to help (and by allowing my kids to be a part of it – my team could have likely done it faster and with less mess without them, but it meant the world to me to have them be able to help). The most rewarding part of it was that the social workers (who are legit angels on earth) were so delighted, kept commenting on how festive it felt, and how it was getting them in the spirit of the season. Social work is famously a hard career, with a lot of turnover, so creating a place they might enjoy working in has been a major motivator for me. We tried to keep a very small footprint and not disrupt the families (or make the other kids feel awkward in any way), so we stayed mainly in the dining room, but the employees told me that many of the families and kids were so, so, so happy (a few moms went out of their way to thank us). While Family Promise is providing a warm, safe place to live (and eat – so many volunteers come to cook every night), I know that having their holiday here is not their ideal. I think about the moms a lot. Like, if I’m overwhelmed during the holidays, desperate to stay on top of everything while giving my kids a magical Christmas, how must they feel?

If you are looking to help or donate (link there!), they wanted me to let you know that gift card donations are most appreciated (you can drop them off or mail them). They have a very stocked inventory of toys and clothes for younger kids that the parents shop from, but the tweens and teens are harder, so the moms want gift cards to Amazon or Fred Meyer (which is across the street) in $25 increments so that they can shop for their own kids or give them the autonomy to buy their own gifts. If you’re local, they’re also hoping to receive gift bags since they save time on wrapping. And they’re also planning to provide hot cocoa kits for everyone in the shelter this Christmas (just a mug with hot cocoa in it), so donations toward that would be wonderful too. In-person drop-offs are great—no appointment needed, but Monday-Friday between 10 am-6 pm is the preferred drop-off time, or packages can be addressed to:

Family Promise Donations
Family Promise of Tualatin Valley
11460 SW Pacific Highway
Tigard, OR 97223

The director told me to thank you – she said they received a lot of donations from you after we posted about it during the Snap shutdown – so thank you so very, very, very, VERY much. I’m pretty overwhelmed right now with gratitude to be able to help and to have an online community willing to give. So much love for you for reading, giving, and just being here. Thank you. xx

*After Photos by Kaitlin Green

Let me start by saying – I know. It’s December 13th. You’re probably tired of hearing about gifts, especially if you have your life together. You probably even finished shopping for gifts weeks ago, and maybe you even have them wrapped already. If that’s the case, I am SINCERELY proud of you and even… I aspire to be like you. But this week, I woke up every day with the rapidly impending doom of St. Nick’s deadline in the back of my mind, reminded that I’m a *horrible* procrastinator. Yes, this does happen every year, and while I don’t love the feeling of procrastination guilt, it’s only once I reach this headspace that I whip out my Pinterest boards and suddenly feel more creative motivation in a week than I’ve felt the entire year. THIS…this is my opportunity to further overflow my craft bins with more random supplies.

Some of these ideas I’ve made myself, some I’m planning to make this year, some I’m not sure if I’ll ever make because one can only do so many DIYs – but it’s nice to imagine that I will. For the most part, these ideas aren’t too complicated and don’t require too much $$$ in materials (which to me sometimes defeats the purpose). May I present to you the DIY gift ideas that I love, some of which I will absolutely be scrambling to pull together this weekend:

Don’t Sleep On Easy-Bake-Clay

This is my personal favorite tool to have on hand in case of last-minute gifts. There is truly so much that you can make out of a little bit of Sculpey, your hands, and some imagination (or a quick Pinterest peruse). Here are some of my favorite ideas…

Clay Candlestick or Tea Light Holders

I made these for friends and family a few years ago. My mom used them in her Thanksgiving table setting this year and made a comment about how she would be very happy to receive more of them. Coming right up:)

Some tips – get your clay really soft, roll it out, and assemble your candlestick holders as if you were taping together pieces of paper. Or go pinch pot style. Use a taper candle or tea light as a guide to make sure it’s the right size. Once baked + dry, I used acrylic paint to add color, stripes, patterns, etc., and finished it off with a coat of clear glossy spray paint to seal it. I’ve also seen people use clear nail polish! If you want to add a little bit of texture, you can mix baking soda into your paint to give it a cool look, too (this also helps prevent being able to see the paint streaks if you’re doing thinner layers).

Trinket Dishes

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by M A R L E Y (@marsarts_)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by RATTLECLAY [ретлкле́й] | Авторська кераміка ручної роботи (@rattleclay)

In a similar vein, you could also use this to make little tiny trinket dishes. These are so cute and incredibly easy – get creative with your shapes! If you don’t like the organic look, you can use a paintbrush and some water to smooth out any deformities/fingerprints once you have your shape down. Don’t overthink the baking part – just follow the recommendation on the packaging. It’s hard to mess it up. Also, if you’re feeling particularly inspired to create from scratch, you can always make some salt dough with flour, salt, and water.

Fridge Magnets

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Tegan Makes (@tegan_makes)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Pobi (@artsypobi)

This would make a really cute housewarming gift. Same process as above, then you just hot glue or superglue some of these small magnets on the back. 

I love how this person did these letters. I believe the person who created these started offering them on Etsy after going viral on TikTok, so if you don’t feel like making them yourself you should definitely bookmark her shop!

Match Box / Matchstick Holder

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ruth Wilde (@ruth__wilde)

Make a little matchstick holder (or box!) and attach some matchbook paper to the side or bottom. They make these multipacks of adhesive striking paper that come in all different sizes.

Dishwasher Marker

BRASS DISHWASHER MARKER $20

I loved this clean/dirty dishwasher magnet that we shared on our shop page this year, and I had the idea of hand-making one of these with clay and paint.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Valerie's Handcrafted (@valeries_handcrafted)

A quick Pinterest search told me I’m not the first person to think of this – there’s a ton of cute ones on Etsy, too.

Bonus Clay Ideas

What do you get when you combine creative framing, Sculpey, and another reason to buy a pack of magnets??  These adorable fridge frames. A few more rapid-fire ideas you could make with clay: Mancala board + clay beads, coasters, ornaments, mini domino set, ring stand, keychain, incense holder, picture holder, stash-box, tic tac toe board, bud vase, magnet bud vase to put on your fridge, soap tray… so many things!

Stamps!

Hand-Carved Library Stamp

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Custom Rubber Stamps and Stationery (@saltandpaperca)

I went to a birthday party this summer, and a friend of a friend had handmade this for the birthday girl – I IMMEDIATELY wrote it down in my notes app because it’s too good. If you have a big reader in your life, I’m sure they would be so honored to receive this. It definitely takes a little more time to do and requires some investment in supplies, but it’s incredibly thoughtful and something they would have forever. I think this would also be such a cute gift for a young budding reader 🙂 If you love this idea but don’t feel like making it yourself, this Etsy shop offers really cute designs.

To DIY it, you’ll need rubber blocks, a pencil, and a carving tool (or just snag this kit). I have this one from Speedball, and it’s really easy to figure out – it comes with a few different-sized nibs so you can get a little more granular. Here’s a little tutorial:

You can draw your design directly on the stamp and then carve, but remember, if you have words, they’ll need to be in reverse. This one would be super cute to gift along with an inkpad and your favorite book.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Custom Rubber Stamps and Stationery (@saltandpaperca)

Similarly, I love the idea of carving a little return label stamp for letters – this would be adorable to give to some newlyweds:)

Stamped Tea Towels

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Andrea Tsang Jackson (@3rdstoryworkshop)

A classic! Once you have your stamp carving tools, why not make some little stamped tea towels? Check your local thrift store for used linens. All they really need is a good soak in some OxiClean and they’ll be good as new 🙂 You can use fabric block printing ink for this (but I would recommend using a roller). 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kathleen Ballos | DIY Craft Content & Workshops (@snowdropandco)

You can also find some decently priced plain tea towels online – I was only able to find multipacks, but if you’re wanting to batch make gifts for a few people, it comes out to just a couple bucks per towel. Also, you don’t need a full stamp carving kit to do this – don’t forget about potato stamping! This would be really fun to do with kids. Or just use any normal stamps you have laying around.

Custom Batch Cocktail Bottle

Okay, this does not fall into the stamp category (but technically you could use stamps for this). Shoutout to my friend Sophie who I got this idea from (her creation for our friend, Madeline, seen above!), which has become a personal favorite of mine to gift because it can be pulled together in less than an hour (more time if you want to get fancy with it). I like to save my wine bottles to bank for this – give it a good wash, soak it in some warm water to get the label off, and then craft up a big batch of your gift recipient’s favorite cocktail. Maybe put a seasonal twist on it! You could also use these bottles (that I buy at IKEA but I’m sure you could find almost anywhere) or just gift it in a mason jar.

I keep a batch of sticker paper on hand (which has randomly been so useful to have) and draw a fun label for the bottle. You can also print on sticker paper, which is what Sophie did here – use Canva to create a design (either from scratch, or they have hundreds of templates) and print it onto the sticker paper. Tie some cute ribbon around it and boom! This would be a really cute hostess gift, and if you want to layer onto it, gift it with a fun set of vintage cocktail glasses 🙂

Frames… So Many Frames…

Handpainted Frames & Mats

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by DE VELEY ATELIER (@develeyatelier)

I’m not sure about your local Goodwill, but mine is literally overflowing in the art and frame aisle. I feel like I pick one frame up and they all come violently crashing down on me (I dropped a huge one on my foot the other week, woo). The internet has definitely been getting really creative in the framing department and I feel like I’m seeing more and more whimsical art/framing/photo display ideas. Personally there is no gift I love more than something pretty that I can display in my space somehow and these handpainted frames are so fun.

Get creative with your matting! If the frame comes with an old mat, you could paint that too – either another pattern, or the same color as your frame for a monochromatic look… or try wrapping it in fabric:

Now for ideas of what to put in said frames???

Mal’s Silhouettes 

Some of you might remember this small detail in Mal’s Living Room makeover, and I want to revisit it because it’s so sweet. She made these mini silhouette photos of her and her roommate and also made a quick video about how she did it:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by mallory interiors (@malloryinteriors)

My mom has silhouettes of my siblings and I that we got done when we were kids – I remember an artist came to an event at my elementary school and cut our faces out of paper on the spot. Like, no tracing, no computer, no outline – just her eyes and a pair of scissors. It was so cool and I still think about her insane talent every time I pick up a pair of scissors. This would be a super cute gift to someone with kids, of their kids, and would make a really little cute ornament too. 

Vintage Postcards

Okay, we’re slightly slipping out of DIY territory here, but just wanted to throw this in. Mal also did this in her dining room! If someone has a place that’s super special to them, like their hometown, somewhere they studied abroad, maybe where they got engaged, it would be really sweet to find a vintage postcard from that place on ebay/Etsy and frame it for them 🙂 and if you really want to spice it up, you could always draw, paint, stamp or collage on top of it.

Justice For Perler Beads (AKA Fuse Beads)

Okay, these might not be for everyone. I’m a sucker for anything nostalgic, and I love the opportunity to play with pattern and color here. These were my favorite as a kid and they’ve really been back on my mind ever since I received the cutest perler bead themed puzzle a couple of birthdays ago. I could see how perhaps some people may not be able to move past the fact that these gifts inherently look like they were made at summer camp (to me that makes it even better), and that’s okay. But seriously, when was the last time you played with these… they’re a really really good time, I promise 🙂 

Perler Bead Coasters

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Caitlin Bentley (@feralnotions)

This example isn’t necessarily meant to be a coaster, but I had to share it because the pattern is so fun. Caitlin Bentley is the creator of these and she shares a ton of super cute designs on her Instagram.

Look how cute these Marimekko-inspired ones are – there are literally TONS of patterns on Pinterest that you can reference if you need ideas.

Fridge Magnet Frames

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jennifer – Crafts | DIY Home | Recipes (@thecraftpatch)

Ok, I guess we’re really sticking to a theme of fridge decor and framing. But look how cute these are – you could go bigger scale for classic picture size, or I love the idea of making mini Instax Polaroid frames. This would be a fun and easy one for kids to make too! You can snag a starter kit here (again, the magnets here).

Felt-able Ideas

Okay, now felt crafts have been around – but if you’re one foot in craft-tok you know that felt has had somewhat of a renaissance this holiday season. Maybe it’s just Gen Z discovering it for the first time, but regardless I’ve been overwhelmed with felt ideas this past month.

Felt Ornaments

This is definitely slightly more advanced (just because it takes a little practice to get your stitches clean, I learned the hard way), but SO worth the effort. The easiest and most popular option here is to make some fun little ornaments – this is the TikTok I saw that really convinced me to get all the supplies for this.

The supplies my friends and I used: small round beads, longer skinny beads, felt, embroidery thread, beading needles, embroidery needs, thread (I would recommend getting these materials in much smaller/more normal quantities at your local craft store). You’d also need some sort of filling like polyfill, but I just used felt scraps and… paper towels, haha. Here’s another video that shows the process a little more clearly. The order of operations here is: cut your shapes, add your beads or any felt layers, then stitch 90% of the way, add your filling, and ta-da. This blanket-stitch tutorial was also helpful.

Look how cute this ornament frame is – I made one of these last week for my boyfriend but we don’t need to see it here because it was my first attempt and my craftsmanship had a *disturbing* amount of room for improvement. I’ve gathered a ton of ideas for these so I’m very excited to practice and make more over Christmas time.

Felt Crowns

Now a moment to brag about how talented my BFF (Tess) is, who made me the most adorable birthday crown this past year that I will cherish forever.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jen 🪡 Handmade Enthusiast (@heyjenbrannen)

I’ve seen lots of creators make these for their kids and it would be such a cute yearly tradition. (Also, hand-sewing is not your vibe, you could totally just hot glue this.

Felt Photo Album Cover

I love the idea of putting together a mini photo album but making an adorable felt cover for it – this would make such a special gift and feels so thoughtful. You can of course get photos printed at Walgreens etc., but this printer is probably one of my most used devices at home and makes last minute photo printing so easy and is more affordable in the long run (also just worth the convenience).

To do this, I would just cut a large piece of felt to the size of your book (or piece a few scraps together), do any stitching or felt collaging on it, and then just hot glue it to the outside of the album.

This example is quilted so not exactly the same as a felted book but I love it as inspiration. The creator of these, Emma, is one of my favorite creators to follow on TikTok and is the most talented, whimsical artist. Her and her partner are full time artists and sell custom photo books and banners on Etsy made of all vintage fabrics.

If you’ve already dialed in your gifting, I hope that these can give you ideas for the rest of the year – these would all make great housewarming, birthday, or just-because gifts year round. So bookmark this for later if you’re feeling inspired…  I am always hunting for more ideas so I would love to hear any other ideas or go-tos that you have. Thank you for reading and cheers to my fellow procrastinators 🙂

Opening Image Credits: Kaitlin Green

On a scale of 1-10, I love decorating for the Christmas/holiday season about a 7–generally enthusiastic about the idea of adding a fresh hit of festive decor to my home for a special few months, but often discouraged by the price tag or appearance of in-store offerings (you will simply NEVER catch me with a blow-up lawn ornament. I REFUSE). There’s still plenty I love to shop for…all of the twinkly lights, greenery, and glittery swag (minus the clean-up), a cute Christmas pillow or two. I love the festive colors and warm whimsy that come along with the season, and I have no problem leaning in each year. But whenever I can involve some kind of crafty decor element in my holiday home, that original spirit rating cranks to an 11. Off the charts! If you’re like me and want to make some DIY holiday decorations, but don’t know where to start, keep reading for some fun and easy ideas to bring a little bit of that crafty charm to your own space this winter season.

The “need-to-handmake” trait is one I was either born with or was drilled into me too early on to choose otherwise. I learned my ABCs (always be crafting) and never forgot their power. My mom and I spent countless hours of my childhood coming up with new ways to be creative. One year in particular, we made this Halloween art piece from a piece of scrap wood and about a million little magazine cut-outs.

We spent a good while cutting and separating tons of colors from a magazine into little triangles to glue them into the mosaic Jack-O-Lantern you see here. She still puts it out every year, and it’s a project that has inspired me 20 years later to make the first DIY of this year’s Christmas decor! Let me show you what I made:

Collage Christmas Trees

I love to collage, the EHD team can vouch. When we made our vision boards on our last retreat, I stayed up an extra few hours to keep working on mine. It’s a kind of flow state you just can’t disrupt, even if it’s 2 am. The cutting, the pasting, the admiring of images…it’s meditation for me. A few years ago, I decided to make some silly little collage Christmas trees that I could hang from my curtains using old magazines, chipboard, glue, a handful of brads, and some clothespins. It was so incredibly easy, and it’s a project I still bring out each year to display.

To make them, I started by collecting a variety of greens and festive, colored textures, patterns, and interesting shapes from my magazine pile. Then I cut random triangles from some chipboard (I used the back piece of old art pads, but any cardboard or sturdy material would work too).

I collaged the various greens onto each triangle, trimming the excess around the edges. I decided which triangles worked best together and stacked them, punching a hole through two pieces at a time to connect them with a little brad. Using a brad to attach them allows the pieces to move somewhat like a puppet. I love that added whimsy.

For the backsides, I just painted them with some watercolors I had on hand. You don’t have to do this if you’re just going to hang them against a wall, but since I wanted to hang mine from my window curtains, I wanted both sides to feel somewhat “done” and different.

Once enough trees were made, I simply clipped them to my sheer curtains with clothespins. They’re super easy to move around and style however you like!

You could also decide to make a garland with these trees, stringing them together through their top hole, even clipping the clothespins to the bottom instead to act as the “trunks”. I’ve done that with these exact trees in years past, and it worked out great. But as you can see in this pic, I’d already made a garland…which is the DIY I want to show you next!

Grocery Bag Garland

This holiday garland DIY was inspired by a TikTok. If you didn’t grow up crafting like I did, fear not. There are about a TRILLION quick, inspiring videos out there to show you just how simple and fun it can be (I gathered a handful of my favorites to show you for even more ideas, just keep scrolling).

This girl took her Trader Joe’s bags and decided to cut out the sweetest star garland to hang around her house. She started by drawing the shapes with Sharpie, then painting them, gave them cute little faces, and then strung them together to hang. Super simple.

Well, instead, I just decided to paint the whole bag. Actually, I painted a bunch of brown grocery bags with all kinds of different patterns and colors. You’ll want to cut open the bag to make the most of your material, paint it mostly solid with cheap craft paints or whatever you have on hand (doesn’t need to be perfect), and layer it with new colors–stripes, dots, squiggles, etc. Honestly, the messier, the more fun!

Next, I went in and drew the shapes to cut out with my metallic marker, because I wanted them to have a bit of “sparkle”. These are some of my favorite metallic pens to use. I loved her original simple stars, but I really wanted to stretch how many pieces I could get out of one bag, so I drew stars, spirals, little bursts, diamonds, and even little orange wedges. Idk why, I just thought it was fun. Go crazy here or stick to simplicity, it’s up to you!

Drawing with the metallic marker last made them even easier to cut out, and having a variety of patterns and colors made stringing them together like a fun game. No two colors next to each other. I poked two holes with a big needle and wove my string through, just like the TikTok girl.

I added it to my already tree-filled window and just love how they pair together! A little tricky to see the full pay-off in these pics because they’re so backlit and I’m no Kaitlin Green, but trust me that they are just so fun and colorful in person. The trees have held up for years, and the garland I plan to reuse as many times as it’ll last me. Neither are they so precious (or expensive) should I decide to let them go someday. But the joy of looking around your home to see holiday decor you made by hand? Priceless.

Here are some more easy ideas I’m saving for next year (or later this week if the mood strikes).

Paper Stars

These have been a HIT on my feed lately. I love that they’re so colorful and easy and that there are a number of styles and ways to make them. If you decide you want them to be reusable, use paper clips or velcro dots to secure the last pieces so you can fold them flat again for storage!

Paper Snowflakes

Like the paper stars, these snowflakes follow a similar technique, and I’m not actually sure if I can categorize them differently apart from the cut-outs. I’ve made the lunch bag versions in years past and loved them, but I recycled them after one use. I think the doily version is just to die for! Em actually showed me that one. The colorful ones would add a nice pop to any big display, and the twisty ones are a fun…twist on the classic snowflake look.

Paper Chain Garland

This one is truly a CLASSIC. Low lift with big payoff. Em and her kids made some paper chains for her tree this year from old wallpaper samples (such a cute idea), and sooooo many people on the internet are leaning in with their own colorful chains.

This girl shows you three ways to make them, each with their own vibe. I’m partial to the super short and chunky.

Gingerbread Garland

I HAVE TO TRY THIS. Such a simple idea, but oh so cute. I think it’d be fun to extend this idea beyond a garland. It would be so easy to make 3D “gingerbread” houses with cardboard and white paint, and they would last so much longer than the real, edible version does in my house. I can’t help myself but to immediately bite off the chimney each year.

So what are some of your favorite holiday crafts? Did you grow up making dried orange slice garland or string popcorn together? Are you a classic folded paper snowflake type? Have you tried making any of these fun paper crafts yourself? Or are there other festive crafts you made this year that I NEED to know about?? Sound off in the comments 🙂 I’m always looking for new inspiration!

Last year, we skipped shooting our house decked out for Christmas because it looked exactly like the year before (so why spend the time or money?). But this year, with the advent of two new pieces of furniture (our awesome Barb sofas), I felt excited to decorate, show, and tell. But November is pretty much March Madness for content creators, so I didn’t have time to really plan; instead just winged it with what I had in the garage and a trip to the Mill End Fabric store. So despite thinking I could just pull it together, the day of the shoot was rough (at first). The first big pulled back shot took no less than 2 hours to finalize. Like one shot, styled 80 different tiny changes (if I didn’t love this so much, it would be truly maddening). I tried every combination of pillows, throws, coffee table accessories, and it wasn’t until we hit this version above, with pops of pinks and ochres, that it came together. It wasn’t what I had predicted (I thought I was going to lean into the Ralph Lauren trend, but it just wasn’t working!!). So here we have a playful, whimsical, Scandi version of our living room with a family tree dripping with DIYs and sentimental ornaments. It’s extremely cozy and fun to be in.

Pre-Lit Faux Trees | Tree Skirts (unavailable) | Garland (Clear Glass or Colorful) | Twinkle Light Curtain | Burgundy Pillow | Blue Pillow | Throw Blanket

The entry is a dream to shoot, and Kaitlin always nails it. This year, I bought yardage of plaid taffeta (fashion fabric) and ripped it into wide and long ribbons. I love how they pop in the light, and it ties that incredible Anthropologie blanket and Schoolhouse pillow (Target pillow behind it!).

Blue Velvet Lumbar Pillow | Sweater | Skirt | Tights | Shoes (vintage)

Everything twinkles in here during the day or night. You can’t really see the curtain lights in the photos, but y’all, they are 100% worth the splurge if you have the right window – so delicate and shimmery. When we shot the sweater fashion shoot the week before, I had different pillows, but once I got that red plaid blanket, I wanted to amp it up a bit and love it in here so much. Shout out to those pre-lit Alpine trees that again, add the best glow and a lot of impact for almost zero effort.

Pre-Lit Garland | Round Bells | Larger Bells | Blue Square Pillow | Green Plaid Blanket | Woven Basket | Blue Round Pillow | Burgundy Blanket

I LOVE this vignette. No one ever sits here, but every time I walk down the stairs, I see it and get that burst of dopamine that only style junkies have. I added more books and frames to give it a cozy library feel (all the gold frames are filled with Santa photos from over the years – a FANTASTIC hack and tradition that is not too late to do). I also really love the juxtaposition of the floral trad chaise and the more modern lamp, with the hits of cobalt from the Schoolhouse pillow and throw.

Pre-Lit Garland | Round Bells | Larger Bells

The plug-in lit garland is excellent, and I offset the asymmetry with no less than like 10 strips of fabric or ribbons on the left, adding bells from World Market. (TBH, I threw up what we had from last year and then just added the patterns and bells on top of it).

Round Burgundy Pillow | Burgundy Blanket | Ochre Striped Bolster | Paper Trees | Snowflake Mug | Candle | Custom Mushroom Stool

This was the shot that I couldn’t nail for 2 hours, and it’s definitely not as cohesive as other designs of mine, but I actually really love the vibe. Once we added the quilted mushroom from the art barn and the accordion trees on the coffee table (from AllModern), I was like “ok, let’s go pattern, color, and fun”. And yes, my family made the paper chain from leftover wallpaper patterned samples (but you can barely see the pattern, even in person).

Blue Barb Sofa | Round Pillow | Blanket | Velvet Lumbar Pillow | Mini Faux Pre-Lit Alpine | White Ceramic House

I LOVE this shot. The blue Barb is Barbing, and it feels inviting and fun, like these people want you to have a good time (very accurate). We’ve never had an adults-only party; we are a frat house for families with young kids, so going more whimsical feels right. And while I love a curated tree, I love our family tree more, with each ornament telling a story. “Henderson Ornament night” is where I’m shamelessly at “peak nerd,” and my kids LOVE it too, despite likely wanting to say it’s cringe:)

Elliot got home in time to jump into a shot with me – listen, I try not to involve them in my job/photos, but it’s really hard when she wants to snuggle on a pillow with me. I went a little extra this year on the mantel, which at times I was like “too much??” but most of the time I LOVE it.

Wood Bead Garland | Gingham Bow | Faux Wreath (similar) | Stocking Garland | Flocked Reindeer (similar) | Green Wood Trees (unavaliable) | Faux Garland | Wood Nutcracker | Flameless Taper Candles | Stockings (unavailable)

Most of the styling we already had, but we added the advent stocking (full of candy and kindness prompts), and we painted the black mirror a darker rose, which really softened the entire vignette in the best of ways. The faux tapers are still going strong, and the stockings from Schoolhouse are so playful and fun, while popping off the white so well. The big gingham bow is new (from Anthro), and the nutcrackers are old, from Michaels. It’s a lot, but it makes me pretty dang happy.

Rechargeable Table Lamp | Multi-Colored Lumbar | Burgundy Pillow | Striped Velvet Lumbar | Floral Tapestery Pillow | Blue Round Pillow | Pre-Lit Garland | Round Bells | Larger Bells

The little nook got an upgrade with the cutest pleated rechargeable lamp, and we switched up the pillows to pop a bit more. I’m clearly really into mushroom stools (not a typical obsession, but here we are).

Plaid Dog Beds | Pink Barb Sofa

Around 3 pm, it got so glowy and cozy (hours later, it’s even better – but so hard to shoot!). It’s busy and layered, for sure (which is why we kept the kitchen styling so simple), but when you are in the room, it feels so cozy, warm, casual, and inviting. Oscar is modeling our new Pendleton dog beds from Chewy (which are admittedly too big – I bought two “larges,” which I’m now using in our family room as floor pillows for Survivor nights in front of the fire/TV, and then I ordered mediums instead to go in here, which hadn’t arrived in time). I love the color palette of the plaid in this room, though.

I really, really love how it came together. It’s not the” Ralph Lauren” vibe I planned, but as you know, I have to shoot it again this week for a magazine (for 2026), and I’m going to use the green Alice sofas and see how hard I can lean into red/green/kitch. You don’t have to ask me twice to go all out…twice:) I’ll show you a sneak peek here, I promise (and def on stories).

*Photos by Kaitlin Green

You know that scene in The Simpsons where we finally get a glimpse inside Homer’s closet to find it’s just a hundred sets of white shirts and blue pants? Well, if we men were left to our own devices, that’s what all our closets would look like. We don’t tend to shop for clothes, and when we do, we stick to the comfortable and familiar rather than take a risk on something that could potentially make us look like Zoolander. We just don’t trust our own taste enough to make that kind of decision. That’s why we need you— our spouses and partners, to help us. Is that childish? Of course it is! But come on, we all remember the day we showed up to middle school in a hot pink G&S windbreaker we thought made us look “hella cool,” only to have Dan Parrish say it looked like a scratch ‘n sniff sticker, don’t we, guys? It turned us into scaredy cats.

But here’s the secret— If someone we trust gives us something stylish to wear, we LOVE it. It’s like a stamp of approval. A green light. It takes the pressure off because we didn’t pick it out. Someone with actual taste did. We can wear it with pride. And with the holidays upon us, now is the perfect time to finally glow up our wardrobe. So this year, get a little risky with your dude’s apparel— push him out of his Homer-mode but assure him he won’t look like a Zoolander. He’s not gonna do it himself. And trust me, he’ll thank you for it. If he doesn’t, you can blame me— I’m hella fast in my aerodynamic pink windbreaker and can outrun him when he comes to exact revenge.

Threads

T-SHIRT $40

BEST FLANNEL EVER $198

J.Crew T-Shirt: J. Crew knows how to get the essentials right— a quality tee that fits right and will last forever. Give me a pocket on my T-shirt, please and thank you. I have many colors of this shirt.

Best Flannel Ever: This is the softest, coziest flannel I’ve ever worn. I would wear it every day if my pits didn’t stink it up so much. For 20% off, you can use code EMHENDERSON20

WATERPROOF SHOE $130

OXFORD BUTTON-DOWN $98

Waterproof Shoe: It rains a lot here in Portland. These keep the feet cozy and dry even when there’s an atmospheric river pouring down.

Oxford Button-Down: I have the green version, and it’s my go-to date night shirt. 

Taylor Stitch T-Shirt: I break this t-shirt out for special occasions. It’s got that casual-yet-special vibe that is hard to find, and looks more expensive than it is.

DU/ER No Sweat Pants: These are my go-to pants; I wear them almost every day. There’s a little stretch to them, which makes them super comfy, and they go with everything. A good option for someone who needs to break out of the ‘I only wear jeans’ mindset.

CAMP PANTS $48

Camp Pants: These babies are thicc. They feel like you could walk through walls without a scratch. But they’re good-looking enough to wear to dinner parties.

Rollneck Sweater: This looks good on any man and will make him feel like a salty sailor. Right after we took these pictures, I stole a tugboat and hit the high seas with a pipe in my mouth.

Jeans: I didn’t know jeans could feel indestructible. These from Taylor Stitch are like Apex Predator jeans. Not too tight, not super baggy, they win the denim game.

Workhorse Hooded Jacket: This thing is my number one winner this year. It’s tough and rugged with a waxed, water-resistant finish, but it’s stylish enough to make me want to wear it everywhere. 

Iron Ranger Boots: I put these on every year. Nothing feels more badass than wearing these boots. Your man will love them.

Cardigan: This thing rules. Everyone who sees it asks me where it’s from. It feels like a warm hug from your grandpa. And it’s so well-made, I think I’ll still have it when I’m a grandpa.

Henley: Emily compliments me every time I wear the black version of this. For that reason, I bought four more in different colors. Lots of places to find Henley’s, but J. Crew is my fave.

Sporty

NIKE SHORTS $65

A&F SWEATSHIRT $70

Nike Shorts: I have these in 5 and 7 inches. They’re amazing. And the built-in leggings mean you don’t need to wash as many undies. It’s time to set the upper-dude-thigh free!

A&F Sweatshirt: By far the softest, stretchiest, best-looking hoodie I own. It’s a huge step up from the Hanes zip-up I used to wear.

Lakeside Jacket: Love this casual, lightweight jacket. It can be worn over a button-up for a date night or over a t-shirt for a boys’ night. Again, get 20% off with code: EMHENDERSON20

Nikes: These are the perfect “casual but not-too-casual” shoes. I can literally wear them to any function and feel confident.

Slippers: Don’t get these if you aren’t into the feeling of walking on fluffy clouds. They’re so comfy and cozy, I wish I could wear them out to dinner or the grocery store. I mean, I guess I could try, Lebowski did, right?

Fun And Games

POKER SET $22

BLUETOOTH HEADPHONES $159

Bluetooth Headphones: These babies have been my go-to for years. I use them to drown out yard-work, plane rides, and middle-schoolers chanting “6-7!” They are much cleaner and noise-reducing than others I’ve tried. And cheaper than the “Beats” version.

Poker Set: A starter poker set that I play with my 12-year-old son (and he has now taught his friends poker). Whoops! The chips are heavy and sturdy and feel expensive for the price point. Plus, the metal case makes you feel like a gangster.

THERAGUN SENSE MASSAGE GUN $299

Theragun: I’ve heard the key to longevity is doing heavy squats. Whoever came up with that theory should get a punch in the privates. Squats suck. But I do them anyway. And when I’m sore, I use the Theragun to relax after, it’s a must-have for old-fart jocks like myself.

Office Comfort

INCREDIBLE OFFICE CHAIR $199

MUG WARMER $32

Incredible Office Chair: I went through THREE office chairs before finding this one. It’s by far the best for the price point— stylish, comfy, adjustable, and easy to assemble. It looks vintage without being try-hard.

Mug Warmer: I have the woodgrain version (I use my own ceramic mug), not the one included. Keeps coffee hot for hours and is MUCH cheaper than some others out there. I can’t believe it took me so long to use one of these.

Utility

STANDING DESK TOP $158

VIRAL SLIM WALLET $48

Standing Desk Top: When I’m writing for hours and my butt needs a break, I pop this baby on my desk and stand up to get some new energy. It’s also easy to fold up and tuck away when not being used.

Viral Slim Wallet: Two of our guy friends SWEAR by this wallet (scammers can’t get CC #, heavy, and stores all cards safely). I want one in my stocking.

Classically Masculine

BEST FOUNTAIN PEN $37

LEATHER CARD HOLDER $50

Best Fountain Pen: Hear me out – I know a fountain pen seems a little ridiculous, but my buddy gave me one when I graduated from my writing program, and I will never write with anything else. Something about scratching out notes with a fountain pen is such a vibe. It’s not messy like you’d think, just baller.

Leather Double-Sided Card Holder: A classic wallet that is very thin and chic. It holds cards on the sides and cash in the middle. No more Costanza cheek.

Backpack Cooler: Invaluable. This will be used on every outing. It’s big enough to fit everyone’s drinks and lunches, and comfy enough to hike with for hours.

Can Insulator: Must have for the beer or soda drinker in your life. Keeps your cold ones cold for hours. I was skeptical, but they really work.

Electric Yard Tools

ELECTRIC MOWER $499

ELECTRIC BLOWER $259

Electric Mower: All these power tools use the same interchangeable battery, so you can mix and match between the tools. The batteries are very powerful and last longer than you’d expect. If I had a garage with all these in it, I’d be stoked to do yardwork every Sunday.

Electric Blower: We use this a LOT during the fall season.

ELECTRIC MULTI-TOOL $189

ELECTRIC POWER WASHER $879

Electric Multi-Tool: This thing has so many uses around the yard. It’s like a Swiss Army knife for chores.

Electric Power Washer: Who doesn’t need a good power washer? And think of all the Christmas morning water fights!

Outdoorsy

SOLO STOVE $350

RECHARGEABLE FLASHLIGHT $99

Solo Stove: We use this all the time. I get to feel like a man by chopping wood, then get to stay manly when it makes the smoke disappear and my eyes don’t tear up.

Rechargeable Flashlight: Long-lasting, cool-looking. Reviews are great, and I can always use a reliable flashlight.

FOLDABLE ROCKER $80

Foldable Rocker: If you’re still sitting on a non-rocking lawn chair at your kid’s games, you don’t know what you’re missing.

Cooking

Smash Burger Press: I know there’s starting to be a push-back on smash burgers, but they’re still my fave to eat and to make. Roll some meatballs up, toss ’em on the flattop, and smash with this press. Makes a perfect burger every time.

Oven Mitts: I used to joke about all the torn and worn-out oven mitts in our kitchen— these have changed the game. They’re grippy, heat-resistant, and manly. Yes, Chef!

BBQ Books: Emily gifted me these BBQ books for my birthday, and I can’t wait to crack them open. They’re from the most legendary Austin BBQ restaurant I’ve ever been to.

Meater Thermometer: Best way to cook the perfect steak, turkey, or chicken. Dudes like apps, and this is more high-tech and precise than the traditional meat thermometer.

Gadgets

WEATHERPROOF SPEAKER $60

LEATHERMAN MULTITOOL $140

Weatherproof Speaker: We got this for backyard parties, but use it for everyday stuff- the sound is really great, especially the bass, it’s waterproof, and my kids love the light show it makes (you can switch that off if you want). 

Leatherman Multitool: The new color-ways on these babies make them a must-have. Just imagine how cool you’ll feel with this thing clipped to your belt loop.

Essentials

MONOGRAMMED CANVAS WEEKEND BAG $41

BEARD TRIMMER $60

Monogrammed Canvas Weekend Bag: What a serious deal. Fantastic looking bag and a great price. Plus, you can put my initials on it? I’m in.

Beard Trimmer: I haven’t fully shaved in like decades. This is the best trimmer I’ve found, hands down. It never snags and keeps its charge longer than any of the others.

Dopp Kit: A good toiletry kit is a must-have. I got the small one for Charlie to use on sleepovers and camping trips, and I use the leather one to hide all my gross bathroom stuff while traveling

Dr. Squatch Deodorant: I’m a sweaty dude, and unfortunately, I wore deodorant that had aluminum in it for most of my life, so I’ll probably grow metal plates in my pits eventually, but luckily, there are many natural options now. Their soap is also great.

Curl Balm: Did you notice my hair in the picture? I’ve been trying to run from my curly hair since I was in high school, because I wanted straight hair like Jordan Catalano. But now I’m embracing my curls, and this evo curl balm is pretty awesome; it also helps make my hair look thicker, which is huge for those of us who are thinning.

Nutrafol: Speaking of thinning, I take a Nutrafol every day, and I wish I had started years ago. I have definitely noticed a difference.

Random

FART BUILDER $19

CUSTOM HAT $65

BIDET $129

Fart Builder: I know, it’s juvenile, but trust me, your husband wants this. It’s a funny gag gift for the stocking. The kids will love it too.

Custom Hat: This one is really special— you can emboss a high-quality hat with anything you want. I’ve made hats with my dogs’ names or our kids’ elementary school. Make a custom hat with his favorite thing or slogan on it.

Bidet: Another weird one, but honestly, it’s a home run. We had a bidet at the Mountain House, and I miss it so much.

That’s all I’ve got this year. I hope it helps you with your dude-centric gift-giving. I know I’d be stoked to find any of these things beneath the tree. Then I could take the tree outside and chop it up, and blow it away with my new electric tools.

Happy Holidays!

*Photos by Kaitlin Green

As someone who is “high key” VERY into Christmas, even I don’t like to buy new things annually (our kids love the nostalgia of what we have already), but every couple of years, I get excited to do something a little fresh through styling. But it can feel like an overwhelming task, a totally non-fun hobby to most people to even think about doing something new (and y’all, there is ZERO pressure to do anything new). So today I’ll show you some styling hacks that I’ve been pretty into that cost very little, but make things feel fresh (and opening up our toolkit for those who want to execute these).

Layering Ribbons Onto Wreaths

This year, we stumbled upon a happy accident – The huge wreath over the fireplace at The Carly highlighted the bright white outlet box in the middle of the hole. This was quite the surprise (yes, AI can take it out for photos, but less so for video/social). So we decided to take all the bows we had (most bought on Amazon) and layer and layer and layer. I have to say that this ended up looking so much better than the one big bow (which, in retrospect, was too small). I LOVED this look.

A few years ago, I layered two ribbons on my wreaths – one larger red burlap (wired) and one thinner ticking stripe (grograin). And now I’m inspired to keep the same wreaths every year, but when I feel like I want a refresh, change out the ribbon (so easy, fun, and not expensive).

Tearing Fabric To Use As Bows/Ribbon

My best hack is to take yardage of fabric and rip or cut it into strips to look like wide, beautiful ribbon. I can’t believe how much more affordable it is, and you get to choose from a million fabrics. If you want them to be long like ours in the window, you’ll need to buy 2 yards, which might be $30, but that should get you enough ribbon for like 5-7 wreaths (wide ribbon that in pretty colors is just so expensive).

Ripped Fabric As Bows On Trees (and wrapping cloths)

I also like taking thin cotton (think seersucker, like the green on the tree above) and tying it onto branches. That was three years ago, and of course, now bows have dominated all of the world for the last year or two, but this was before you could buy bows for your tree.

Also…Wrapping Cloths

I also love buying fabric yardage to turn into wrapping cloths because I’m on a one-man mission to take down “big wrapping paper” (lol – it’s not a huge deal, I just hate how expensive it is and the clean up on Christmas morning). Wrapping cloths are reusable, so cute, and you just fold them up on Christmas morning for the next year. I bought a ton on Etsy.

Your Best Friend: Command Strips

The Command Strips we used to hang this garland, these blend into the white trim | These are good too

Y’all, if I had a flux capacitor, I would go back in time to the day that 3m went public and buy up all the stock. My goodness, these things are so effective, expensive, and yet many are a one-time use (that’s the trifecta of a billion-dollar product right there). If you aren’t familiar with them, know that there is a side that has to stick to the wall (labeled “wall side”) and you HAVE to pull down to release without taking off your paint. I use them for every garland, every wreath on every window or mirror, every cord to keep them in place. And a great lazy hack is to keep them up year-round (if you have the clear ones or white on white walls), which makes the annual garland hanging QUITE easy. Oh, and yes, there are some that can hold up to 5lbs (or you can combine multiple).

Clear Variety Pack (great for hanging on windows)

I have a whole bin of them for different scenarios – like big clear ones for wreaths on windows 🙂

Easy On/Off Switch For Lights

Sounds dumb, but buying extension cords that get lost against your walls is helpful (i.e., white if light walls, black if dark walls). You can barely see the cord hanging off the fireplace there on the right 🙂

Fishing Line – Or What Stylists Call “Monofilament”

OMG. The garland at the Carly was so hard to hang because, unlike my house, I didn’t want to put a bunch of random holes. Most of you likely also don’t want extra holes in your walls. So we used fishing line to hold up the garland and triangulate up and over the beams to hold it in place. Now this was Harvard-level work here; it took me, Marlee, and Gretchen like 2-3 hours to figure out.

Hot Tip: You’ll never see a nail hole on top of your window molding. So what we often do is put a nail there, vertically, then tie fishing line to hang from that nail. You don’t want to ever put a nail in your molding (drywall is easier to patch, trimwork isn’t). But this is a hack we do all the time if something is too heavy for a command strip.

Folding Paper Decorations (Trees, Ornaments) – So Easy To Put Together And Store

Paper Folding Tree Set | Decorative Paper Tabletop Trees | Printed Paper Accordian Christmas Trees (Set of 3)

Now, to your holiday inventory that might make your life easier. Folding paper tree is hero #1. These open up for high impact, different shapes, and instant decor. And then fold down to fit in a tiny box.

I think the modern-day paper tree was inspired by these party favors that Elliot is playing with (the high-end ones aren’t made out of crepe paper and can last year after year), I have many from years ago that are still in great shape.

Mixing In Real Greenery With Faux

One hack I used to do before I went full “faux” indoor was to mix real greenery with faux. Somehow, the presence of real greenery makes the faux look real – it’s all about context in styling, right? I used to put real in faux garland, faux wreaths, and the different varietals of greenery made it look so real. Now the faux stuff is so good that you don’t need to mix as much real into it.

My Favorite Colored LED String Lights For The Exterior

Colorful String Lights

Last year, we put up colored lights for the first time and loved them. The ONLY thing I might have done differently is bought the strand that had the lights 24″ apart instead of 12″. It was pretty bright (but also so fun???!!!). Just make sure to get shatterproof and LED. I love the classic “glass” look (not the faceted), personally.

Don’t Sleep On Curtain Lights

Curtain Lights

I discovered curtain lights during lockdown and left them up alllll winter. It’s a string of lights that goes across the top with a curtain of glowy, rose gold lights that looks like it’s raining.

It glows even during the day. It’s just so extremely cozy and warm. I bought the expensive ones from Anthropologie/Terrain, but Amazon has these to fill in.

Quick And Dirty Holiday Tips If You Really Want To Know How My Brain Works

Ok, I’m late to go to the movies with my family, so I’m going to bust out some quick and dirty holiday philosophies:

1. Don’t buy a faux tree unless it’s pre-lit. Chant “Pre-Lit Only”. Literally 50% of the reason to buy faux is so that you don’t have to deal with the frustration of stringing the lights. This is one of my favorite big faux trees, and I also love these little ones for entry ways or smaller spaces.
2. Definitely buy “warm” light trees (or string lights in general), not cool. Even then, they might be too cool, but it must say warm, or it could look like a 7-11.
3. I like doing faux greenery inside and real outside (for the most part – I also at times do faux outside, honestly). This is strictly to avoid the mess of the garland shedding needles all day inside. Outside is fine and pretty, and then you can just throw in the woods!
4. BUT… if you don’t start decorating til after Thanksgiving like a “normie” (we really should figure out a name for people who aren’t psychopathic holiday enthusiasts like me), then real inside is GREAT. But the other 50% why I use faux, is so that I can start early and not worry about the mess. As an Oregonian, I do feel massive guilt that we don’t go out and cut a tree down, but we start too early to make it make sense.
5. Opt for a plug-in garland where possible. The batteries are annoying to change (it’s fine, I do it every year), but I love that these plug in, so once I figure out the extension cord situation, it’s good for the solid 6 weeks.
6. Buy tree collars that fold up – some still don’t fit my tree, but if you are buying a tree collar this year, don’t get a huge ring to store, they now fold up (Both Anthro and Target have wicker versions).
7. Faux candles are great, but the waxier the better. I love Anthro’s, Pottery Barn has some great ones, and the Target tapers that I’m obsessed with keep selling out, they are that good.
8. Hang your stockings with a weighted stocking holder. This one from West Elm is great but I’ve had these ones from Target for forever and they do the trick. Marlee, on my team, was shocked to find out these exist because she and her mom usually use nails to hang their stockings, but these holders work so much better and won’t damage your fireplace!

See ya! xx

Opening Image Credits: Photo by Kaitlin Green | From: Our Fresh And Easy 2025 Holiday Decorating Ideas That Will Get Your Wheels Turning

Ready for my personal holiday decorating schedule? (Remember that my job alters a typical process, so NO PRESSURE). Ok, October: start gathering inspiration, new ideas, and any new pieces you want (good stuff can sell out). November: it’s dark/wet outside, so it’s fun to start adding greenery and twinkle lights (yes, faux for us inside, real outside comes later, and no, we don’t host Thanksgiving – we travel to family that week). And then the Saturday after Thanksgiving, we have our small family ornament hanging party (literally my favorite night of the year), and it’s an explosion of holiday from there on out. No holding back. No shame. Just utter joy. I really want people to do whatever schedule they want, real or faux, long or short. To me, this spreads out the fun (and the labor) and we get two months of twinkling lights, which help the darker nights and mornings so much (the magic doesn’t get old). For this shoot, we took to The Carly, the most magical rentable retreat estate outside of Portland, because we wanted to try out some fun new holiday decor ideas using pieces from AllModern. They have so many great holiday gems, and The Carly is too special not to get a proper holiday makeover. If you are ready to decorate or not, check out these really pretty areas that my team and I created, and hopefully, it will give you some ideas and inspiration going. It sure did for me 🙂

Wreath | Folding Paper Tree Set | Folding Paper Ornament | Christmas Village | “Gumdrop” Velvet Pillows | Faux Fur Throw Blanket | Gold Throw Blanket | Side Table

Their wreaths and garlands are solid (and so full). My two favorite things from their collection that I’m likely stealing for our house this year are those stockings and the accordion paper trees (you’ll see later). The colors all just worked so well together, in a happy and traditional adjacent way 🙂

Our Favorite New Stockings

Stockings

The stockings are ochre and cream check, in a chunky knitted wool. This colorway works so well with our jewel-toned palette (it’s really just a gold, so in a way it acts as a neutral). I love our stockings, but boy am I tempted to use these this year because they are so pretty and well-made (and dare I say “on trend”). They come in green/cream and red/cream as well, should you want a more traditional color.

Great Non-Holiday, “Holiday” Pillows

“Gumdrop” Velvet Pillows | Wreath

All the cut velvet pillows are so soft, high quality in the prettiest jewel tones, and clearly we like mixing them all together (and are great year-round). And that 4′ wreath is KILLER (so hard to find that big of a size) and will be living on our huge picture window outside (it’s not pre-lit, but easy to string). Fun fact, there was a big white outlet (for a future Frame TV) on the fireplace, so we hid it with that collection of bows (not AllModern) that frankly turned out so cute.

With faux wreaths, in my opinion, you need to dress them up with ribbons, bells, or ornaments to give them more life (I suppose the same with real greenery). The bigger the wreath, the bigger the bow.

A Solidly Good Faux Tree

Faux Christmas Tree | 3-Tier Serving Tray | Tree Skirt

Even though I’m a massive tree lover (one of the reasons we moved back to Oregon), I’m pretty “tree agnostic” when it comes to real or faux. You do you (we often do both, lol). But if you are in the market for a new faux tree, this one is fantastic (they just keep getting better and better every year). This is a Nordic-style fur, pre-lit with really warm lights. It’s excellent. I also want to say that if you are really into collecting ornaments (hi! me!), the faux trees can hold much more and heavier ones 🙂

Large Glass Ornaments (Rose Gold, Green) | Café Latte Ornaments

As you know, I’m a massive family ornament lady (my kids joke that “soup” and “ornaments” are my two biggest hobbies, and they are hilariously correct). For this tree, we chose some really beautiful glass balls that reflect the light in such a pretty way (and you always need the big round reflective shapes to offset the more eclectic handmade ornaments, imho). The smaller “Café Latte” ones are a really pretty blush/ivory tone and hang with wire (so they stay put).

Large Glass Ornaments (Gray/Purple, Blue)

A Huge And Excellent Pre-lit Garland

9′ Pre-Lit Garland | Cream/Black Dining Chairs | Green Head Chairs

This garland is extremely girthy, and each one is about 9′, so we hung three in a classic drape. They are prelit, LED, warm lights and connect together, so once up, you don’t have to think about them. One end plugs in, and you have warm ambience all month long. These are also on the list for our living room – the scale of the garland is huge and perfect for any really large windows.

The Easiest Table Centerpiece

Paper Folding Tree Set

What I love about these accordion paper trees is a long list:

1. They style themselves – different heights, shapes, and colors that look good together, no matter how you arrange them.
2. You can put them on any surface in any room. Mantel, shelf in kitchen, bathroom, coffee table – they look great everywhere (we’ll prove that today)
3. They fold down flat, and use a magnet to stay together – so easy to store, put together, but take up such little space.
4. They come as a set – you don’t have to think about combining the right colors/sizes.
5. They play with the light/shadow in such a pretty way – so much texture and depth.

Red Dinnerware Set | Wine Glasses | Napkins | Placemats

I also want to give a shout out to this dark red place setting – it’s such a good tone and finish for anyone that wants to have “holiday plates” that are more simple (i.e., not fancy) but still high impact. Christmas Eve lunch is the meal I host; I’ll be pulling these out.

Taper Candles | Wooden Candlestick Holders | Green Glass Flutes

The candlestick holders are also fantastic for year-round – turned white oak in a really simple shape can do no wrong any time of year.

Green Head Chairs | Cream/Black Dining Chairs

Should you be in the market for new dining chairs to host this season, I love what we chose here. The two green end chairs swivel and are so graphic and warm (a massive hit with the kids), and the arm chairs are solid, large in scale, and have really pretty lines.

Pre-Lit Wreath | Pair of Vases | Colorful Stockings | Chrome Lamp

This 3′ pre-lit wreath is fantastic (warm white lights, plug-in), and we peppered it with a bunch of smaller velvet bows that we made. Those knitted stockings are so, so good, too.

There she is 🙂 Not Martha, but certainly looking ready to host here. I just thought this whole space turned out so festive, fresh, and fun (but still traditional enough and transitional enough for a lot of styles).

Felt Garland | Green Glass Flutes | Blue Dinnerware Set | Pink Platter | Napkins

I want to call out how pretty the texture of the trees is – the light just plays so well with all the paper folds. Here we styled out the shelves with some felt garlands (great for trees, too) and these new stackable blue plates, which pop so well.

Pre-Lit Faux Skinny Tree | Cream/Black Dining Chair

We kept moving around The Carly because it’s just so dang pretty (shout out to Max Humphrey for designing it). This little area highlights a skinnier tree, which is great for smaller spaces, obviously. We styled more with the velvet pillows, wreath, and trees, just to show you different combinations.

Pre-Lit Wreath | Gold Throw Blanket | “Gumdrop” Velvet Pillows | Felt Garland

A Cozy Nook

9′ Pre-Lit Garland | Geometric Christmas Pillows | Wool Sphere Pillow | Gold Faux Fur Pillow | Gold Throw Blanket | Teal Side Table | Chrome Serving Bowl

We couldn’t not shoot this nook – it’s so sweet and cozy. We used one of the garlands to frame it out and layered it with a ton of pillows from AllModern, accented with the modern lacquer table.

Teal Side Table | Chrome Serving Bowl

This was such a fun shoot, styling with beautiful and festive pieces from AllModern with my team in the most incredible location. A huge shout-out to Gretchen for doing a stellar job at producing this one and Kaitlin for these gorgeous photos. We had so much fun styling it out, listened to holiday music, and even stayed the night in our own suites. At night, we drank martinis and watched The Twisted Tale Of Amanda Knox (not ready for Christmas movies yet) while we wrapped all the “presents”. Thanks, AllModern for sponsoring this post and project. I hope you all enjoyed it and got some new ideas and inspiration. xx

*Photos by Kaitlin Green

We’ve just passed the halfway mark of September, so we feel very ready to start talking about Halloween decorations. My best friend even told me this past week that all she wanted to do was get a fancy coffee and go buy Halloween decor (instead of going to work, duh). It was then that I asked if she’d ever looked at Wayfair? Yes, that Wayfair! They keep showing off their “one-stop shopness”. You can, of course, buy a beautiful sofa (I mean that’s where ours are exclusively sold:)), a great appliance, cozy bedding, a pretty outdoor umbrella, and cute holiday decorations! To give you a little sampling and get you in the spooky spirit, I’m using Emily’s Halloween front porch and “graveyard” from two years ago to show you how to recreate it with only decor from Wayfair. Let’s dive right in.

The front door is such a fun and easy spot to decorate for the holidays, and Em is a pro at it. Since her kids are getting a little older, she went a little more “classic spooky” than sweet kid spooky.

68″ Halloween Thirsty Tree | 15 In. Black Twig Halloween Wreath with LED Lights

Black twiggy trees, branches, and wreaths are a great way to get an elevated but festive look. This tree is high impact! It’s tall, a bit creepy, and yet, kinda pretty:). Such a great piece that’s meant to be used for many years. Then that wreath has the black twig look, but has LED lights, and sweet little (not scary) bats. It’s a great balance of cool and cute. Oh, and it’s on the smaller size, which I also love the look of. Slightly more understated:)

Painted Twig Witch Hat | 6′ Black Twig Garland 48 Purple/Orange Lights

Maybe you want more twiggy decor. Look how great this witch’s hat is! Another cool but sweet piece. But if you want to go a little full out, try this black twig garland. There are a million ways to use it (think Christmas garland hacks). Plus, this one has purple or orange lights (Em’s Halloween favorite), and there are a few different settings. What’s not to love?

Let’s talk more about bats…

20″ Halloween Hanging Black Bat (Set of 3) | Black Metal Bats (Set of 5)

Depending on how you want to use them, they too can easily be high impact, and for my fellow small space dwellers, they don’t need any floor real estate. Em chose to use a couple of larger ones, like the ones on the left, to bring your eye up and add to the creepiness of the front porch. But if you want to go a little less realistic/cuter, I love those metal ones on the right.

Spider Decoration Kit With Spider Web | Giant Spider (Set of 2)

If you’ve been following for a minute, then you know Em doesn’t decorate for Halloween without huge spiders and an equally huge web to match. Wayfair has a lot of great options, but these ones were my favorites. The set on the right comes in 4 different sizes, so you can go for a more medium size or a REALLY large set. How much do you want to creep out your neighbors is the real question:)

3 Piece DIY Decorative Pumpkin Set | Pose-N-Stay Skeleton

Two other must-haves on the Emily Henderson Halloween decorating list are pumpkins and life-size posable skeletons (well, at least one). We really love the texture and colors of real ones, but this set on the left is a DIY kit, so you can decorate your own! Or if you just want to keep them unpainted, I kinda love them that way too:) Wayfair also has a lot of skeleton options, but again, this one seemed like a slam dunk. It’s got A TON of great reviews, too!

Do you have a little outdoor entry moment like Emily? Here are some great pieces to help recreate her version.

Bag Of Doll Head Set (Set of 12) | Halloween Black Crow (Set of 2)

Emily is a vintage gal at heart, so “vintage” doll bodies or doll heads (like the ones on the left) really help her lean into that part of her style. It’s creepy without being too scary. Now, the crows, on the other hand, are super creepy to me! I’ve also had a fear of birds for um…as long as I can remember. But having some faux crows perched, I will admit, looks really cool. Even if you don’t have a table set up, there are so many ways to display them. For example…

See how Emily also put them on her black spray-painted large branches? It’s such a cool look! But what’s also a cool look, if you have the space, is a graveyard. It’s kinda peak Halloween decor, right?

Spooky Cloth (Set of 4) | Halloween Black Crow (Set of 2)

Well, Em started off her covered walkway with lots of spooky cloth. That’s another Em Henderson favorite that is also super high impact. And here are the crows again, in case you needed another nudge to be convinced about how cool they are:)

In my family, we had personalized gravestones (i.e., “Here lies Julia Helen. Had to kill her to stop her yellin…poor mom lol), but they were on cardboard and not even close to being as cool as the ones that Em has or that are on Wayfair right now.

Halloween Tombstones Foam Yard Decorations (Set of 5) | Creepy Arm Wall Halloween Decorations

Exhibit A. See? So cool! I love the varied shapes, that they are all different, and worn looking. I also LOVE those creepy arms! They can be attached to a wall, but coming out of the ground might be even cooler.

And what is a Halloween graveyard without a lot of bones scattered about…

9 Piece Skeleton Yard Figurine | Bag ‘O Bones Set (Set of 2)

Need I say more? Both of these sets are perfect to achieve this look. Man, I wish I had my own yard to recreate this. I love going on my morning walks and seeing all the homes that really go all out. If you can, BE ONE OF THOSE HOMES!

But of course, you can’t leave out the giant spiders and hanging ghosts of your graveyard!

Gigantic Hairy Scary Fake Spider | 35″ Halloween Hanging Ghost

Here are two truly great options if you are missing them from your collection. That spider comes in SIX different sizes, and man, it’s a real creepy crawler with all that hair. A very effective spooky addition to your decor. And is it even Halloween if there aren’t hanging ghosts? Not in my house and not at Em’s house. This one is a great size, a great price, and has great reviews. It’s a no-brainer:)

So there you have it, a great Halloween decor resource that we know, love, and trust. If you need to add to your decor this year, we highly recommend Wayfair. Happy decorating, my spooky friends!

Love you, mean it.

This post was sponsored by Wayfair, but all the words and thoughts are mine:)

Opening Image Credits: Photo by Kailtin Green | From: Our Front Porch Decorated For Halloween (+ How It Looks Spooky At Night For Trick-Or-Treaters)

One thing to know about the Bunges is that we are stocking people. We love them. They’re almost as important as the “real” presents and opening them is equally as much of a production – one by one, oldest to youngest. And no, they aren’t filled with expensive treasures but they are thoughtfully curated with things we’d really like and use. Years ago I spent Christmas with my ex-boyfriend’s family and they did stockings a little differently. It was more uniform and the same every year (or so I was told). Everyone got a toothbrush, gum, an ornament, and a few other things I can’t remember (of course so grateful they included me). That said, both ways are wonderful and totally a family preference. In both instances, I love the idea of filling a stocking with things the receiver will actually use. But in the spirit of “The Bunge Way” here is a varied list of useful, fun gift ideas perfect for a Christmas stocking (especially if you’re running a little behind:)) PS. Candy and gum are always included because it’s the law!

Left Center Right™ Dice Game | Rubik’s Cube

Does anyone “need” a fun game to bring everyone together in a joyful competition? No. But LCR is SUCH a fun game for a family or any group to play together. It’s extremely easy and the winner gets money:) Our family likes to play with single dollars. Then a Rubik’s cube is just a classic that will be fun nostalgia for the older bunch and a retro (nonscreen) challenge for the younger ones. Can’t miss with either of these.

Jay’s Mech Battle Pack Adventure Toy Set | Izzie’s Narwhal Hot-Air Balloon Deep-Sea Animal Toy

I’m not a monster and think that toys aren’t useful so shouldn’t be included in a stocking. Having a fun activity on Christmas day is kinda essential. And if you have a LEGO lover in your life one of these smaller and less expensive ones are so great.

Screen Cleaner | 10 ft Apple MFi Certified Lightning Cable Charging Cord (Pack of 3)

You really can’t go wrong with a small and useful tech gift. Let’s start with a screen cleaner. It’s one of those things that I always mean to get but never do…making it an ideal stocking stuffer. I love how sleek this one is! Then who doesn’t have a need for a lighting charging cord? Most of us. I prefer the extra long ones since an outlet isn’t always close, especially when traveling.

Disposable 35mm Camera | Cell Phone Selfie Light

Another gift most people would love is a disposable camera. The younger kids are obsessed with “the retro-ness” of them and for those of us who grew up with them would love to go back in time a little. Then if you have an aspiring content creator (or someone who likes good light 100% of the time) in your life then a little iPhone light would be such a great gift.

Gel Car Cleaning Putty Kit | The Original Toilet Bowl Night Light

Anyone who has a car has those impossible-to-clean nooks and crannies. I know I would be SO down to get this gel cleaning putty. You get to feel like a kid (playing with putty) while actually making your grown-up car look so much better. The other gift idea is for the nighttime bathroom user in your life – this toilet bowl night light. My dad raves about his because he uses the bathroom at least a couple of times a night but doesn’t want to turn on the big bathroom lights to fully wake him up. Game changer.

LMNT Zero Sugar Electrolytes (Variety Pack) | Professional Massage Ball

For the health-conscious (and/or big partiers) in your life, I’m a big fan of LMNT. All the flavors in this pack are great (I use half a pack per my 30oz water bottle because they are strong) and it isn’t packed with sugar which is my biggest issue with other brands like Liquid IV. Of course, if someone needs to keep their sodium low these might not be great for them. Then this little spiky ball was recommended to me by a massage therapist for my back pain! There are a bunch of ways to it but I was told to simply roll my foot under it. 10/10

Fidget Spinners (Pack of 5) | Peppermint and Eucalyptus Shower Steamer

While I’m not of the fidget spinner generation, the kids love them. This does lean more into the “useless” category for me but will likely be a hit! Another way to calm the nerves (in a more adult way – no not wine) is an aromatherapy shower steamer. Perfect for the person who isn’t a big bath person (me – don’t tell my bath-obsessed boss). You get all the fun aromas of what a bath usually provides without have to sit in a hot tub of water…bored (I said it!)

Star Pimple Patches | Gua Sha

Pimple patches are a killer stocking stuffer! For the younger cool kids (I sound 100, awesome) these star patch ones are a favorite. But if you have people that are more in the millennial+ group. I really love these plain round ones 🙂 And since we are on the topic of skin, if you have someone in your life who loves skincare and doesn’t have a gua sha, I am here to tell you it works. I once did a little experiment and only did one side of my face, and that side was noticeable lifted. This was the tutorial I used. Of course you have to keep it up but if you do it’s pretty awesome.

Press-On Fake Nails | O’Keeffe’s Working Hands Hand Cream for Extremely Dry; Cracked Hands

Now onto the hands. First up are press-on nails. I know these Olive and June nails are good ones since a friend of mine uses and loves them. And in case you haven’t been up on your nail trends, short nails are very back (I will be on my long nail game until further notice though). My 8 and almost 11-year-old cousins love them too. A great option for a wide range of ages. Then for the people in your life that are really hard on their hands (like my dad who promises to start wearing gloves when he works which I’ll believe when I see it), a great and intense hand cream like this one would be awesome.

Satin Heatless Curling Set

I’m pretty close to ordering this for myself! I’ve used socks in the past which worked pretty well, but a set like this would be ideal. What I also love about this for stockings is that you can take it out of the box and wrap the roller and scrunchies separately. More bang for your stocking buck!

Bow with Pearls Hair Twister (Set of 3) | Medium Hair Clips

But maybe just some hair accessories are better for your loved one/s. These scrunchies are a little extra special which I love and perfect for the younger ones. Then for the teenagers plus, I have and love this clip. Probably not great if they have super thick hair and want to put it all up. But aside from that, these are simple, cool, and really affordable.

Lightweight Ribbed Striped Crew Socks (Pack of 3) | Vintage Style Crew Socks (Pack of 4)

A great sock is another stocking standard! Personally, I’m not a big lover of holiday socks. They’re too specific and just take up space in my sock basket until I might wear them the following year. Call me Scrooge, I don’t care! But a sock I would love to receive is a cool vintage inspired sock that I could wear year-round. Emily always makes her striped crew socks look so cool and these Target women’s ones are awesome. But these plain vintage style socks are awesome. As you might have heard no-show socks are out (not with me though!) so the trendy people in your family will especially appreciate these:)

Field Notes: Original Kraft (Pack of 3) | Smiley Notepad with Pen Set

I have loved this Field Notes notebooks forever. They are small to throw in a bag and just look cool. Perfect for any kind of note taking or thoughts you want to get down immediately. But for a more fun and playful notepad, I love this one from Target. The matching pen is also so sweet.

Maldon Salt | Luxardo The Original Maraschino Cherries

Finally, a couple consumables that aren’t candy or gum:) Maldon salt for any cook is home run. It’s the best for a reason and they will love you for it. Another “luxury” food gift is a jar of Maraschino Cherries. They are also THE BEST! Perfect for the cocktail maker in your life or anyone who loves delicious things, ha.

I hope this was helpful as I’m sure so many of you are scrambling to get everything together for the big day! While I made sure that all of these would arrive before Christmas (or at least that’s what they said), you can also just take these as ideas and head to your Target, the mall, or the local shops in your area. This is the official last gift guide, we promise, and see you tomorrow for a personal and relatable Emily post.

Love you, mean it.

Opening Image Credits: Photo by Kaitlin Green | From: The OFFICIAL First Farmhouse Christmas! (+ A Great Ribbon Hack And My Dream Color Palette)