decorating for the holidays

this is the very first time i have actually taken time to decorate my home for the holidays. my family has never celebrated christmas. however, we do get together and have dinner, laugh sing and sing some more. since i am in a different place this year i thought it would be nice to add just a bit of holiday cheer to my apartment. 

i knew i didn't want to spend a lot of money. so i bought one large container (45 count) of black and silver ornaments from wal-mart and creatively placed them about my spaces. i may get an additional one (kinda like the blitz)

some time ago i won a gift certificate to joss and main. i settled on a roll of wallpaper. i had no clue what i wanted to use it for, fortunately it fit in seamlessly with home. i decided to repurpose a few frames that were hanging out in storage and frame the wall paper along with the large container of ornaments i picked up at wal-mart. there were 45 different pieces in the tube so i used them throughout the living and the dining room.

the magnolia leaves are quite abundant and iconic here in the south. i am not sure why i was unable to find pinecones. i think they may be hiding somewhere. 

i dont have a christmas tree in my home. so finding simple ways to display ornaments has been quite fun. i am contemplating picking up another box, but of course i am really on the fence. costo, because it doesn't scream christmas, i can perhaps use them at various times throughout the year. i think.   

because i didn't want to spend a lot of money, i pulled out my favorite fabric and worked it in. i had a few remnants left from earlier projects so i kind of pieced them together and made two bows for two wreaths that i also picked up at wal-mart. 

if ikea was a bit closer, i would have simply bought a few more yards and made a few more bow to hang about the house. perhaps its worth a trip anyway...i mean it is the go to fabric for my apartment. 

although taking photos in the daylight is much better for blogging, i couldn't help but show you how everything is illuminated when the drapes are closed. since i am a renter i do not have recessed lighting to accentuate certain parts of my home. so i use clear light bulbs which give off a fantastic lighting effect. 

so far my wingback chairs are holding up quite well. no fading. no crunching. no peeling. we may be onto a revolution here my friends. lol.

i still have the mantle left to do something with. so i will definitely be coming back to show the rest of the space in the coming days.