Neutral and Calm Christmas Family Room Tour! Part 2

Grab a cup of cocoa and come on in! I am all about family, my family, my babies!!! Never more evident then at Christmas when I can literally pull memories out of boxes of newspaper and tissue. This year has been chaotic so I am keeping with the theme I have been following all year of simplifying at every opportunity. I have found that the neutral, muted colors make us feel warm and peaceful and calm in our home. Lowering the visual noise has really helped.  We always decorate our family room tree with our collected over time and life memory ornaments. It has the boys baby ornaments and ones we have picked up on vacations and of course all the ones they have made for us over the years. So lots of crazy colors and variety. I wanted to find a way to keep those memories and traditions without blowing our calm environment to shreds.

 I started with our flocked tree and a very simple base finish instead of previous years, layering in boxes and presents and decor items and tree skirts I just simply wrapped the base in a blanket and some burlap and tied it with a simple ribbon. Then I added 2 colors of decor mesh in a spiraling angled line up and down the tree and added some truly beautiful faux magnolias I found at At Home and some dried cotton branches and dark feathers tipped in gold paint.

During decorating early stages, I decided not to use these feathers and moved them to the mantel

Sometimes I have to live with it half done for a day or two to get the creative juices flowing and get it just the way I want it. I am a very visual person.

ignore all the wires I will tuck them behind some baskets of gifts once the wrapping starts! 

The night before Thanksgiving we gathered around the tree and added our treasured memories to it. I always go back and move a few around later to be sure my favorites are easy to find and that the most delicate are as secure as possible and every year we have a few new ones to add. I am still putting the finishing touches on but here is what we started with and a few snaps of the family reminiscing with each bauble they found in my baskets of ornaments.

Ready!

Decorating Wear? check!

Helper elves? check!

Unhappy helper elves? check! Teenage angst???? In triplicate! check, check, check!

And this one is just excited that I made cookies to keep the elves happy!!

Stinky elf? check!

Reading his Christmas wishes list of many years ago, they love seeing what they wanted when they were little and how much they have changed. Me? I miss when their list had toy trains and teddy bears on it.

Even Husband Darling gets sentimental about it all

I am just happy everyone participated and for one more Christmas I have all my little ducks tucked in under my wings. Merry Christmas to you and your family from our family here on the ridge!