Modern Home Dsgn

Add something new to your standby Christmas decor. Alongside your sentimental ornaments and favorite pieces, introduce an updated centerpiece or a fresh take on stairway decor, and you might find a new decorating tradition!

Transform a clear glass lamp base or a large vase into a festive still life with a few accents. Fill the bottom with sea salt (a stand-in for snow) and arrange a scene with small ornaments, pine branches, and old photographs or cards.


Sometimes the simplest flower arrangements can add the perfect amount of holiday cheer to a table. Arrange bright red roses in a tall vase and complement the centerpiece with leftover glittery ornaments in various sizes.


Pretty wrapped boxes -- even if they're empty -- can play up a distinctive holiday color scheme. Here, an unexpected combination of gold, cream, and chartreuse provides a vivid pop of color both on and under a bench. In place of bows, wrap a few loops of ribbon around the boxes and stick in a cedar sprig or two.


A wall, a headboard, and a door are all great spots for this simple-as-can-be idea. Sew a single ornament to the end of a length of ribbon, then loop around a hook or headboard and hold in place with strong tape. To create a diminutive bedside tree, wire together full branches and prop in florist's foam.


Add festive greenery to the kitchen entryway with a large, leafy garland. Make it unique by adorning it with last year's (or this year's) Christmas cards, gold and green orbs, and sprigs of fir or spruce.



To pamper visiting family and friends, consider adding a few extra touches to the guest bedroom. Add a bright pop of color with a throw pillow and an extra quilt. To brighten the side of the bed, include a few red blooms in tin containers, and carry through the same color with a ribbon accent for a bottom-of-the-bed fir wreath. Spray-paint paper letters with a welcoming holiday message and set them atop a fir garland on a nearby shelf or table.



This potted dwarf Alberta spruce tree makes a great tabletop accent when combined with other holiday elements. Put the tree container into a basket such as a picnic tin and surround it with apples, oranges, or other fruits, adding pinecones or nuts for accent. Attach a vintage holiday card to the open lid to make the decoration even more festive.



You don't need to go out and buy a special container or vase for the holidays -- instead, get crafty and adorn what you already own. Cut felt to fit around a container, adding an inch to the length. Wrap the felt around and glue at the overlap, then center a ribbon and glue it in place. Using a cookie cutter as a pattern, cut seasonal shapes, such as trees, wreaths, or ornaments, from a complementary color of felt and glue in place. For the final touch, fill the container with ornaments and bits of greenery.



A waterfall of wooden snowflakes, hung from thumbtacks and ribbon, cascades behind the headboard of a bed. Depending on the color scheme of the room where you put the decoration, change up the color of the hanging ribbon or use more than one color to add more festive cheer.



Dressing up the chairs around your dinner table is super easy with candy canes and holiday ribbon. Tie one end of some wire-edge ribbon in a pretty pattern around an oversize candy cane and the rest in a big bow on the back of each chair. For solid chairs, use T-pins or cut longer ribbon lengths for a sash.


Cloves are the go-to adornment for decorating fruit, but crafts materials can also add dimension and visual interest. Arrange inexpensive brads (found at crafts and office supply stores) in various patterns around apples or oranges. Pile the arrangement in a bowl and place on a coffee table or in an entryway.