I was so excited to have a Christmas tree again this year after not having one the past couple of years. I’m not the Grinch; it’s just that last year we were moving into our new home 4 days before Christmas. The year before, I donated my poor little 5’ unlit artificial tree to a military family and told myself I was taking a more modern approach by showcasing our ornaments in the apothecary jars from our wedding instead of cramming a tree into our small apartment. Now that we’ve settled into our home, I’ve loved having a Christmas tree again. It gives off such a pretty glow and lends a festive feel to our living room.

The first debate was to have a live tree or artificial tree, but with having a small dog and 2 fireplaces in our house, I opted for an artificial tree for ease and safety…I also didn’t want sticky sap all over our hardwood floors. In the name of convenience, I am also thankful that my tree came pre-lit as stringing the lights can be the trickiest part! Once I assembled the tree and fluffed the branches (outward and upward according to the box), it was time to hang the ornaments – my favorite part! I even went a bit overboard and bought a few too many for my fairly small 6.5’ tree. They were all so sparkly and pretty in the packaging that I thought I would have a hard time figuring out which to use first, but I cranked up the Mariah Carey Christmas songs and got to work. Starting with the larger ornaments, I placed my favorites toward the front and most visible sides of my tree, and used the remaining ornaments to fill in on the backside for balance. I noticed myself spacing like colors and shapes evenly around the tree and alternating to try not to have two ornaments of the same shape or color side by side. To finish things off, I filled in open areas with the smaller classic round glass ball ornaments, this year gravitating towards the champagne and silvery colored ones more than the gold and white ornaments in the collection. I really liked how the large pink and charcoal ornaments complemented the charcoal grey pattern our rug and pink hues in the framed art and beaded throw pillow.

Since I still had ornaments that I didn’t use on the tree, I dusted off my apothecary jars and filled them with the remaining ornaments to use as festive accents around the house such as a dining room centerpiece and as a little holiday sparkle on the mantle.

Cream Marzipan Settee/Fretwork Rug/Glass Ornaments (similar style)/Scoppio Sphere