Go faux this Christmas…!
Christmas is one of those times you can go all-out with faux foliage and still keep it classy. It is a little bit trickier at other times of the year, but during the holiday season, where excess is a given – have fun with it and enjoy the greenery! From garlands and wreaths, to table decorations and trees, there is a huge amount of choice, at every price point.
Artificial Christmas trees
The big discussion in a lot of households, is whether or not to have a real Christmas tree. There are eco arguments for and against both, so I’m not going to enter into this particular debate!
We had a real one last year, but this year, as I wanted to get my tree up and decorated early, we made the decision to go faux. It’s funny, as excited as I was about getting my first real tree in 15 years last year, I am sad to report that tree itself was a bit of a disappointment.
I was hoping to find a lovely open, slightly irregular, Scandi looking one, but the very limited choice at our garden centre, compounded by my husband’s very limited patience, meant we ended up with the first tree (of 2) we looked at! And unfortunately, it was everything I did not want – impossibly even, and almost as wide as it was tall!
If you are wondering why I didn’t just use our fabulous fake that we had used in previous years, well, sadly, I left it in the loft of our old house when we moved. What a school-girl error that was! I hope the new owners are loving as much as I did!
Finding the perfect tree…
For the new tree, I knew exactly what I wanted, having seen a gorgeous photo on Instagram last year. If copying is the sincerest form of flattery, feel flattered Chloe from Boxwood Avenue!
The ceilings in our house are not very high, but our living room is large, so a short tree with the slim, Scandi-vibe I was after, would just get lost in a big room on its own. The only answer was to have two! In Chloe’s photo there was a mummy tree, with a baby tree next to it, sat sweetly in a corner. It was an adorable concept and would fit the space we have perfectly.
It did not take me long to find the ideal specimens to achieve this look! A good starting point for any Scandi style search is always going to be Ikea. So that is where my quest started and finished! Thin, spindly and slightly wonky artificial trees – perfect! And most importantly, in the two different sizes I needed. What luck! They are a really gorgeous, not-too-bright green, and can even be used outdoors.
Ikea trees:
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Christmas tree styling
As I was going for a really simple look, I kept my colour palette very simple. Gold, silver and white, with lots of sparkle to catch the light, both day and night. So that they looked similar, but not matching, I decided to light them differently.
For the large tree I used standard string of warm-white LEDs, but for the small one I used warm-white, cluster LEDs. I like things to go with each other, but not be too same-y! (NB – NEVER use cool-white LED anything!)
I was also careful to use baubles that were in keeping with the scale of the two trees, so used larger ornaments on the bigger tree and smaller ones on the baby.
Garlands
Where to use garland
I have collected some really great garlands over the years and enjoy using them all over the house. I particularly loved using illuminated ones wound round the staircase banisters, and on the mantle pieces in our last house. They made every space look so beautiful and festive.
Having neither a grand staircase, nor a mantlepiece in this house, I have to content myself with draping them on mirrors, woven in amongst ornaments on shelves, and running down the centre of the dining table.
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Where to buy great garlands
My favourite place for buying beautiful, yet budget, garland is The Range. It is also a place for buying hideous garland, so be prepared to sift through the ugly! Joking aside, they really have an incredible selection, and do some pretty spectacular ones with tasteful, built-in LEDs, not dissimilar to ones from The White Company. They look gorgeous snaked down the centre of a table and don’t flicker, like candles do. I adore the look of real candles but some people are really affected by the flickering, so this is a great alternative for a special occasion.
Wreaths
Christmas wreaths are very often the first Christmas decoration to make an appearance in the home. Whist you are debating whether or not it is too early to put up the tree, the wreath can go up with confidence! They signify the start of the forthcoming festive season and genuinely make people happy. There is nothing quite as welcoming as a lovely wreath on a front door…!
But front doors aren’t the only place to hang wreaths. They look great in windows, above fire places, and on plaster cooker hoods too. Almost anywhere! Simple wire ones look cute hanging off wall lights. And big, bushy ones make lovely centrepieces on dining or coffee tables, especially in combination with chunky candles.
There are so many different styles of pre-decorated faux wreaths available but if you are like me, and like a little bit of DIY, there are lots of plain wreaths out there too, ready and waiting as your blank canvas.
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Sprigs
Artificial sprigs of Christmas foliage are a great way to enhance, and add a festive element, to already existing decorative arrangements. Add shimmery stems to vases, faux mistletoe to the tops of pictures, and lay frosted pinecones or holly in your bookshelves. Faux sprigs allow you to easily inject pops of Christmas where you don’t expect them.
We tend to focus on the main entertaining rooms in our home when we decorate for Christmas. But a little sprig of Christmas cheer, on a bedside table or in a bathroom, is such a nice touch.
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I absolutely love Christmas and obviously, the family gathering side of things is, by far, the best bit. Having four twentysomething children, all with partners, means that getting together ‘en masse’ is rare. But Christmas makes that happen and for that alone, I love it. But running a very close second, is doing the actual Christmas decorations! I love the whole over-the-top nature of it and completely embrace the ‘go faux’ mantra! It just brings me so much joy!
Wishing you a very enjoyable Christmas preparation too!
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