2014 Christmas Home Tour

Welcome to the Harris Home!

I'm very excited today to be part of the "Christmas in the Country" Home Tour and Link Party 2014!  Mine is one of over 40 decorated homes participating in this two-week event from Nov 28th until Dec 12th.  Please visit Creative Country Mom's blog to see all the new stops on the tour each day.  There is also a Holiday themed link party for the event where everyone can post their posts.  The bloggers who have been featured so far are so talented and creative, and I'm thrilled to be participating!

Ok, let's get started!    We'll begin on the front porch.  I'm so happy to have a nice large front porch with railings and pillars.  It gives us lots of pretty room to decorate each season.

On the right side of the front door, I've decorated a small live Christmas tree with nandina berries from the yard.  I love this red wagon - it was hand made by my brother in law for our kids, and is a really special piece.  I love using it in the Christmas decor!

On the left side of the front door, I've decorated with some Christmassy pillow covers that I made years and years ago.  I filled the birdcage planter with evergreen clippings from around the yard, and a bow to match the wreath bows on the front windows.   

OK, it's getting chilly so let's go on inside.

In the foyer is the Family Tree Christmas tree that I shared in this previous post.   I love that you can see this tree from the street through the front door windows.  It sets the stage right away for a festive holiday home.

To the left of the front door is the piano room, which I've shown in this previous post.  Here are some photos of that comfy and cozy room.

To the right of the front door is the dining room.   I haven't got the table set up quite yet.   We're hosting a party next week, and I'm just beginning to get the dishes out and get things set up in here.   I'm fairly traditional here, even more than in the rest of the house.  So a simple gold table cloth and the gold candle centerpiece (actually our advent wreath this year) is all that adorns the table.

On the china cabinet, I have two of these soft and pretty glittery fruit wreaths.  I've used them for years and years in the dining room, and I haven't tired of them yet!

In this shot you can see that I added some sprigs of holly to the picture frames.   I had some left over from the front porch, and figured they'd look nice here.  

So let's head to the back of the house now, down the front hall way toward the living room on the left and the kitchen and breakfast area on the right.

The breakfast area is simple and clean (actually, it was a mess this morning, but I cleaned up for y'all!).   I've used a theme of peppermint and apples through the whole kitchen, and the wreath on the back door sets that theme immediately as you walk in from the front of the house.   There's a garland above the windows, and swags on the pantry doors, all with frosted apples and berries and peppermint stripe ribbons.

On the chair backs, I used a clear Command hook to hang green velvet ribbons holding pinecones and holly berries.   Simple and sweet!

Our kitchen table is set for dinner.  With just two of us here most of the time, we keep two place settings out and can use the rest of the table for a little something pretty.

There's a sweet vignette on the countertop bar separating the living room from the kitchen. This Santa and the snowman are actually wine bottle holders, but they make cute figures for the kitchen each year.  The peppermint trees and the snowman photo frame continue the peppermint theme across to the kitchen counters.

On the kitchen desk, I've set up a small tree, our pastry chef Santa, and the gingerbread house that my daughter and I made from a kit on Thanksgiving weekend.

I've collected a lot of gingerbread ornaments and decorations over the years, and have always used them in the kitchen.   I love this cute little photo frame, holding a photo of our family from a few years ago.

Moving along in the kitchen, the cookie jar awaits some baking which has yet to be done, and a faux chocolate Santa tempts and teases us.

 Just a little more Christmas int eh kitchen - some apples and berries above the door to the dining room, and a cute plate with some leftover apples and gingerbread ornaments in a pedestal bowl.

 Last but not least, the living room is all decked out for the holidays.  You can see more of our living room decorations in this previous post, and can see the detail of the side console in this post.

And I'm so in love with our Christmas Village above the fireplace.  It's my favorite display of the year!  You can see more of it in detail here.

Well, I think between this post and my previous ones, you've seen just about everything that's been decorated for Christmas.   

Oops! I almost forgot about the tree upstairs!  There's one more Christmas tree in our home, in the bonus room above the garage.   You can see more of it in this post.

I hope you enjoyed your visit, and will leave a comment to say hello.  I've enjoyed having you here, and hope you'll come back soon!

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Linking to:

Creative Country Mom:   Christmas in the Country 

Fluster Buster:  Fluster's Creative Muster

Jennifer Rizzo:  Holiday House Walk 2014

A Stroll Thru Life:  Inspire Me Tuesday

Between Naps On The Porch:  Metamorphosis Monday

The Style Sisters:  Christmas Home Tour Link Up