We actually got our tree back up a few days ago amidst boxes and general chaos (here it is the first time when we set it up in the old house). We figured we’d never be 100% organized and unpacked before the holidays hit, but taking an hour to get into the spirit in our brand new house for our bean’s first Christmas was just what the doctor ordered. We found the perfect spot for our tree in the corner of the living room (right near the sliders that lead out into the sunroom and the doorway that connects to the kitchen).
We also hung my beloved Pottery Barn wreath (a gift from John’s mom a few years back) on the back of the fireplace in the living room that will someday be double-sided. I just stare at that empty green bookcase and picture a blazing fire…
And the other side of the fireplace (which is located in the eat-in part of the kitchen) looks like this:
I know, I know – that paneling, dark brick, and red tile is ka-raaaazy. But there’s still something sweet about seeing our stockings (John and I share one so Clara and Burger each get their own), my little faux presents, a few feather trees, some ceramic fruit/birds, and our cardboard snowflake wreath up there to keep things festive until we can break out the primer and paint to lighten things up.
Oh and as I was unpacking I spotted those cute silver zebra-ish plates (from Crate & Barrel a few years back) and decided to stick them up on the mantel as well. Why not- it’s a kitchen, right?
They add a nice little shot of holiday sparkle. So I try to rest my eyes on those little gems (instead of all that paneling- oy!). Can’t wait to brighten things up in there. Oh and speaking of painting, we actually tackled Clara’s room this weekend. It felt good to be back in our painting clothes! We went in a totally different direction than we did in her last nursery, so we’ll have to snap some pictures and share them soon…
Update: You can check out all of our favorite holiday decor finds here – many of which are under $15!
Erin says
It looks great, your tree is just beautiful. I love that you already took out the little shelves between the fireplace and wall, too :)
Beth@Just{Heart}It says
Love that you got your tree up and decorated that mantle. I still haven’t been able to figure out why there’s a fireplace in that kitchen, but I guess it’s not for me to know. :-)
Can’t wait to see the nursery! Will you tackle that paneling next or is there something else taking priority on the agenda?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Beth,
If you check out this post with a floor plan hopefully it’ll be clear where the fireplace is in the kitchen (it’s represented by that box that’s on both sides of the wall in the “after” plan). As for painting that paneling, it’s definitely on our list, but since it involves primer and is a bit of a bigger job than some other things we might need to build up some momentum before jumping in and getting ‘er done!
xo,
s
Greta says
You guys are amazing! I cannot believe that you already have decor for Christmas up. Then again, I see how you want Clara to have a great first Christmas. Thank you so much for your blog. I stop by daily for refreshing – creatively and personally! Merry Christmas in your new house!!!
Sarah says
So happy for you all! I am glad to hear you were able to get you’re Christas tree up :O) I cannot wait to see pics of the new nursery!!
Ashley says
Looks nice, considering the paneling. I can’t wait to see what you do with it all. I’m also anxious to see Miss Clara’s room.
Kimberly V. says
It’s looking great! Love it! :)
amanda says
Love where you put your tree! Your mantle looks great….I can see past the paneling…it’s adorable for Clara’s first Christmas!
diana says
Wow! You, guys, you do move faqst!
And the new header photo? Brilliant!
Congratulations, and Merry Christmas!, it may well be the most joyous one: new baby and new home!
Liz says
I noticed on FB that John had his painting belt on this weekend. Can’t wait to see what he did!
Relevant Notes says
Looks great! That must have been a pain to do it all again, but it probably makes everything a lot more merry :)
Melissa @ HOUSEography says
That is so impressive! But, nothing like a major holiday closing in to get you moving with the unpacking!
Rachel says
Looks great! I’m excited to see Clara’s new room too.
And painting the paneling will not be as bad as you think. :) Inspired by your tutorial, I painted a big room full of it while my hubby was out of town. It took me a day and a half priming and painting it alone, but the end result was soooo worth it! Though now we’re in a new house and it’s been hard for me to get off my patootie and paint our rather hideously colored living room.
Nikki says
J & S, you guys rock. i seriously cannot WAIT to see this place’s beauty unfold. I also can’t wait to see what you do with Clara’s nursery. At 25 weeks pregnant I really need to get serious about transforming our little room–but it’s got to be gender neutral! Certainly, though, I’m sure I will steal some of your ideas. Enjoy your first Christmas with Clara in the new house!
Cait @ Hernando House says
Aww, I’m so glad you decided to put the tree up in your new house, too! Looks great, guys!
And I love that those shelves on the side of the chimney are already gone. Did you break out the sledgehammer on day one again, Sherry? ;)
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, day two! But it was totally me. You know I love my sledgehammer….
xo,
s
fdr says
well done! you’ve got more decorations up than we do, and we have no excuse really.
unrelated question: where does your heating come from? i remember you said it was oild based and i was looking for some inspiration on how to deal with the radiators dotted around our flat, and notice now that you have none in your new house. do those little vents dotted around in the floors and walls do the job?
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes! They’re great! We never know how to deal with baseboard heating since we love floor-length curtains so we really like the small wall and floor vents around our house. They were in our old house too.
xo,
s
Emily @ Merrypad says
Cute. I can’t wait to see what you’re going to do with those floors.
Kymberly says
Can’t wait to see the new nursery. And the double fireplace sounds great. You’re making me want to move :P
Nichole@40daysof says
Impressive! It looks great, guys. I’m trying to concentrate on those positive thoughts and not what a loser I am for not having my inside decor up yet. ;)
http://40daysof.wordpress.com/2010/12/20/fur-rocious/
lizkayl says
Starting to look YHL-style already!
I’m a chronic straightener, so unpacking is something I like to do. But, I definitely would have taken an unpacking break to put up a tree. Just looking at the tree lights, when all the other lights are out, fills me with calm and joy: things that are direly needed when moving.
I agree with the earlier poster- why put a fireplace in the warmest room in the house? Silliness!
Irene says
I like it :) looks ‘rustic’ like your spending the holidays in a cabin LoL We have paneling throughout our entire 2nd floor. I am looking forward to painting it.
Shannon says
I love it!! Question: I know you cleaned your old yard up a lot. Are those 2 trees in front of this place staying or going?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Shannon,
Those two trees will probably stay but we do have our eye on a particularly large and messy tree out front that we might replace for something smaller and more charming (we miss the cherry tree in our old front yard, so maybe we’ll get something like that).
xo,
s
Beth@Just{Heart}It says
Oh, I get WHERE the fireplace is in the kitchen, I just don’t get WHY the builders put one in the kitchen (instead of the living room).
As for painting the paneling, I painted our living room a few years ago which was all paneling. While it does take a little more work than a textured-walled room, it’s definitely worth it, so jump in and get ‘er done! :-)
Are you out of boxes yet? :-)
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Beth,
Ohhhh gotcha! We actually came to a get-to-know-the-neightbors party here thrown by the old owners a few weeks before moving in and everyone was gathered in the kitchen with the fire going and it was really charming! Especially since it’s in the eat in area and not right next to the stove or anything.
xo,
s
Sharon L says
I have painted over cheapo paneling and LOVED the way it came out! Hoping you love it too when you do yours! Putting up your things will definitely make it feel more like home, I’m settling in already :o)
brandt @ New House on the Blog says
I must admit, that tree looks wonderful with the dark hardwood. Only a matter of time before the wonderful smell of cookies is gone and it’s replaced with the wonderful smell of paint!!!!!
Betsy says
Now that’s the Christmas spirit! I can’t wait to see the new house unfold, and your love for the 50’s-esque brick rancher makes me happy.
sara @ it's good to be queen says
we moved on dec 6 and that was one of my first priorities as well. it kind of feels annoying to also have a bunch of boxes around, but still, it would just be sad without the tree. and by the way, thank you for saying that moving bites. because it does, especially right before the holidays. we’re getting our house whipped into shape, but it’s still such a process. also, we have almost the exact same fireplace set up in our den. we painted the paneling faded burlap and the trim white, but we still haven’t tackled the red brick yet. another day…. anyhow, thanks for sharing your journey…it’s very encouraging, actually. :)
blessings,
sara
Kasey at Thrifty Little Blog says
How sad would it be if you’re house was a mess and you had to miss out on Christmas fun?! Even in the middle of a big move and a ton of renovation projects, I made sure to put up my tree last year: http://www.thriftylittleblog.com/2010/12/one-year-later.html
Ruth says
Is it bad that I am a little obsessed with your renovating escapades all the way from England?
Love the potential of your new house and I am totally excited about the copious number of projects that you are going to be able to show us! I just wish we had some of the cool shops that you guys get so much amazing stuff from.
Merry Chrimbo!!
Betsy says
Also I lived in a 50’s brick rancher in the 00’s and we had oil generated hot water heat (baseboard). I had floor length curtains, and it wasn’t a problem. The curtains didn’t interfere at all.
YoungHouseLove says
Good to know! We never know the safety concerns for those!
xo,
s
Clare says
Your decorations look fantastic. Congratulations on your new home – I’m looking forward to watching you all transform it from the beginning this time.
Leslie says
There is a fireplace in the kitchen because it used to be a den, that is my guess. When the addition was put on, they also enlarged the kitchen from what was probably a very small kitchen with a small den/family room. (I am only looking at the floor plan, but that would seem to make sense!) Also, your mantle looks great, the tile and brick and paneling aren’t so bad. Red brick has nice warmth, but I can understand why you are ready to paint the paneling!
YoungHouseLove says
Yes! You’re right Leslie! It was a sitting room and they knocked down the wall a few decades ago to extend the kitchen- hence the fireplace on that side of the room!
xo,
s
Andrea (Lil-Kid-Things) says
We just bought a 1960s split level and it is COVERED in paneling! We painted/primed in the kitchen but there is so much work to do it’s daunting. I am trying to enjoy the process! Thankfully I can come here and know that we are not alone :-)
Melissa says
Love that you took time to add some holiday cheer to your new home. Can’t wait to see the projects start.
Blog is the New Black says
I think it looks great! :)
Elizabeth says
Can’t wait to see what you do with the red tile in front of the fireplace. We’ve got a great stone fireplace with the same red and I’m in need of some inspiration. You all never disappoint…can’t wait! Merry Christmas!
Keeley says
I really, really like your new home! I can see the potential and the layout is already great! I especially like the family room. I hope our next home is older, especially since I’m much more inspired to do improvement projects (thanks, in part, to your blog).
J'Anns Boutique says
Looks great! Hope your little bunny is not trying to eat the ornaments. Had a little visitor the other day and that’s all he kept doing! when he wasn’t trying to eat ornaments he was busy chasing the glitter under the tree hehe.
http://jannsboutique.blogspot.com/
YoungHouseLove says
Hey J’anns Boutique,
Thankfully the bean isn’t mobile enough to get into tree-trouble yet. But next year it’ll be a whole different ballgame!
xo,
s
jennifer says
can’t wait to see what you have done in clara’s new room! i am working on my daughters “big girl” room and keep going back and forth with the paint colors. there is one slanted wall in her room and we were going to do that one color [origially it was going to be a lime greenish color, but now i am thinking grey], the remaining walls light lilac color and the ceiling a light blue color… my goal is to have it done for her second birthday in april, so there is still plenty of time.
Rita says
Great start! I am so excited about you getting to redo another house and, especially, about me being able to enjoy the ride on this one. And I love that you changed the top picture already and it looks so adorable. How did you manage to get a picture of the new house with green grass in the middle of this fall/winter weather?
By the way, about a couple of weeks ago, we found out that we are also moving–and it’s a big move, as we’ll be moving to a neighboring state and to a much bigger city. Unfortunately, we will have to rent for a while but I still look forward to implementing the techniques that I learned from you. And the city where we’ll be moving has a Pottery Barn/West Elm Outlet, so I am looking forward to stopping by and finding good deals.
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Rita,
That picture was actually snapped a few months back before the leaves started to change, so that’s why it looks so spring-like and lush. Anyway, good luck with your move and have fun at the PB/WE outlet. Sounds like my idea of a good time!
xo,
s
erin says
Wow you’ve done more decorating than I have and we didn’t just move:)
Oh and when you said on FB that you were painting I totally knew you would tackle Clara’s room first. You know you are a parent when you put your child before yourself (and wood paneling:) Can’t wait to see how it looks!
Jane@ The Borrowed Abode says
You know what? I don’t think the fireplace area looks bad. sure, that red tile’s a bit crazy, but with your holiday decor it looks so cozy and homey that I didn’t even pay attention to the aesthetics of the structure.
Beth@Just{Heart}It says
Aha! Thanks Leslie. Now I won’t be wondering about that fireplace for the rest of my life. :-) heh heh
YoungHouseLove says
Yes! So sorry I didn’t think to mention that explanation earlier for ya!
xo,
s
Adrianne R says
I was just going to add that I totally knew you were gonna paint Clara’s room first. When we moved into our house in June with our 2 month old preemie, it was the first thing we did! Her room was the first room in the house to be finished. I wanted her to have some space amidst the chaos of unpacking.
Can’t wait to see it and maybe get some ideas for the one wall left in Sarah’s nursery to add decor to.
Janie says
I’m so excited to be reading casual posts about “hey! we painted!” instead of the careful ekeing out of material you used to have to do. Hooray for a new house!
Lauryn says
Awh, I love it! Even with all that paneling and brick. :-) Happy Christmas to you guys! Im so excited to see everything come together in this house!
Regina says
I love your new house! So excited to see what you guys do with it!
Jenn L @ Peas and Crayons says
Gorgeous! =) as always — I love your tree!!!!
Tamisha says
In our old brick rancher east of the RVA, we had that same fugly crazy terra cotta tile hearth. Hated it for years. I also painted the brick fireplace white, and retiled right over the terra cotta with slate. Looked great.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5eAsh0MA3MA/SZjYK8q0fzI/AAAAAAAAAgE/RYH8ryTtlQ0/s1600-h/livingdiningB.jpg
cynthia says
Oh everything looks lovely!!!!!!!! Oh it will all come together beautifully. Lesson for me. I am always waiting to hang up things until the walls are painted…. I might just hang up a picture or two now. Why wait!!?!?! Can’t wait to see the nursery!!!!
Carole says
looks great! once you look past the dark paneling, I think the red brick of the fireplace serves as a warm and cozy backdrop for your light-coloured decorations…I’d be tempted to paint the paneling first and leave the brick to see if it’s still too dark for your tastes. Just a thought!