Young House Love

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A Kid-Safe Christmas Tree With Paint Chips & Ribbons

That she blows! Or maybe I should I say “thar she glows!” Either way, we got ‘er up.

Christmas Tree1

And this year the theme was:

    1. free stuff we already had (no getting in the car to go fetch anything, since we feared that would cost us another week to get things up)
    2. nothing pointy/hard/breakable (for bean safety reasons)
    3. color, color, color (just like our tabletop tree in the living room)

So yes, we gave our full-sized tree a whole new look (see what it looked like in 2010, 2009, 2008, and 2007 here) using stuff that we already had in the house, like a bunch of leftover paint chips from my bin.

Swatches 1

Yes, I save old paint chips to reuse them for things like this art project…

Dresser New Frames

Paint Chips

… and this temporary postcard ledge arrangement (from our first house’s office)…

Swatch Wall Full

Swatch Wall Names Down

… and this year’s tree project:

Christmas Detail1

First I cut them into strips (so I got 2-3 ornaments out of each leftover Benjamin Moore paint chip) and then used a hole puncher to make a hole…

Paint Chip Ornaments

  … which I then used to loop twine and string from my craft bin to hang them. I love that they’re like modern little colorful icicles that cover the tree. And of course the fact that they were all f-r-e-e didn’t hurt either.

Christmas Detail2

The other main element of decoration on the tree is a few spools of ribbon from the gift wrapping closet (snagged on clearance from Michael’s last Christmas). We just unrolled them, found the center point and folded it over the top of the tree, so the same amount of ribbon dangled down each side of the tree in an upside-down V shape. Oh and the “tree skirt” is just three faux sheep skins from Ikea (they’re sort of a holiday tradition at this point).

Christmas Tree 9

I even had some leftover ribbon to make a little bow at the top. Aw, shucks. Our tree is definitely a gal this year.

Christmas Tree5

Oh and you’ll probably notice two things from this picture…

Christmas Tree10

  1. We had yet to “catch up” with our advent calendar when we took these pics (the second we got the tree up we excitedly snapped these photos) – but Clara and I have since hung 12 advent ornaments on the tree – so we’re back to one a day from here on out.
  2. We did some quick mantel decorating in the kitchen, let’s take a closer look:

Christmas Fireplace10

I added some old feather trees on the floor (from Target, a few years back) along with two ceramic birds up on the mantel (like two white Christmas doves) from an estate sale a few years ago. I also added in the little thrift store rocking horse that I painted for Clara (more on that here). And of course I hung our stockings from Target a few years ago (backwards this year – just to spice it up)…

Christmas Stockings3

It might look like those three stockings mean that Burger didn’t get one… but of course he did! John and I actually share one (labeled “Mom and Dad”) and then there’s Clara’s stocking and Burger’s stocking:

Christmas Stockings2

I also stuck a basket full of gifts in the fireplace (actually they’re fakers, see how I made those here).

Christmas Presents Basket

One of the most fun things about the new doorway between the kitchen and the dining room is that we can enjoy the tree from the kitchen too. See it peeking around the corner of the opening?

Tree From Kitchen

Never would have gotten to enjoy that view if the wall didn’t come down a little while ago. Yay, demo!

It’s so nice to see something festive in the dining room (the big tree), the kitchen (the holiday mantel), and the living room (our tabletop tree). Aw, Christmastime, how do I love thee. Let me count the trees, er, ways.

Mini Tree3

So that’s the inside of the house all decorated for ya. Well most of it (I still have a holiday frame gallery project to shoot and share with you guys). Oh yeah, and for the first time ever we decorated the outside of our house too! We’re talking lights and stars and even a homemade wreath and some bright red ceramic-looking reindeer. That’s right, we went all out. Pics to come as soon as we can snap them and write something up!

Psst- We’ll be back with a kitchen update tomorrow for ya! Lots of the stuff that we’re working on is extremely detail oriented (ex: cutting down an old cabinet to make a smaller one that “matches” the rest of the kitchen and houses a built-in microwave), but we’re moving just as fast as we can!

Update: You can check out all of our favorite holiday decor finds here – many of which are under $15! 

Comments

  9. Emily says

    The trees look magical! I noticed the kitchen is cropped out of all of the pics and I hoped you guys were doing something in there! This is sooo much fun to watch :) I hope you guys give yourselves the best Christmas gift of all and take some time off soon, you certainly deserve it!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Aw thanks Emily! Actually what we’re doing in the kitchen doesn’t look like very much (cutting down one cabinet and building in the microwave) but it’s certainly taking a fair amount of time. Hope to have those deets to share tomorrow!

      xo,
      s

  13. bridget b. says

    i like the new mirror above the fireplace. was that a new switch?

    the paint swatch ornaments are very creative. never would have thought of that!

    i also love the idea of wrapping faux gifts for decoration. i’m totally going to do that this year (no, we still don’t have our tree up yet:S).

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Thanks! We actually have since switched it to hanging over the desk in the living room (it looks awesome with the new rug and the pattern in the curtains in there) and now have the circular mirror that used to hang over the living room desk in the kitchen. Haha. We’re crazy for switching things around so often, huh?

      xo,
      s

    • Sadie says

      I noticed the mirror too. LOVE it! This is totally random, but Sherry, I’m pregnant and I find myself eating baked potatoes all the time. I remember you saying that you craved them with Clara. I think it’s the starchiness, plus they don’t upset my stomach like so many other things. Just thought I’d share that randomness with ya :)

    • YoungHouseLove says

      It was from jossandmain.com a while back (it took us a while to hang it) but since they’re a flash sale site, you might want to try wayfair.com for it (or maybe overstock?). Good luck!

      xo,
      s

  14. annabelvita says

    Aw it looks awesome! A paint chip christmas tree is just so Young House Love! I can’t believe you haven’t done it before.

    We only just put our tree up Saturday night. It’s even tinier than your tabletop tree (ah, london living!) but I just adore it.

    Thar he blows http://annabelvita.com/the-teensiest-tree-in-town (for some reason our trees are always boys). Also on that link, check out the map monograms we were given for our engagement – right up John’s street!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We added a few sentimental ornaments (like a few Burger ones and Clara’s first Christmas ones to both trees – just to make them feel “real” and “authentic” I guess. Haha. We’re not really super sticklers for a theme, as long as you step back and it’s happy and sparkling we’re good! Love your Christmas decor!

      xo,
      s

  20. Katy says

    Love it! Growing up we always had two christmas trees, one for my mother that was in the living room and had all of her good ornaments on it in her color scheme. The other one was slightly smaller in the family room and my brother and I got to decorate it and go crazy. The more sparkle and mismatched it looked, the better. This year, we may have to include a bow on top, love it!

    ~Katy

    Reply

  21. Wendy says

    Great job Sherry and John! I really like your idea to incorporate the paint chips as ornaments, and I know exactly what you mean about loving the ability to enjoy the tree from several rooms of your home. We put our tree up in the doorway between our living and dining rooms, so we can view the tree from most rooms on our first floor. http://www.oldtownhome.com/2011/12/2/Christmas-Tree-Traditions-Help-Make-a-House-a-Home/index.aspx It makes all the hard work worth it when you can enjoy it just a bit more each year. :-)

    Reply

  22. Kelley says

    ShutupShutupShutup! I LOVE the paint chips idea. How fun and colorful. The ribbons rocks, too! I am big fan of ribbon running down the tree from the top. It add so much. Nice “free” tree work, guys!

    Reply

  24. Lisa says

    It is cute. I like to keep our tree pretty much the same each year, but add new ornaments that have a special meaning for our family. So, it is fun to pull out the ornaments each year and talk about them. We have some from when my husband and I were kids and then we have ones for our kids. We have ones of a bride and groom that we got the first year we were married, etc.
    I guess we see our tree as more of part of our holiday traditions than a decorating opportunity! :)
    I do have a friend that puts up at least 4 trees in her house though…each with a different theme. Maybe you guys will move to that idea…a tree with your keepsake ornaments and then others that are more theme or decor related?
    Oh, and we put the non-breakable ornaments at the bottom of the tree so the kids can see them and they can play with them too…but they have to put them back on the tree when they are done! :)

    Happy Holidays!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh we actually put our keepsake ornaments on both trees this year (adding some authenticity to each tree was really fun and special – and everything blends right in when you plug in the lights)!

      xo,
      s

  25. Chris says

    Paint chip ornaments are very cool, never thought of using them for crafting. Love the new mirror above the kitchen fireplace.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      The funny thing is we actually swapped that into the living room above the desk after taking these pics. It looks awesome with the rug and the curtains in there and now the round mirror that used to hang in that spot is above the mantel in the kitchen.

      xo,
      s

  32. Wom Mom Ethne says

    Decorating for Christmas is one of my favorite things too. And then wrapping gifts with fancy ribbon like you used on your tree – makes me feel like a gift-giving queen – that’s up there too.

    Reply

  37. Raina@ Mamacita Spins The Globe says

    It looks great! We just got our tree decorated last night only to discover this morning that it had tipped over during the night and many ornaments were broken. So, this afternoon, my kiddos and I will be making some ornaments (I’m not going to buy any more this year) to fill in all of the holes. So, thanks for some ideas for freebie decor, I certainly need it now.

    (we usually tie our tree up, but we were trying to get some last minute details done on our living room renovation, so we were waiting to tie it up tonight after some paint dried. *grumble grumble*)

    Reply

    • Ann L says

      Same thing happened to us this year, it must be a bad year for Christmas trees! Imagine our surprise coming down the other morning to a 8+ foot tall Blue Spruce sitting in the middle of our living room. Eeeek! Luckily, we “only” had about 12 ornaments broken, so on the bright side—I get to buy some new ornaments this year to make up for the broken ones. Good luck with your tree!

  38. Lindsay L says

    Soooo beautiful $herdog! I especially love the mantel because ours is so similar and I haven’t decorated it yet. We even have the same basket for fake gifts, similar little trees and white birds! It’s like you know us?? Or our neighbors sent a letter in, like on what not to wear except a home version…called who the *@#! lives there?!…that would be our boring house :) Ok, done rambling, just giddy about the holidays I think! I have never gotten christmas crazy excited until this year because it’s our baby girl’s first Christmas so it’s all so fun and special now, ya know?! I’m just living vicariously through her fascinstion with all things bright, glittery and shiny.

    Reply

  41. Judith says

    Your tree looks really cute – very creative. We don’t have any Christmas decorations up right now because we’re moving into our first house on the 17 th ( almost around the same time you guys moved last year). But as soon as we’re in our new home I will put everything up again.

    By the way – isn’t a house the best Christmas present ever? ;)

    Reply

  42. Misty says

    I got all distracted by the pictures of the tree…because of what is in the background. I’ve seen a million pictures of your house, but looking at from a different angle makes it feel new and exciting again! This really gave me a better idea of what your house looks like as you step inside the front door…the view of the hallway and the kitchen. I was all enchanted by the parts of the house I have seen a million times, but from a different view point. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

  43. Amy @ Lovely Nest says

    We used to decorate our tree with ribbon like that when I was younger. It was an easy way to decorate without filling it with tons of ornaments, especially since we had a pretty tall tree. Also, I’m loving that mirror above the fireplace. Not sure if it’s new or if I never noticed it before, but I like!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      That was from jossandmain.com a few months ago. Took a while for us to hang it- and we’ve since switched it to hanging in the living room. Haha. We’re fickle!

      xo,
      s

  45. Karen L. says

    Love your pretty and original tree! My favorite childhood memory of decorating our tree was the year we had nothing. I was six, my next brother was three and my youngest brother was newborn. My parents were out of work after a serious health problem, too, and so we found a real tree (cheap) at a lot on Christmas eve and we made our ornaments from colored construction paper I had from my first grade supplies. I felt like such a valued part of the process, too, as my parents seemed “awed” by my ability to make stars and cut them out. We also made loops of paper and strung them together. It was beautiful to a six year old! Though my parents had many serious issues later in their tough marriage, it still remains my favorite childhood memory! So homemade and colorful is extra special to me!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Sorry guys- we crashed and we’re still putting the pieces back together! Please bear with us- we hope to be running normally as soon as we get to the root of this issue!

      xo,
      s

  48. Paula says

    I just wanted to let you guys know that the blog template is broken, at least on my screen (I’m browsing with Mozilla Firefox v5; Mac OS X v10.5.8). The header is pulling an image of a trolley with a Portuguese sign in the background and your content area and comment sections are not formatted the usual way). I hope this helps!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Sorry for the site issues! We’ve been working away on things since our blog crashed three hours ago. Ack! Thanks for bearing with us as we attempt to restore everything!

      xo,
      s

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