It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

I love the holidays, especially Christmas.  I don't like the hustle and bustle of Christmas, but I do enjoy looking at all the holiday decorations.   I try to attend as many Christmas parties and open houses that I can fit in.  Yes, I admit, I am a decorating voyeur!  I like to see how others decorate their homes, inside and out.


Starting the Friday after Thanksgiving, I dismantle the fall decorations and start installing the Christmas decorations.  My 17 year old nephew, Ka'Run, has been decorating my tree for the past three Christmases.  I go to bed and wake up the next morning to a fully decorated tree!

The theme for Christmas 2011 was to do a traditional tree.  So, my nephew decided not to use the gauzy netting and just use ribbons and overload the tree with all of my ornaments.  Everybody does the netting.  I think it must be a Southern thing.  I never see it used on trees outside of the south.  I like to see the netting used, but I don't like it to cover up the greenery on the tree.  When you can't see the greenery, I think too much netting has been used.  Ka'Run also decorated my mantle.  My nephew has a real talent for decorating trees.  Pictured below is how he decorated my tree for Christmas 2010:

 

Since my living room is small, I usually limit my decorations to a tree and the mantle.  I used to put a nativity set out and add other festive items to my coffee table.  I thought it was a little overkill for the space, so I decided just to stay with the tree and mantle.

So, if you have decorated for Christmas, keep your curtains and blinds open.  You never know who may be coming by to sneak a peek!