I am a huge fan of Next homeware, as evidenced almost any time someone asks where something is from in my house – let’s just go ahead and say it’s safe to assume it’s from Next. So when they got in touch about a campaign where they were asking bloggers to give tips on styling their home at Christmas, I jumped at the chance.
I got to pick three things from the Next website, style them and then share my tips on interior styling via some foam speech bubbles. It was so much fun! Christmas is the one time each year that I really clear things away and ‘dress the house’ – I change pictures in frames, I put lights up the stairs and I decorate the mantelpiece and fireplace. I love having a day to make things cosy and really think about the spaces in my house and how to make them festive and fun.
My first pick was this gorgeous Red Berry Wreath (£25*). My tip is “A wreath makes a great fireplace centrepiece”. Because we don’t have a fire installed we usually have a beautiful old Coastguard search light in the fireplace but I thought the wreath would look really pretty in there instead over the Christmas period. Christmas cosiness is all about light for me so I love anything with fairy lights on – there’s nothing better than coming down in the morning when it’s still dark outside and lighting candles and seeing all the lights twinkling. I think an empty fireplace is such a great little area to dress up and I’ve seen some really fun ideas for filling the space if you have one too – pillar candles always look beautiful burning away. I have also seen logs, vases, books and even a TV in one!
My second tip is “Pick rustic pieces that are on trend and can be left up all year”. Rustic and woodland themes are very on trend at the moment, with lots of natural materials like wicker, linen and jute in shops, as well as cushions and lamps emblazoned with woodland creatures like foxes and stags. I love picking up items around Christmas that will make the house look festive but can stay up after the Christmas tree has come down. This beautiful decorative wreath (£60*) is such a statement piece and looks stunning hung on our wall but will also give a nod to the ‘nature’ trend all year round. At the moment we’ve hung a Christmassy wooden banner on it but come March I’ll add some Spring flowers to pretty it up.
My final tip is a very simple one but probably the first thing I buy when it becomes acceptable to get in the Christmas spirit! Before the decorations go up I always burn Christmassy candles and buy reed diffusers – “Christmas scents create a cosy, festive feel!”. These Joyeux Noel Reed Diffusers (£14*) are scented with cinnamon, apple and warm clove and just make the house smell amazing.
So those are my three styling tips this Christmas, over the next few days I will also be putting up some photos of our tree, wreaths and all of the other decorations, I can’t wait! By the way, if you haven’t already I urge you to have a nose at the Next Home Style Tumblr, there is so much loveliness and style inspiration on there, it’s my favourite stop for home inspiration at the moment.
What are your tips for styling your home at Christmas?