Merry & Bright Blog Hop { The Living Room}

Welcome to my  Christmas Living Room! It’s part of the “Merry & Bright Blog Hop”. This is the second part of our Christmas home tours this season.  If you missed our last segment, go here to have a look. Again, I’ve teamed up with some lovely bloggers to share some of our favorite rooms all adored for this lovely holiday season!

I always get crazy excited to decorate for Christmas. Who else is like that? I plan months ahead of what I want my rooms to look like with sketch book and pencil in hand. I’m kind of crazy like that…lol. This year I’ve wanted to focus on creating a Scandinavian Christmas. You see, I grew up in Denmark and came to the US when I was just a teenager. I have the fondest of memories of Christmas’ in my little old country. I’ve always tried to incorporate many of the traditions and foods into my home this time of year…especially to pass it down to my 4 children. This year I fully embraced it, and even tried to find items on my recent trip home to my little Denmark .

So here we go…

Let me take you past the Entryway into my Living/Great Room!

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The Christmas Tree

“High from the green top of the Christmas tree, beames the Christmas luster”…

That’s the first verse of one of the most popular Danish Christmas Carols…roughly translated by me, lol.

In Denmark families usually sing Christmas carols while dancing hand in hand around the Christmas tree. My tree …. however is too big to do this, but we do have a small tree in the basement family room that has plenty of space for that. So, let me tell you what inspired me to choose the decor that I did for my Scandinavian style tree.

I call it Scandinavian because it’s pretty simple to what I have had in the past. There are lots of trees in Denmark that have tons of decor on, and almost, always ..everything on it is homemade. So that’s what I did. Crafted most of it at home. Which I throughly enjoyed ! Beginning with the dropcloth ruffle tree skirt. A pair of scissors and a glue gun is really all this took to put together…and a lot of patience…and a few fingerprints too might I add…hot glue! Ouch…lol.

Hearts are very Danish for Christmas time. I painted these gold hearts a few years ago…..found them at a craft store …they are made out of Papier-mâché.

The wooden embroidery hoop spheres are also a DIY. You simply take them apart and “Shove” them back together in a pattern. I added some stain to them and attached them with thumb tacks. My cute friend Shaneece showed me how to make them…And I was crazy enough to tell her I was making lots to put on my Christmas tree..lol…BUT I’m so glad she showed me this DIY…cuz I’ve loved them!

All around you in the cold northern countries you find ticking stripe patterns…all over the place! So…it was only fitting to use some ticking ribbon for my tree.

There is a saying in Denmark “Ude er godt, men Hjemme er bedst” which translates to -“ Out is good, but Home is best”…. it’s kind of referring to being “out and about” as nice.. but “home” is the best place to be. I just love this saying! This cute little white scalloped plate with these special words on it, used to belong to my Great Great Grandmother Marie from Denmark. My Grandmother gave it to me and said she always remembered it on her grandmothers wall, as far back as she can remember. This little sentimental piece of my Christmas tree is everything to me.

I think the best place to put such special things are in our holiday Decor. If you have anything that is of value to you… such as heirlooms and such …try to incorporate it into your holiday decorations … it makes everything that much more special.

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The Wood Burning Stove & Mantel

When we built our house one of our must have items was a wood burning stove. We researched a lot and came to love the features of the Lopi Cape Cod . This stove is amazing! Let me just add…it has a button that’s starts it…yup! No messing around with smoke and matches…it’s the best! The warmth this baby provides is like a deliciously cozy blanket that’s just wrapped around you. Wood burning stoves are a stable in Scandinavian Homes. I have fond memories of being warmed by the fire from them in little Danish farmhouses.

Also to add to the Scandinavian flare a little table Mora Clock in the window sill…..its one of my favorites!

Using this Antique box is perfect to keep all our firewood in. And it’s a plus that it came with it’s interior fully covered in old ticking fabric….

These two little figurines are my heart. I brought these two home from Denmark on my recent trip there. The one is actually a candle stick but I still have to find a candle tiny enough to fit inside. (Guess I’ll have to get one on my next trip over seas lol. ) They are depictions of the Danish Royal guard in Copenhagen. Everyday you can see these soldiers in the Queens courtyard at Amalienborg Palace, guarding their stations in these tiny little houses.

And than there is Charles Dickens ….a Christmas Carol. This sign is everything…I designed it and Natalie at Crafts 2 You brought my vision to life. I Loooooove this Christmas Story. It’s been my favorite since I was a child. But this part of the story, is so very beautiful…every time I read it, I’m filled with Hope of how a person can change…how repentance is so very real…and beautiful…..even the darkest of hearts like Ebenezer’s can be filled with LOVE and LIGHT. And nope…this has nothing to do with Denmark…lol. But I Love it.

What would a Danish Christmas be without a pleated heart? In Denmark you call these “Julehjerter” – Christmas hearts. Traditionally these are made from paper and used as decorations throughout the house and especially on the Christmas tree. I decided to paint this picture of one on this little wooden plaque. “The exact age and origin of the tradition of making paper hearts is unknown, but the oldest known pleated Christmas hearts were made by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen in 1860.”

Hans Christian Andersen is known for his children’s fairytales such as The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling, The Princess And The Pea, The Snow Queen, The Emperors new clothing, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, The Little Match Girl and many many more. He is one of my favorites …and he was born in my little hometown of Odense.

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Salt Dough Gingerbread

Gingerbread houses are a staple in a Scandinavian kitchen …or just basically the recipe for gingerbread. There are all sorts of styles of gingerbread. Growing up on the last day of school before Christmas break we always got a large heart shaped soft chocolate covered gingerbread cookie in our lunches. They were sooooo good! And they usually had  some sort of old 1800’s picture of Santa on them. Magic!

I had been researching all year long to figure out how I could make a preserved gingerbread house. I toyed around with the idea of trying to make one out of wood but I quickly threw that idea out the window… as I don’t even own a saw…so…ya know..lol. Then I remembered that I had made some salt dough ornaments with my children probably seven years ago and they still are intact! Searching the Internet for the best gingerbread salt dough recipe I could find and I came across this one. It was incredibly fun to make this gingerbread house and all the small gingerbread ornaments to go with it …..and so very easy! I even had my little five-year-old help me decorate the cookies and I’m telling you, she did a fantastic job… just take a look. I’m hoping I can continue to add to my collection throughout the coming years…

Some of the ornaments got strung and hung up with and old bookpage snowflake garland. I added them to my old DIY tremor mirror...a gustavian style staple. And I just love the 3 together!

The rest of the cookies got used for various accents throughout this little vignette.

Also, adding some zinc accents, Christmas hyacinths and fresh pomegranates to the mix, help bring out true Scandinavian style.

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Large Hoop Greenery

These large hoop wreaths are something that I was super excited to implement into my Christmas decor this year! They have a few different greenery pieces in them…lambs ear, cedar pine, juniper berries and eculuptus leaves. I decided to only cover 1/3 to half of the wreaths because I love the wood exposed. These only took my a few minutes to make and it was quite rewarding in the end. Lots of floral arrangements are found in Denmark…my mother is a master at wreath making etc and its something I have loved using in my decor throughout the years.

This “merry little Christmas” Sign was designed by me, but came to life via the incredible local Crafts 2 You home parties. I added the “may your heart be light”, to remind me to not stress this magical holiday.

So, if you yourself are looking to create a Scandinavian inspired Christmas there are a few key elements that you must remember to apply throughout your space:

• Use lots of natural greenery and elements from the outside. Basically bring the outdoors in.
• Keep things simple… even though I have a lot of elements on my Christmas tree they are all natural and that’s where Scandinavian style is applied. If you look up on Pinterest Scandinavian Christmas tree they are very bare… but I have to tell you I grew up in the cold north and honestly there are two types… some very simple and very very bare and some with lots of tiny ornaments…But….remember…less is more. Keep it simple.
• Homemade, homemade, homemade! Create your elements yourself with your own two hands!
• Try to incorporate tradition into your decorations…in Scandinavia there are so many traditions during the winter months , if you have a tradition in your family, make it part of your decorations in someway. Almost everything in Scandinavian Christmas decor has a story behind it, and a tradition to go along with it.
• Always and always always use live candles or something close to it. I don’t have any featured here on these photos (I have little ones with tiny fingers that can reach all the spaces that I feature here ,so I have to keep my candles up high…lol)… but I do have lots coming up in my other room tours later this month, so stop on by later to see…. (or you can subscribe to my email list and I will send you my post straight- to your inbox!….yup thats right…be the first to know whats happening at my Corner).

Well….thats my living room all done up for my favorite time of year…

So happy you took the time to stop by!

Now….If you where REALLY in my home (not virtually that is)… I would share with you a little coffee cake or Danish Christmas treat and a hot drink before you leave (that’s the way we do it in Denmark)…But for now , I’ll just wish you a…

“Glœdelig Jul” – Danish “Merry Christmas” instead….

(Decor sources listed at bottom of page)

The “Merry & Bright Blog Hop {Livingrooms}”

continues below…

Country Girl Home

Sweet Rose & Wren

Jones Sweet Homes

Old To New Blog

Crate & Cottage

Camelot Art Creations

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Christmas Tree Sources:

Martha Stewart Living Artificial Christmas Blue Spruce Tree………. Home Depot

Ticking Ribbon……….World Market

Vickerman 18″ Flocked Alaskan Spray 9 tips……Walmart

Christmas (green, black, white) Ornament Bulbs……H&H by Magnolia

Gold Painted PaperMache Hearts……all supplies found at Hobby Lobby

Mercury Glass ornaments….collected from Denmark and the United States

Cotton Picks and Cotton Garland……local boutique… but you can find them at Hobby Lobby

Sphere Ornaments….all supplies found at Hobby Lobby

White Washed Barn Star Tree topper…..Factory Direct Craft

Other Scandinavian Accents

Large Hoop Greenery  Wreaths…..all supplies found at Hobby Lobby

Small Zinc Pots…..Hobby Lobby

Small Christmas Tree in Glass Jar…..H&H by Magnolia

Mantel Garland…..H&H by Magnolia lambs ear mixed with Fresh Cider Pine Garland

Small Danish Soldier figurines…..Illums Bolighus @ Tivoli Gardens

Mora Table Clock …….AntiqueFarmhouse