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Simple ideas to make your home perfect for Christmas
30 November 2020, 00:01
Promoted by wilko
Getting ready for Christmas can be quite the mammoth task - let us take away some of the stress with these easy festive décor ideas you can try at home.
I love Christmas, and a lot of the traditions that I hold dear from my childhood are now firmly entrenched within my own family.
It’s always been a really special time of year for me, and I’m sure like most people, 2020 has really hammered home the importance of family, and made me determined to make the most of the time together.
Needless to say, I am more excited about Christmas this year than I have ever been in my life - we will be eating all the food, spoiling the kids, and embracing all the festive traditions.
We wanted to get started earlier than usual with our decorations this year and thought the best place to start was with our mantelpiece, to make us feel all cosy.
The kids are already asking about Father Christmas and our chimney so it's exciting to give it a festive makeover.
We've put up our traditional Christmas knitted stockings ready for the big day and the kids have written their letters to Father Christmas, which go into a special Santa mailbox ready to be dispatched to Lapland.
We made this a big moment after the year we've all had and it was extra special to spend an evening writing these together as a family.
One of the things I most look forward to every year is hanging my wreath on the front door.
Making your own wreath is so much fun, and once you have all the right tools, it's so easy to do - there are plenty of tutorials on YouTube to help you along if you get stuck.
If you're too busy, or just don't have that sort of creative streak, you can can buy a pre-made one and add extra bits to it, or just enjoy it as it is. You can even buy one with pretty inbuilt fairy lights!
Personally, I love to make my own. Every year I buy huge bunches of holly and build it from scratch, but the centrepiece of it is always the same, a vintage bauble from my mum’s tree.
It’s a little robin-shaped Christmas tree topper, I love it. It was my favourite ornament when I was growing up, and brings back so many memories.
It’s one of the reasons why I ask my daughter Luna, and stepdaughter Isla, to choose a special bauble for the tree when we go out Christmas shopping - just in case one day in the future they want to make a wreath of their own!
Indoors, we are just as busy getting the house looking festive.
We have moved house this year and now have stairs, so I am really excited to decorate the bannisters with a green Christmas garland and make them look just like you see in all the movies.
Christmas is an undeniably expensive time of year, but wilko are making sure it doesn't have to break the bank with a big range of cute decorations. I want there to be a theme throughout the house and make sure no part goes without a sprinkling of festive fun.
Kids also love making paper chains, and it can look stunning when you alternate scraps of Christmas wrap paper with coloured paper or card.
My son, Kit, is nearly three and this will be the first Christmas that he understands what is going on. It's already making it extra special and I can't stop smiling when I see him wanting to help his sisters.
I’m lucky that Luna and Isla love Christmas as much as me - from shopping for gifts for their grandparents and siblings to wrapping them, it’s like having a pair of elves helping me out!
We always go and buy a new outfit for Christmas Day, it’s one of our traditions, and they love the girlie time.
Scents are key to getting into Christmas mode, and I’ll be burning seasonal candles like green fig and orange blossom, and mulled wine. Mulled wine is definitely my favourite smell of the season - and drink!
My husband Paul and I enjoy a glass or two throughout December, but the one we have after the kids have gone to bed on Christmas Eve after leaving their stockings out, and a plate of carrots and snacks for Father Christmas and Rudolph is the most special.
Zoe’s top tips
Get creative - make a wreath for your front door, it’s surprisingly easy, and you can use foliage, pinecones, twigs gathered from a walk with the kids. Spritz with gold paint or fake snow and add in some baubles to make it totally unique.
Decorate the whole house, not just the tree - bannisters, window sills, mantelpieces all look stunning with some Christmas bits and bobs.
Involve the kids - ask them to make Christmas cards to send to friends and family, and don't forget the all important Christmas list for Santa!
Indulge all your senses - make your whole home Christmassy with festive scents, plug-ins, room sprays, candles, and reed diffusers can really make a room or hallway smell wonderful.
The Countdown to Christmas is on! It’s time to sort all your presents for friends and family and make your home sparkle with festive magic, wilko has your Christmas covered. Click here to check out their ranges.
Plus, we've teamed up with them to give you the chance to win £1,000 to give your Christmas that extra sparkle. Enter here.
