Handmade, Heartfelt: How We Deck The Halls Now

Reinvent your holiday home with DIY decorations for every room

By Mary Fons
CTW Features

Image courtesy Getty Images

Whether it’s a popsicle-stick reindeer, a cotton ball snowman, or a milk-carton dreidel, being a kid around the holidays means a lot of handmade holiday crafts.

But why should the kids have all the fun?

“Making my own holiday decorations makes me think of how joyful Christmas was when I was younger,” says Shelley Yankus, co-owner of Atlanta’s RELICboutique. “It is so easy to become Grinch-like around Christmas as an adult. Listening to some Christmas music, creating a decoration from scratch, and feeling a little slice of the happiness I enjoyed as a child is good for my soul.”

This idea of sitting down for some do-it-yourself decorating – especially around the holidays – has been gaining ground in the past few years. “I think art and music in general blossomed and took on new meaning and importance after 9/11,” Yankus says. “More people wanted to create art; to unwind after working a 9-to-5 job, to de-stress, to create a tangible thing of beauty. And some people wanted a career that meant something to them, hence the upsurge in DIY culture.”

Michelle Dortch is owner of Chel … Domestic Goodies, a Chicago business she founded to capitalize on her talent for crafting. Dortch believes that hand-made crafts don’t have to mean that every last component has to be made from scratch. “When it comes to [DIY] decorating, it’s about the combination of what you find at retail and what you create with your own hands. The easy stuff is what you pick up – what you create really speaks about who you are, the care that is behind the craft and how it is customized for your home.”

“A lot of us tend to over-decorate for the holidays, then wonder why we get depressed when it all has to be put away” says Peggy Freligh, professional decorator and D.I.Y. crafter. “Don’t try to use everything every year, no matter what your family says.” For Freligh, “do it yourself” means having total freedom to decorate in the way that best fits you and your home. “Instead of trying to copy displays from stores or magazines, take ideas from them and incorporate them into your home’s style and your family’s personality. Use colors that go with your current decor instead of trying to make everything red and green.”

She adds that a creative DIY decorator can find uses for items that aren’t necessarily labeled “holiday” in the back of the hall closet. “Use hobbies as a basis for holiday décor. Bring on the quilts, dolls, bears and toy collections that you don’t have out year-round.” Displaying beloved knickknacks alongside hand-made crafts will quickly turn your home into a haven of holiday warmth.

“There is such a great reward mentally and visually in making something with your hands,” says Dortch. “We are so time-deprived, rushing here, running there – when we take the time to sit and learn to knit or take a sewing class, we learn how to create something magical for ourselves. [It’s] a reward for hectic lifestyles.”

Image courtesy iStockphoto

Dortch says one of the crafts she will always make time for during the crazy holiday season is her “faux fireplace.” To create this DIY holiday decoration, Dortch suggests buying a pack of pre-cut fireplace wood from the grocery store. “Bundle up four to five pieces with natural-colored string. Get one strand of your white Christmas lights and wrap it around the wood bundle, leaving enough of the strand to plug it in. Put it in your fireplace if you have one, or set it on top of a table or in front of your tree. Plug her in and presto! You have a faux fireplace!”

Decorations that also delight one’s sense of smell – like gingerbread houses or candy-cane creations – are easy to create and leave a lasting impression. “I love making orange and clove pomanders,” Yankus says. “You can create tons of different designs or spell out words with the cloves. They look great when grouped together in a bowl as a centerpiece or hung from ribbons in windows. The way they smell is absolutely amazing, and they’re better than candles because you don’t have to remember to blow them out!”

Going DIY this season means thinking “green,” too. Re-appropriating old decorations and using natural embellishments looks fabulous and cuts the environment a break, too.

“The biggest advantage to using natural materials in decor is the scent, especially real pine and eucalyptus, says Freligh. “Group [old ornaments] in baskets, buckets, wooden boxes, or glass bowls. They’ll work as conversation pieces. I like to see folks open their cupboards and use “found objects” to add to their décor. Look for red caps, plaid blankets, mittens, grandma’s old plates etc. Drape them, hang them on a hook, stick them in a basket or group candles on them.”

And if your finished product looks a little, well, homemade, that’s a good thing. “I don’t think there is such a thing as a holiday decorating no-no,” Yankus says. “I think people should decorate in whatever style makes them happiest. After all, aren’t the houses that are totally covered in lights and Santa paraphernalia the most fun to drive by? They’re horribly wonderful.”

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