just a few more.

as requested, here are just a few more pictures of my on the cheap christmas decor!

the full mantle:
[stockings soon to come!]

and the full living room shelf above the couch:
normally, that big empty frame would drive me crazy [and i did play around with a few giant ornament ideas], but i kind of like the sparse, wintery feel it gives, especially with the creamy distressed frame against the tan walls with the whitewhitewhite felt snowflake garland all together. the little red trees are gift bag toppers that i bought on clearance two years ago after christmas at target when i worked there. can't remember if i ever used the bags or not, i just loved those little felt star-topped trees and the little twine they hung on!
this is the first year i've used the snowflake garland [originally from crate & barrel, and if i could find it again i'd buy about 20 of them!]. i love how it looks just slightly like piped icing along the shelf until you look closely enough to realize it is snowflakes. gives the house a gingerbread feel, and what is more christmas-y than gingerbread houses? [those are on my to-make list too!]
in keeping with the mostly-accidental red and white snowflake theme, i made a cheap winter front door wreath re-using my grapevine wreath from fall. the wreath runs $3-$4 at my local craft store, and i added some little faux winterberries and a big styrofoam snowflake hanging in the middle. styrofoam sounds so cheap, but it's sprayed with this little white ball stuff [descriptive, right?] that makes it look very cute and wintery, almost like a cartoon snowflake.
the very thick 3D-ness of it makes it just perfect for the middle of a wreath, and i added a few clear acrylic snowflakes to the little panes on each side of the door for some sparkle and some more snowflakes!