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How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look

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Last week I showed you how  I upcycled my Christmas tree ornaments.  Because you know I am frugal like that.  Today I am going to show you how to repurpose your decor for a unique Christmas look, just like I have done with my living room. 

The big elephant in my living room is the wall unit that takes up the whole wall in one end of the room.  It is big and tall and has lots of room for decorating. And I always try to please it by filling it up!  The smartest thing I ever did was to flip all of my books around and so now I have a neutral canvas to add all the decorations I want. 

Living room, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com

​Let’s begin at the top.  I have one of those spot light units on the ceiling and it is perfect for hanging things.  Last year I had hung globe ornaments in red, but this year I am trying to eliminate red as much as possible.  These globes were painted green with acrylic craft paint. I love being able to transform things without having to spend money. I just buy a bottle of the paint and I have it for months. 
Ceiling with lights and globes, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
A few weeks ago I had seen a post over at While I Linger titled “A Little Christmas Inspiration”.  And boy, did I get inspired.  I saw a pretty garland made with fabric scraps. Well, you know when I see fabric scraps my eyes pop out.  And even though the room was technically done, (but really is a room ever done?) … I grabbed my stash box full of fabric scraps and made this. 

Thank goodness for my friends who inspire me because now I feel that the room is really done!  Maybe even over done, but that’s okay because if you can’t go overboard on Christmas, when can you?

Fabric scraps garland, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
I added last year’s homemade ornaments in between. You can see how I made these here. 
Handmade ornaments, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
And that photo with the green frame, it started out as a canvas.  It’s one of my daughter’s that we have around the house and it’s a painting of the moon. But the moon is not very Christmasy. 
Green canvas with Christmas Card, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
 I flipped it over and painted the edges a green shade…
​​
Canvas turned over and painted green, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
I then added a Christmas card inside, using double sided tape. It looks so much better than if it was just on the shelf all by itself. 
Green canvas frame with Christmas Card, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
Right underneath that I’ve created a vignette with an old spice rack.  I’ll be posting more on that next week. 
Old spice rack repurposed as vignette, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
The globe you see was once an actual snow globe till my sweet son managed to smash it – accidental of course.  No worries, I simply added a jar on top and that was the end of that.  Better to have the son than the snow globe.  Anyway now that he’s older he’s been remedied of his wayward ways. 
Snow globe made from jar, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
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Moving on we come to the middle shelves.  Do you see those tall white objects?  We have taken to calling them the Empire State Buildings in our house.
Angled view of wall unit, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
This is how they started out.  My husband had found them thrown away.  They must have been legs of some sort.  We’ve been planning on using them somewhere, but until then I figured I could use them as decor. 
wooden legs, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
I added two coats of chalky type paint on them and I was done. I had thought about adding stencils or embellishments but liked their simple, striking look just like that. 
Wooden legs repurposed as white buildings, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
The little house with the slanted roof was also a piece of wood I found around the house. I just painted it and then drew on it with a permanent marker. 

And that little tree, it is a thread spool.  I wrapped some green velvet fabric around it and placed it on a base which I had painted white.  The base is from another broken snow globe…. are we seeing a theme here? 

wooden house and velvet Christmas tree, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
I’ve also placed Christmas cards in frames.  This is such an easy way to make a room look festive. 
Wall unit shelves with decor, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com

 The handle of the basket has been wrapped with a string of tri-colored beads. Those beads have been with me forever and I reuse them every year.  Timeless!
Basket with beaded garland wrapped around handle, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
The easy green Christmas centerpiece with a chicken feeder base against a green velvet backdrop.  That is another way to hide the mess behind.  Just use a piece of pretty fabric to cover all the books that are less then vintage perfect! 
Green Christmas centerpiece with Chicken feeder, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
My sweet kids in frames when they were little.  Oh how I miss those days. But I don’t miss the broken ornaments. “wink”
 picture frames with kids, and felt dolls, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com

​And placed on my Chivalrous trunk is  the natural wood centerpiece switched out for Christmas.  The box holds an assortment of sentimental Christmas cards.  And in the place of honor is my sweet Pumpkin man. 

The trunk was a hot mess but I decoupaged it with book pages last year and it made a world of difference in the look.  You see how easy it is to transform something without spending a ton of money and you have the satisfaction of knowing that you actually made it yourself.  The trunk is one of my most cherished pieces in the house. 

Decoupaged trunk with wooden centerpiece, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
And finally I’ve hung a stand of gold bead garland and added my wooden Christmas angels.  Underneath that is the repurposed antique cauldron

The red tree topper is a pretty piece of paper rolled into a cone shape.  Easy peasy!

gold garland hung with wooden angels, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
Wooden legs and piece repurposed as buildings, velvet Christmas tree, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
Detail of beaded handle on basket, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
lomg view of living room and wall unit, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com
And that is how you repurpose your decor for a unique Christmas look. It may have been a bit long, but I like to explain what I do so that you can get ideas too.  Sharing is always good. 

I hope you have enjoyed my living room tour. And if you’d like to see what my living room looked like last year, take a peek here.  I’ll be back next week with some more and I want to show you the spice rack vignette. Do you re purpose your existing decor or do you buy new things each year?

How I was able to repurpose items in my wall unit and living room to give a unique look, How to Repurpose your Decor for a Unique Christmas Look www.theboondocksblog.com

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Wood Christmas Crafts - Best Wood Decoration Ideas for Christmas

Monday 7th of December 2020

[…] Check it here. […]

Mary

Wednesday 14th of December 2016

Mary your decorations are lovely,I love your sitting room its so inviting and cosy.Happy Holidays

Mary

Tuesday 10th of January 2017

Thank you so much Mary. I may sometimes go overboard but I love that cozy feeling especially in the winter when the fireplace is lit.

Katrin

Wednesday 14th of December 2016

Mary I repurpose a lot and I bought some things new this year, but really only a few because repurposing is so much fun!! How cozy and lovely is your living room Mary! I love all your details and that they all have a story! I want those empire state buildings too, they are so great and that house you drew, I love it! Your garland is perfect for the wall unit, it looks great! I'm sure you'll enjoy this room a lot with your family!!

Mary

Tuesday 10th of January 2017

Katrin when I figured out what I was going to do with those empire state building wood pieces I was so excited. Sometimes the silliest things will make you giddy!

Jolena

Wednesday 14th of December 2016

Oh, Mary! I love how your scrap fabric garland turned out! I don't think it is possible to "over do it" at Christmas and in your case I think it is just perfect. I love the idea of using the back of the canvas...is that a Mary Englebreit print? I have had a fascination with her work for over 20 years and it looks lovely in your room. I am so glad that we have become bloggy friends! Merry Christmas!

Mary

Tuesday 10th of January 2017

Jolena, thank you for the inspiration. Adding that garland made such a huge difference to the room. It really adds coziness and warmth to that behemoth of a wall unit. I don't know what the print is, it is just a Christmas card that we had which I display every day. I think some of these cards are works of art in of themselves and I love displaying them all over the house. I too am glad we have become friends. I hope you had relaxing holidays.

Jas @All that's Jas

Wednesday 14th of December 2016

You never run out of ideas, Mary! Nice save with the snow globe! I think my favorite is the spice rack! Brilliant idea! And the pumpkin man survived! Ha! You decorated your little heart out, no wonder you were so busy lately! Now you can sit back for a while and enjoy! Happy holidays, my friend!

Mary

Thursday 12th of January 2017

I really had a lot of fun this year Jas. The more I repurpose things, the more I find other things to repurpose. It never ends. haha!

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