Written by Catherine Seagrave

How to easily bring the simplicity of a Scandi Christmas to your home.

Thank goodness, we’ve finally got there - December has arrived, we are in the last month of 2020, and I’m sure like me, you can’t wait to see the back of this year. 2021 frankly can’t come fast enough.

With this need to fast forward, and in an effort to try to speed up time in any way possible, I have decided to put up my Christmas decorations much, much earlier than I’d ever normally consider doing. But there is after all, very little that’s been normal about this year. 

My normal festive decorating usually consists of a large tree that’s very liberally hung with ornaments in every colour, size and style possible, dating from circa 1960 to the present day. The kids decorate - and then they go to bed and I redecorate! It’s a random crazy mix. Every bauble has a bit of family history attached and a tale to tell - and that’s just the way I like it. By the time January comes around I’m ready to put it all away, and feel the pleasing “Squash and a Squeeze” effect - my house now feels so much bigger!! 

But this year presents me with a bit of a problem. As much as I love the loud, clashing, over stimulating Christmas takeover for a couple of weeks, can I live with it for a month or more?? That’s a lot of glitter for a long time.

So I thought maybe this year I’d try something a bit different, and something I’d never normally (that word again!) consider - maybe I could edit my Christmas decorations to create something that I could live with for longer, that would give me that Christmassy feel, but in a less cluttered more harmonious way. Something more minimal, but still cosy and sparkly.

I’ve always loved the Scandinavian Christmas look, simple and understated. And this is the year I feel to embrace it. I’m a huge fan of the indoor winter wonderland look, using greenery and wood and fairy lights. And you don’t have to spend a fortune to achieve it. Much of the look you can create from bits from the garden and woods, a glue gun and some pretty paper scraps. I’m planning to get my kids involved with the preparations, partly in the hope that they won’t notice that the huge neon Santa on a motorbike bauble is missing this year, and partly so they can look back and remember this year, when nothing was normal, but equally everything was still ok.

So here’s my round up of the best Scandi inspired Christmas ideas from Instagram, Pinterest and my head, that you can use in your home this year if you feel like a bit of a change.

Branch wall decoration

This is so easy and effective. If you have kids or a dog, I’m sure sticks are a regular in your life! I had a piece of driftwood that I found on a beach that was perfect for this project. Some twine and a few sprigs of fir and it was done. 

And you can customise it to suit your space - make it smaller if you only have a small space to hang it, make it much bigger and hang it over the dining table for dramatic effect. Hang your most beautiful baubles from it instead of foliage, to really show them off. Wrap a few fairy lights around the branch to add some sparkle and hang it in the window to welcome guests (or just passers by as we can’t have guests!).

Wallpaper baubles

This is an idea I’m really keen to try. By cutting strips of wallpaper (or any other pretty paper you have) and securing them with wire and a wooden bead, you have beautiful, simple baubles. Hang them from branches arranged in a glass vase and you have a stunning Scandi decoration for your sideboard or fireplace. If you don’t have any leftover wallpaper at home, you could collect some samples from a diy shop or ilovewallpaper.co.uk. And you never know, you might just fall in love with the design and feel inspired to decorate in the New Year!

Simple colour scheme

Try sticking to one colour in your decorations and combining it with lots of greenery and white. Simple garlands draped over the mantelpiece with just a touch of red add just enough of a Christmas feel. Add a fir garland and a vase of branches with berries, a couple of candles and your Scandi fireplace is complete.

Dried orange decorations

A beautiful, natural way to decorate your home is with dried orange slices - they make perfect homemade Christmas decorations and they smell great too. You can use these natural, rustic, cheerful discs in so many ways. I plan on stringing them onto twine to make a garland, and hanging them like baubles on the Christmas tree. They also look lovely tied with ribbons on your presents. And best of all, they are great value for money!

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Paper bag stars

I’ve seen lots of beautiful stars on Instagram this year, and I’m loving their simplicity. The brown paper takes something so ordinary and elevates it to something decorative and magical. I’m definitely going to give it a go.

Candles in bottle candlesticks

Candles always create that warm Christmas glow, but this idea of using the candles in bottles creates an easy, elegant centrepiece for your table. Adding foliage suspended in water in the bottle is a lovely way to bring the Scandi greenery to the table. You can also wrap the top of the bottle with rustic twine to complete the look. Beautiful!

I hope this inspires you with some ideas you can use in your home. I’d better go and get busy, dust off that glue gun, and round up the kids!

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