High-impact, low-effort Christmas ideas

I’m just about to move house and while I’m HORRIFIED by how much stuff I’ve managed to collect over the years (and that’s minus a good 20 bags and boxes given to charity!) I’m soooo excited about the prospect of unpacking and decorating my new home for Christmas simulataneously!

Anyone else planning to move over Christmas? Here are some high-impact, low-effort ideas to get your new home into the Christmas spirit.

1) Firstly, I simply HAVE to plug the new Winter Spice disinfectant by Zoflora, never before has cleaning seemed so festive! I’m planning to use it in my new home to get festive… and also because I’ve heard that a couple of rugby boys used to live there!!

2) Add instant sparkle to your new home with fairy lights. There’s no easier and cheaper way to add a warming glisten to dark evenings.

Add Christmas lights to your living room for an easy way to get into the festive spirit

3) Planning on a little housewarming? Wow your guests with a personalised advent calender, or mugs tied to the banister, filled with sweeties.

Love Christmas crafts? Create a personalised advent calender your guests will love

Line your Christmas hallway with sweets and chocolate for your guests

4) For an easy way to liven up your festive dining area, hang glistening star decorations to the back of your chairs.

Adorn your Christmas dining room with sparkly decorations

5) Faced with bare walls? Display your Christmas cards proudly on a noticeboard covered in colourful paper.

Show off your popularity... I mean Christmas cards

Christmas craft idea: create an elegant toy sack

Well I was going to spare you until 1st December, but with all the Christmas present shopping, Christmas food planning and all that worrying about what your mother-in-law might make of your festive hosting skills, there’s no better time to get Christmas crafting. (NB: aforementioned mother-in-law will be proud)

I love this adult spin on the traditional Christmas toy sack from Country Homes & Interiors – it’s just so elegant… but it needs to be full to the brim to get the full effect, hint hint. Follow Housetohome’s step-by-step guide to making your own Christmas toy sack.

How to make a country-style Christmas toy sack

Lunchtime Lust: decorating with grape purples

… well it is the time for mulled wine after all! I love this decorating idea from Ideal Home, it’s all about being inspired by fruity red-wine colours and creating a deliciously decadent room to wow your guests this Christmas.

Make a wall hanging to create a backdrop… or to hide an ugly feature. Use mismatched dining chairs to create an eclectic look, but make sure they’re all in the same colour and material.

Create a luxurious dining room by decorating with rich purple

Mix shades of deep purple for a sexy and sophisticated living room, but add liquorice-black accents to keep the scheme grounded.

Create a formal living room to wow your guests this Christmas

Friday’s Fetish: Decorating with wool

Must not talk about Christmas. Must. Not. Talk. About. Christmas. Well if I can’t talk about that, at least let me rabbit on about snuggley and cosy winter decorating ideas – it is almost -20 degrees outside. Ideal Home‘s got some great ideas on how to create a cosy winter retreat… wanna see?

Use fine worsted wools in a palette of greys for a calm, sophisticated bedroom scheme. Throw in a few accents of deep denim blue and use vintage wooden furniture to add warmth to the cool scheme.

Use cosy woollens to keep your bedroom warm and snuggley this winter

Pile in textured woollens and comforting neutrals to add a warm luxurious feel to your living room. Quirky wall art, sconces and ornaments give this living room look a quintessentially British nostalgic feel.

Cold weather? What cold weather? Wrap up to these snuggley living room decorating ideas

Declutter an open-plan room in 5 steps

As I mentioned a couple of days ago, I’m resisting the urge to plummet into all things Christmas decorating ideas for as long as possible. In the meantime, I’m gnawing on other fab ideas in the hope they might distract me from the constant sparkle of the Christmas trends I’ve seen this year! Hi, my name’s Jenny and I’m a Christmas decorating addict.

Here’s how to organise an open-plan space in 5 steps:

1) Invest in a modular cube-unit system. Stack them high to maximise upward space or position side-by-side to create an extra worksurface.

2) Zone with a divider. A shelving unit on casters is a practical way to divide an open-plan space into a living and dining area.

3) Use the walls. Avoid day-to-day mess such as discarded magazines, papers and post, keys and pens by fixing up storage on unused wall space.

4) Add small storage. For an easy way to set the table and quickly clear it away afterwards, use a caddy or basket for condiments and cutlery.

5) Give old chairs new purpoese. Reclaimed chapel chairs have a handy box on the back that’s ideal for keeping napkins, place mats, coasters and trivets at the ready for mealtimes.

How to organise an open-plan living room cum dining room

Shop Envy: Caravan Style

How come it’s only homes interiors that get all the credit, when the pretty shops that sell us all these wonderful homes products are just as show-stopping. I’m starting a little ‘shop envy’ series, scouting for the high street for those cosy shops you’d happily live in.

I’m hunting for the most eye-catching shop in London, so feel free to send over any shops that have caught your eye! That’s right, I’m encouraging you to go shopping for decorating research purposes!!

Let’s kick things off with the ultra homely and welcoming Caravan on London’s Redchurch Street. Complete with modern country accessories and the friendliest cat in the world, Stylist Emily Chalmers has created a cosy space with an eclectic feel to it.

Modern country hallway decorating idea with colourful accessories and soft furnishings

Eclectic modern country decorating ideas from London boutique shop, Caravan

Lunchtime Lust: Sexy and swanky stripes

I’m finding myself teetering on the edge of a very steep Christmas cliff at the moment, a mere breath away from plummeting into a world of Christmas decorations, ideas, gift ideas and festive Crafts… so why I’ve still got my balance, I thought I’d continue with some general (albeit it absolutely stunning decorating schemes).

I love these luxurious decorating schemes from Homes & Gardens, they show just how stripes offer the perfect way to make a stylish statement.

An elegant wallpaper with wide horizontal stripes will give a living room the illusion of width.

Smart and sophisticated living room with wide stripes wallpaper

Use plain linen for both walls, curtains and pelmet, then embellish with wide bands of different coloured velvet ribbon.

Elegant dining room with striped wallpaper and upholstery

Choosing an ebullient mix of stripes in one bright hue will create an uplifting and welcoming mood.

Red twin bedroom with candy cane striped bedlinen and upholstery

Guess how much this bathroom update cost?

A grand old £94.98… or the cost of two tops and a pair of shoes according to a mini shopping trip this weekend… and I doubt the shoes will last as long.

I love the exotic bamboo theme – it’s a fresh take on the classic spa-style bathroom look. The look is kept simple with a white suite and neutral floor tiles, but bold bamboo wallpaper adds oomph, especially with complementing accessories.

Update your bathroom design on a budget by keeping the look simple but adding wow with a statement wallpaper

Lunchtime Lust: luxe hotel-style decorating

No budget to go away this Christmas? Boyfriend not taking your ‘oh I wish I had the budget to go away this Christmas’ hints? Take matters into your own hands by creating the five-star feel in your own home.

Country-house hotel meets private-member’s club, this living room decorating look is all about relaxed sophistication. Go for a simple palette with just two or three colours, and finish with statement accessories in striking shapes.

Get luxurious hotel style in your living room

For a restful bedroom that feels like a proper sanctuary, stick to cool blue, green and aqua with plenty of silver. Start with a shimmering metallic wallpaper, and echo the colours in your curtains and bed linen.

Visit a swanky hotel-style boudoir without leaving the house

Friday’s Fetish: designer hotel rooms

It’s Friday, it’s cold outside, so obviously I’m daydreaming about holidays to foreign lands. I’ve fixed my sights on the hustle and bustle of Tokyo, because (thanks to Design Milk) I’ve just found a place to stay that’s far from the sterile space of a British budget hotel.

LLOVE. No, not a typo, but the name of this amazing exhibition/hotel that you can actually stay in! I’ve always wanted to be a performance artist – ok, not strictly true, but this creative collaboration between Japanese and Dutch designers would be the perfect place to launch my career/ sleep in incredible one-of-a-kind surroundings. And unique is definitely the word… just look at these bedrooms!

Llayers LLOVE hotel by Richard Hutten - Design Milk - roomenvy

Staying in a space with this maxed-out striped effect on the customised wallpaper, floors, and everything in between would be like sleeping inside the lining of a giant Paul Smith suit (I would imagine).

Little Big Room LLOVE Hotel by Hideyuki Nakayama - Design Milk - roomenvy

Bix box, little box… this bedroom is an exact replica of a dilapidated traditional Japanese-style room, only with really comfy looking beds. Take note of the paper screens that form the walls – a great style idea to steal.

Buried room LLOVE Hotel by Yuko Nagayama - Design Milk - roomenvy

If you love the great outdoors, perhaps this is one for you? Love the coat hangers on the tree branches and the buried bath tub. It’s all a little Midsummer Night’s Dream, the updated version.

In LLOVE by Pieke Bergmans - Design Milk - roomenvy

And from one fairytale to another… what’s not to love about this GIANT sculptural bed? Goldilocks has no problems with me saying, this bedroom is juuuusssst right. Ok, where do I book?

If your fetish for all things designer hotel-style hasn’t been satisfied, check out the offerings at Design Milk, and create your own hotel-style abode with tips from Housetohome, too.