Merry Christmas, my wonderful friends! I am so happy you took some time to stop by. I can imagine how busy you are with the Holidays and I hope this Christmas house tour brings some Christmas cheer to your heart.

Sara from @simplysoutherncottage, was previously featured on Home Bunch’s “Beautiful Homes of Instagram” series, (where all décor sources and paint colors were shared) and I am so happy to have her back here to share her inspiring farmhouse Christmas décor.

Here, she shares more details about her inspiring home:

“For a very long time, I have been a HUGE fan of the Home Bunch blog. Luciane carefully selects and curates the most amazing homes to share with her readers. It is an absolute honor to share my Christmas Cottage with the Home Bunch tribe.

So, hi there! I’m Sara and 3 years ago I purchased a broken down, dilapidated cottage in northern Louisiana and turned it into the home of my dreams. I knew from the minute I laid eyes on it, it was supposed to be mine, but securing it proved to be very challenging. It took me 22 very long months to convince the owners to sell this beautiful, vacant home. (You can read more over on my blog) And after closing in Sept 2016 and spending just over a year on the renovation, I moved in October 2017. Since then, this home has absolutely changed my life. In October 2019 alone, I was featured in 5 magazines. You see my life was once broken down, just like this old house, but we’ve both since been reclaimed and restored and brought back to life.”

Farmhouse Christmas Decor

Exterior Paint Color: Extra White by Sherwin Williams.

Roof: Standing seam metal roof.

Meet the Homeowner!

This is my sweet friend Sara from @simplysoutherncottage. She’s someone I am really grateful to know and I am so proud of so many things she’s being accomplishing through her talent!

Front Porch

The porch ceiling is painted in a subtle blue paint color; Atmospheric SW 6505b by Sherwin Williams.

Porch Swing

Sara is a big fan of porch swings and her home has two of them. The one we just saw is from her back porch and this one is from the front. Dreamy, right?

Swing: here – similar.

Naturally Beautiful

Because our weather has been somewhat mild so far, I was able to leave most of my summer plants on my front porch to create a lush, green Christmas display.

Beautiful Doormats: here, here, here & here.

Front Door

The front door is adorned with faux grapevine swags embellished with real Magnolia. Each lantern swag is topped off with a red plaid bow and I created ones for the topiaries also for a perfect match! The large red Christmas balls and ornaments were purchased about 8 years ago and have been in storage ever since.

Front Door Paint Color: Lemon Twist by Sherwin Williams.

Get the Look: Faux Magnolia Swag & Magnolia Garland.

Front Door: here – similar.

Smart Door Bell: Ring.

Smart Door Lock: Schlage.

Topiaries: here & here – similar.

Gas Lanterns: Custom made by CopperWorks – similar here & here.

Christmas Decor

I firmly believe in using as much real greenery as possible and since I have access to ample Magnolia, Cedar, Pine and Holly trees, those greens are prominent throughout my home.

Tabletop

On the table, a faux pine garland was used as a base, with Magnolia leaves filled in.

Dining Table: Birch Lane.

Beautiful Garlands: here, here, here & here.

Chairs

My dear friend Wendy Conklin (aka Chair Whimsy) created stunning, custom upholstered chairs full of vibrant reds, green, pinks and even black. Wendy and I had been working on the fabrics since summer so I was able to formulate and anchor a plan based on that. Her chairs truly set the tone for the rest of my decor.

Dining Hutch

This is an antique hutch that belonged to Sara’s great grandmother.

Decor

Sara added a cheerful color scheme of red, greens and pink! I am loving this combination.

Layout

The dining room connects to a kitchen with rustic island.

Rug

Rug is from Rugs USA – also available here.

Kitchen

The kitchen island is custom-made from salvaged wood from one of the oldest houses in North Louisiana. Barnwood top is from a 100 year old salvaged barn, a parish over.

Island Dimensions: 74” x 32” (43” with overhang) x 36”

Stools: Discontinued – similar here & here – Other Beautiful Counterstools: here, here, here, here, here & here.

Magnolia

In the kitchen and on the mantel, I used large jar vases from the Hearth and Home Collection from Target and created stunning Magnolia arrangements with white roadside weeds sprinkled in.

Kitchen Christmas Decor

How festive is this kitchen?! A metal tiered stand display all you need to prepare a yummy hot chocolate!

Countertop: Cambria Torquay.

Faucet: Water Creation.

Hardware: Pulls &Knobs.

Inspired by this Home:

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Layout

Looking from the kitchen area, into the living area and finally into the library. Hardwood floors are refinished and original to the house.

Christmas Color Palette

For the first two Christmases in my cottage, I chose a neutral decor theme (greens and whites). But this Christmas, color truly made its way into my cottage. I was fortunate to have been selected by Cottages and Bungalows Magazine for their Christmas 2020 issue and if you know Cottages and Bungalows, you know THEY LOVE COLOR. So I got to work designing a dreamy, magical space that exploded with red and green in preparation for a Christmas photoshoot.

Light fixtures were draped with real cedar cuttings.

Fireplace Decor

For the mantel, two grapevine swags were used as a base with real Magnolia leaves interspersed throughout to create a lush, full garland.

Stockings: Etsy.

Classic & Festive

Honestly after a Christmas cottage full of color, I’m not sure I’ll ever return to the neutral palette I’ve had in the past. I’ve so enjoy the rich, vibrant colors in my cottage. They have breathed a second wind of life into my decor and truly pushed me beyond my creative limits. I was very stressed about how these designs would turn out. I could “see” them in my head, and once my hands got to work creating, and I stood back and looked at the finished product, I was in awe. Awe that my home looked so incredibly beautiful and awe that my hands crafted it. Like most everything I create, I surprise myself because I have no formal training. I simply style, organize and construct spaces as I “see” them in my head. And when everything was finished, I cried. Could not believe I actually created these spaces.

Christmas Tree

For the last two years, I’ve had real Christmas trees, but to make things a tad easier this year I went with a faux fir tree and a flocked tree. Both turned out exceptional and I did not regret the decision. Best I can, I try to keep my costs to a minimum so I reused my rag garland from the last two years, but added red and pink torn fabric strips for additional color. I tore some of the same fabric and simply knotted it to the limbs of my tree and it honestly turned out so so cute. I topped it off with candy cane garland, real pine cones and a large white bow on top filled with faux Eucalyptus. The tree skirt is a garage sale bedskirt. And the candy cane wrapping paper is about 8 years old and has been in storage.

Similar Wrapping Paper: here – Others: here, here & here.

Christmas Tree: here & here – similar.

Shades: Bay Isle Home.

Sofa & Chair

White Couch and chair: Normanson Sofa & Chair.

Chandelier: here, here, here & here – similar.

Christmas Sign: Etsy.

Rug: Rugs USA – also available here.

Beautiful Christmas Pillows: here, here, here & here.

Coffee Table

Chicken coop coffee table: Custom built by Shreveport Salvage.

Master Bedroom

A flocked Christmas tree brings a cheerful and christmassy feel to Sara’s bedroom.

Bedroom Suite: Ashley, but is about 12 years old and has been discontinued – similar here – Other Beautiful Beds: here, here, here, here, here & here.

Bedding: Flannel Sheet Set.

Shams & Duvet Cover: here & here – similar.

Christmas Tree: here – similar.

Windmill Ceiling Fan: Quorum.

Rug: Rugs USA – also available here.

Bathroom

Shiplap Walls: All woodwork in the home is original to the cottage.

Chandelier: Saint Mossi Chandelier – similar here.

Tub: Cambridge Plumbing.

Vinyl Plank Floors: Mannington.

Knobs: Hickory Hardware.

Mudroom

Sara’s mudroom is one of my favorite spots at her house and she changes the decor every season. Notice the adorable quilt covering the bench cushion.

Merry Christmas!

On my backporch, my bedswing is truly one of my favorite cottage features. When the weather is nice, I spend a LOT of time out there… napping, reading and even eating! This space is anchored by an adorable Mrs. Claus’ Bake Shop sign. I wanted this space truly to look magical and just like you were having cookies and milk at the North Pole. And that’s exactly how it turned out.

Christmas Sign: Etsy.

Flocked Tree: here – similar.

Many thanks to Sara for sharing the details above! Make sure to follow her on Instagram to see more!

Bring the Holidays Home!

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