The Christmas House: Subtle Ways to Give Your Home a Warm, Seasonal Feeling

By now we have all heard the news about the shopping mob at Walmart, the fact nobody can actually afford Christmas this year, anyway, and the usual stuff that Christmas has gotten way too commercial.

And it has become too commercial. Many agree with that.

But Christmas is still a lovely time of year—and there are still many reasons to celebrate the season—including your own memories of time spent with family and friends, the spiritual significance of the time of year, and cultural traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation.

The following ideas are perhaps not the usual Christmas fanfare, but instead encourage you to savor the season by making subtle changes in your surroundings.

Fresh Sheets and Quilts. You may not even have to go shopping—just look in your linen closet. You know the feeling you get after a day of traveling and you arrive at a hotel, and they have those comfortable beds with all the soft pillows? You wanna plop down and turn on the TV. Why not make your bedroom at home just as inviting?

Clean, fresh sheets have got to be one of the best inventions in the world. Now is the time to bring out the winter sheets, or buy a couple extra pillow shams. You might consider red sheets, if you have one of those white down comforters or a white duvet cover—an instant Christmas look! Another way to give your bed a special feeling is to use linen spray—which can be an actual product which is so labeled, or could be a diluted body spray with a nice, clean scent.

Christmas Plants. Everybody is familiar with the traditional Poinsettias. But why not try something a little different that could find space among your house plants or in your garden all year long? Forced bulbs have a long tradition and brighten up a dreary winter house. Paperwhites and tulips are easy to grow and will bloom for a long time.

They can be placed in window boxes or on tables near windows. You can dress them up with red and green Christmas bows or other inexpensive decoration. They make nice gifts, and these are flowers which will keep on giving, as they come back year after year. When you are tired of them in your house, they easily transition to a garden plant.

Delicious Candles. Pumpkin pie. Apple Spice. Sugar Cookie. The candles I’m thinking about are $1 each, come in little glass containers and can often be found at dollar stores or Family Dollar outlet stores. Produced by the Brooklyn Candle Company, really their aroma cannot be beat.

Maybe you don’t have time to bake this year (and anyway, that good smell only lasts a short time), but these candles come as close as I’ve seen to approaching the real essence of these smells. Use them to brighten and warm your dining and living rooms during dark winter days.

Winter Kitchen/Dining Table Centerpiece. I was inspired to create one of these a few years ago after I visited a historic hotel in San Francisco and saw what an ambiance it created in their entryway. So much so that I always remembered it. And it is true, architectural magazines always feature flowers or plants in every photograph, because they add color and light to the surroundings.

You can be imaginative here. Since I have a huge pine tree that is always shedding branches and pine cones, I gathered up a bunch of them and twirled red ribbon among them for a Christmas bouquet placed in a glass container. Another good idea is a glass hurricane with old glass ornaments placed in it.

Boiled Cinnamon Sticks. This is another great idea (and completely natural) way to keep your house smelling warm and Christmassy. Whole cinnamon stick bark can be bought usually in a grocery spice aisle, and usually is not very expensive.

Add a few sticks to water in a pan on top of the stove and bring to a boil. You can also add cloves for an extra spicy smell. After the concoction has come to a boil for a few minutes, keep the pan on a low simmer, adding water if it gets low. If you have trouble with dry air in your house, this is also an inexpensive way to add humidity to the air—scented, no less!