This year I’ve heard from friends, family, and clients who are on the fence about whether or not they should go all out on Christmas decor or skip it altogether this year.

My answer? Decorate!

Even the simplest decorations can significantly impact your home and how you feel around the holidays (and couldn’t we all do with a bit more joy, given the tumultuous year?)

If you’re looking for an easy holiday decor project with a big payoff, I’ve got just the task for you that may not be the most obvious spot for seasonal decorations — the buffet table.

I promise you it’s a show stopper.

Watch me transform this modern farmhouse buffet into a winter wonderland in a few easy steps.

Step 1: Clear Your Space

This step may seem obvious, but it’s something I do like to point out for seasonal decorating advice as it can be tricky to add festive elements to decor you already have on your dining room buffet or any nook in your home.

You run the risk of palettes clashing or creating a design that looks too busy and cluttered.

I learned this technique from my mom, who used to have this way of cleaning and organizing where she would open every drawer, dump out the contents, and start all over again.

Beginning with a fresh canvas for your design will also feel good, and you can truly see the space you have to work with.

Step 2: Choosing Your Greenery

Now that my surface is clear, I like to lay down my holiday stems, florals, and greenery as a foundation for my design.

The nice thing about holiday greenery is that they’re convenient to source fresh this time of year at your local grocery store and farmer’s market, and they’re inexpensive.

Alternatively, you can get reusable foliage decor you can use year after year.

My quick hack to get instant fullness? Use a piece of garland for my greenery.

I often get asked, “what color should my holiday decor be?” The answer is actually right in front of you in the furniture you’re working with. I take cues from the paint, distressing, and even the discoloration that chips might add to the rustic Christmas decor I’m going for.

I’m choosing colors that compliment the gray tones in the chalk painted surface for this Chantilly White and Chambord Gray farmhouse buffet. Because this room’s colors are neutral and light, I’m leaning towards a monochromatic color palette for a chic, elevated look.

Available at Village Antiques 

For this reason, I opted for a reusable flocked garland to bring more white into the greenery for my buffet design foundation.

Step 3: Fluffing Your Greenery

Available at Village Antiques

If you’re using faux greenery like I am, you’ll notice it’ll need a bit of fluffing to get the fullness that you want.

Just like artificial Christmas trees, you can fan out the individual wires that make up the sprigs into a shape that looks natural and full.

I’m also slightly bending the garland’s base shape into an S-curve, which will allow me to place decor in a pleasing zig-zag pattern later on.

As you arrange your garland, you might see that it’s facing up rather than forwards, where your eye-line catches the designs better. An easy fix is to bend your branches forward towards you. If you find this isn’t enough, you can add crumpled kraft paper to create a little bed for the garland to rest on so that it sits facing you.

Step 4: Pick Your Centerpiece

The next thing I do is decide what I want in the center of my buffet. 

Available at Village Antiques

I chose this tall ceramic angel with some of the same gray and white tones from my buffet. I like that this piece adds height to the overall design.

Once I’ve decided on my design’s main focal point, it will help me choose the following decor elements.

I’m using this snowy white velvet ribbon with faux diamond trim (you know how much I love to mix rustic and glam).

Available at Village Antiques

Step 5: Winding Ribbon Into The Garland

To weave ribbon, I just follow the shape of the garland. I start on one end and wind the ribbon through and attach it with florist wire. This helps me to create loops and bows that stay in place.

Loops are good for adding some fullness in areas of your garland that are looking a little sparse.

Once I’ve decided on my ribbon placement, I’ll snip off some extra ribbon tails from my roll to attach to the base of my loops to create a bow. 

Step 6: Fill In The Sides

Once the ribbon portion is complete, I like to go to the table’s ends and fill up space.

I’m using one of my favorite holiday items — miniature trees! 

Available at Village Antiques

I love how tiny these are. These trees fit perfectly in small spaces to add festive vibes to any buffet, dining tables, kitchen islands, and nightstands.

You can leave them as is or dangle some additional ornaments on the branches.

For a bit of glam, I’ve decided to place these trees into oversized champagne buckets. To keep these trees stable in the bucket, I’ll use my handy, dandy kraft paper for base support.

Step 7: Fill In The Empty Spots

Available at Village Antiques

Now that we have our largest decorative elements on the buffet table, we can start to fill in some empty spots.

I’ll be mixing some of my favorite new decor items this year with some tabletop sparkly jeweled Christmas trees, more faux florals, and reindeer ornaments.

I’m placing these items in a zig-zag shape along the garland to create a sense of dynamic movement that’s visually pleasing.

Step Back And Admire Your Farmhouse Christmas Buffet

And that’s it! You’ve created a space with Christmas cheer in a short amount of time, and you didn’t even have to redecorate your whole house. 

If you’re someone who loves to decorate seasonally, chances are you have a lot of these things in your basement, garage, or attic.

The buffet table is such a perfect little nook to decorate, and it can create a huge impact in your dining room.

If you see some decor that you love in this week’s design tutorial, you can find many of these pieces at Village Antiques in Houston, TX. Open Tuesday – Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm except for the following dates. You can also reach us at (713) 468 – 3931. Stop on by!

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December 25 – 28

January 1 – January 4

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Until the next time we meet, keep making your home amazing with your design gifts!