Does anyone else start to feel the winter blues after the holidays pass?

The other day I was chatting with one of my besties, Stacey, who also shares the blues about putting away holiday decor. She was afraid that putting away the decor made her home lose its special twinkly, fullness, and joy.

I only put my seasonal decor away last week, and I couldn’t agree more. There’s something about the fullness and joy these items bring into your home.

This week, I’m sharing five pieces of advice for decorating your modern French country-style home for winter — minus the holiday decorations.

We’re still keeping the warmth and fullness without turning the space into a winter wonderland.

Swap Your Holiday Throw Pillows To Lush Velvet Pillows

The first decor change I made (after taking down the obvious holiday decorations) is to add luxurious velvet pillows into my family room. Throw pillows are such great pieces of decor to change seasonally.

Velvet was once an exclusive material to royalty and bourgeoisie families, and today, it’s one of the most versatile textures you can introduce into your home without breaking the bank.

It’s soft to touch and exudes warmth and coziness while being extremely durable in high-traffic areas. Velvet pillows add depth and luxury to any space without going over the top.

The rich colors and textures that these smokey velvet and blue pillows have match the grey-tone monochromatic color palette in my French country home aesthetic.

You can’t really go wrong with velvet throws, so have fun with the different colors and shapes available.

I chose these dark, midnight blue velvet kidney-shaped pillows to add a pop of contrast. As a bonus, these pillows are stunning to look at with the metallic thread embellishments.

This brings in the sparkliness that you may miss from your holiday decor, but it’s introduced much more appropriately. 

Keep The Winter Greenery With Dark Magnolia Wreaths

Besides introducing rich colors in my throw pillows, I also like to bring in these darker hues with the greenery I place throughout my home.

When we decorate our home for the holidays, we get used to seeing green everywhere — Christmas trees, holly, and wreaths — that our monochrome home can feel a bit naked once we take them down.

My simple trick to this is to bring back all-season greenery like these gorgeous magnolia leaf wreaths. Magnolia wreaths have a dark, rich green that’s perfect for the fall and winter (without looking Christmas-ey).

While these wreaths look great on the front door, one of my favorite placements is my French country design kitchen counter. That way, when I walk into the heart of my home, I see that pop of deep green color, and I’m not missing the greenery from the holiday decor.

Change Your Christmas Trees For All-Season Trees

When you read “wreaths” and “trees,” did you automatically think of Christmas?

I’m not going to lie. The empty pockets where my Christmas trees used to stand feel pretty sad and lonely now.

To fix this, I’m placing olive trees in those spots. They add a similar height and volume into the empty nook. Plus, it’s decor that’s appropriate all-year-round. These can be real or faux! I’ll keep your secret.

Add Warm-Toned Textured Baskets

I like to add some warmth and rustic textures back into the space with brown and honey-colored baskets.

I’ve added a basket into my family room since this is the space my family spends most of our time. This large floor basket is a must-have for holding the many throw blankets that my boys, Rohan and Dayven, place around the house in the winter.

I simply roll the blankets up and add them into the basket. It looks like a beautifully styled moment — when in reality, it’s disguising our cozy clutter.

The purpose of the floor basket is two-fold:

– It keeps the room tidy

– Introduces warm and rustic textures into my space

That warmth and coziness are what we miss when we put our holiday decor away. Still, adding these elements of warmth and greenery back into our space feels fuller and warm.

Introduce Seasonal Artwork Into Your Space

I love adding pieces of artwork inspired by the season.

In my case, I’m adding something to my nightstand or the desk area where I work from home.

When shopping for these pieces, I’m looking for something that reminds me of the season. To match the winery grays and dark shortened days, a moody painting with deeper colors feels seasonally appropriate to me.

But if you want to brighten up your house, wall decor with some sparkle is a great way to bring back the twinkle from the holiday season without covering your home in Christmas lights and glitter ornaments.

To Wrap Up: Winter French Country Decor After The Holidays

If you’re anything like me, you’re probably feeling a little bit worn-out after the holiday and looking for a few easy little pick-me-ups to bring that seasonal joy back into your home.

There are ways to add moody yet light winter decorations to your modern French country-style home without making it look like Santa is coming to town in January (on a fair budget too)!

To get a hold of the decor that you see in this blog post, you can find many of these pieces at Village Antiques in Houston, TX. We’re open Tuesday – Saturday (10 am – 5 pm). Stop on by!

Feel free to give us a call at 713-468-3931 if you have any questions.

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