Decking the Halls… and Donating the Rest!
December 12, 2025
Before decorating this year, I took a different approach: I let my Christmas décor choose its own fate. If it came out of a box and into a room, it stayed. If not, it was donated. No guilt, no “maybe someday,” no storing things for yet another year that I didn't like enough to use this year. And you know what? My house feels more festive than ever. Join me for a tour of each room and see the decorations that earned their place, and the one's that didn't make the cut!
First let's start with the living room. New this year are the beige ceramic houses from Target and my knitted Christmas stockings. These candles are the best battery operated lights set I've ever purchased. I use them year round and they have a remote with an easy-to-use timer. Highly recommended.
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| At least once a year, we stop in Solvang, CA, a darling little Danish town I’ve visited since childhood. We start with a smorgasbord lunch and then head out for shopping, always making a stop at Jules Hus—a year-round Christmas shop with a fabulous collection of the tiny painted wooden Erzgebirge figures I’ve been collecting for decades. While I’m trying to either eliminate or at least minimize my collections, one tiny figure a year can hardly do any harm! I especially love my angel orchestra. |
The dining room is next. It's difficult to photograph but I have little battery operated fairy lights on a timer that illuminate the village. It's prettier in person!
The entry way above and the hallway below. The paper snowflakes were not going to make the cut until my 8-year-old grandson decided otherwise. In the time it took to get a cup of coffee, he had them all hung!
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In our bedroom, he also helped me set up the nativity scene that has been in our family for as long as I can remember—over seventy years, at least. I placed two battery-operated candles on a 2-hour timer from 9 to 11, giving it a soft glow that acts as a nightlight. The scene is chipped, and many key figures are missing—Mary, for one—but mother always let my brother and me play with it. “Be careful,” she’d warn, and I'm sure we tried our best, but the chips and missing pieces are all part of the cherished memories it holds. |
The kitchen gets very little decorating as it works too hard for me to give up any real estate for decor, but the sideboard is fair game and got a new snowman from Target that I just could not resist!
My hand knitted ornaments are all throughout the house. I love making Christmas toys! Above on our family room mantle are patterns from Susan B. Anthony. You can find them here and see why I'm such a fan! Also in the family room is our grandson's corner and his advent tree with the wee socks I had so much making a few years ago. Each tiny stocking is filled with coins, paper money, or a little candy. When he comes to visit in December, he makes a beeline to this corner!
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| The little tree is a new Target find— an upgrade from the old one, whose color always felt a little off to me. |
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And speaking of color--I'm generally a neutrals gal, but this year I bought a bottle of RED and I'm keeping my nails red all December! The color is a scarlet red Olive and June in Smooch. I'm so impressed with it. It's quick dry and only needs one coat! |
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| For years I set up a tiny tree in my knitting room, but it was so old it shed something awful, plus I had to remove it when guests stayed overnight because you couldn't pull out the sofa bed! Last year I bought this gorgeous paper light from Ikea and now the room feels festive AND practical! I love it so much I'm going to keep it up all winter. |
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| I stash my holiday décor in these hallway window seats, and for years my rule was simple: if it didn’t fit, it didn’t stay. That helped me clear out a lot of forgotten items. This year, I decided to be even stricter—if it didn’t make it into the house, it couldn’t sneak back into hiding. It feels surprisingly freeing to decorate with only what I actually love and use! |
So what didn't make the cut?
- Duplicates of homemade ornaments.
- A handmade village I was tired of.
- A knitted mushroom gnome that was a mystery knit-along that I just don't like.
- Faux greenery that I don't like.
- Some Halloween and some random household items.
I set them on two tables on my front porch, put boxes underneath so everything could be easily transported, took these photos and posted them along with my address on Facebook Marketplace for free. In an hour it was gone and I removed the listing. Voila!
Edit: Moments after I posted this, I got a comment asking how I part with homemade things—all the time spent making them! I wanted to pop back in and share my approach, because for me, it’s actually pretty simple. My homemade crafts are made for the fun of creating; the joy is in the making. When I give them as gifts, I don’t expect anyone to treasure them forever. I hope they’re used, enjoyed, or passed along—and honestly, I don’t need to factor into those decisions.
For myself, each little craft is a sweet memory of a lovely time being creative, but I realized I only needed to save one of each creation, not two or three like I had been holding onto. As for the children’s Christmas ornaments collected over decades, I had kept them all, of course—but this year I finally culled the macaroni and glue-y ones. I kept two favorites from each child, and that feels just right. It’s a way of honoring memories while still keeping my home—and my holiday décor—manageable and joyful.
If you need some Christmas decluttering motivation, consider this post to be your inspo! You can do it! This year, I decorated with intention, loved what I kept, and felt so good about letting the rest go. If your holiday bins are overflowing, take a tip from me: let the pieces that don’t spark joy find a new home. Even just a few donations can make decorating feel fun again—and who doesn’t need a little less clutter during the holidays?
Smooch! Kristen
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3 Comments
Thank you for sharing your brave approach to decluttering! You even got rid of things that you made! I don't know if I could be brave enough to do that. All that time spent! Please tell me your secret of how you rationalize getting rid of items you made or that others made for you.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for catching that. I really did drop the ball by not explaining how I get rid of the homemade. I'll edit my post above before it gets sent out!
DeleteThis is what I wrote, and I hope it helps!
DeleteMoments after I posted this, I got a comment asking how I part with homemade things—all the time spent making them! I wanted to pop back in and share my approach, because for me, it’s actually pretty simple. My homemade crafts are made for the fun of creating; the joy is in the making. When I give them as gifts, I don’t expect anyone to treasure them forever. I hope they’re used, enjoyed, or passed along—and honestly, I don’t need to factor into those decisions.
For myself, each little craft is a sweet memory of a lovely time being creative, but I realized I only needed to save one of each creation, not two or three like I had been holding onto. As for the children’s Christmas ornaments collected over decades, I had kept them all, of course—but this year I finally culled the macaroni and glue-y ones. I kept two favorites from each child, and that feels just right. It’s a way of honoring memories while still keeping my home—and my holiday décor—manageable and joyful.
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