Last year, we skipped shooting our house decked out for Christmas because it looked exactly like the year before (so why spend the time or money?). But this year, with the advent of two new pieces of furniture (our awesome Barb sofas), I felt excited to decorate, show, and tell. But November is pretty much March Madness for content creators, so I didn’t have time to really plan; instead just winged it with what I had in the garage and a trip to the Mill End Fabric store. So despite thinking I could just pull it together, the day of the shoot was rough (at first). The first big pulled back shot took no less than 2 hours to finalize. Like one shot, styled 80 different tiny changes (if I didn’t love this so much, it would be truly maddening). I tried every combination of pillows, throws, coffee table accessories, and it wasn’t until we hit this version above, with pops of pinks and ochres, that it came together. It wasn’t what I had predicted (I thought I was going to lean into the Ralph Lauren trend, but it just wasn’t working!!). So here we have a playful, whimsical, Scandi version of our living room with a family tree dripping with DIYs and sentimental ornaments. It’s extremely cozy and fun to be in.

Pre-Lit Faux Trees | Tree Skirts (unavailable) | Garland (Clear Glass or Colorful) | Twinkle Light Curtain | Burgundy Pillow | Blue Pillow | Throw Blanket

The entry is a dream to shoot, and Kaitlin always nails it. This year, I bought yardage of plaid taffeta (fashion fabric) and ripped it into wide and long ribbons. I love how they pop in the light, and it ties that incredible Anthropologie blanket and Schoolhouse pillow (Target pillow behind it!).

Blue Velvet Lumbar Pillow | Sweater | Skirt | Tights | Shoes (vintage)

Everything twinkles in here during the day or night. You can’t really see the curtain lights in the photos, but y’all, they are 100% worth the splurge if you have the right window – so delicate and shimmery. When we shot the sweater fashion shoot the week before, I had different pillows, but once I got that red plaid blanket, I wanted to amp it up a bit and love it in here so much. Shout out to those pre-lit Alpine trees that again, add the best glow and a lot of impact for almost zero effort.

Pre-Lit Garland | Round Bells | Larger Bells | Blue Square Pillow | Green Plaid Blanket | Woven Basket | Blue Round Pillow | Burgundy Blanket

I LOVE this vignette. No one ever sits here, but every time I walk down the stairs, I see it and get that burst of dopamine that only style junkies have. I added more books and frames to give it a cozy library feel (all the gold frames are filled with Santa photos from over the years – a FANTASTIC hack and tradition that is not too late to do). I also really love the juxtaposition of the floral trad chaise and the more modern lamp, with the hits of cobalt from the Schoolhouse pillow and throw.

Pre-Lit Garland | Round Bells | Larger Bells

The plug-in lit garland is excellent, and I offset the asymmetry with no less than like 10 strips of fabric or ribbons on the left, adding bells from World Market. (TBH, I threw up what we had from last year and then just added the patterns and bells on top of it).

Round Burgundy Pillow | Burgundy Blanket | Ochre Striped Bolster | Paper Trees | Snowflake Mug | Candle | Custom Mushroom Stool

This was the shot that I couldn’t nail for 2 hours, and it’s definitely not as cohesive as other designs of mine, but I actually really love the vibe. Once we added the quilted mushroom from the art barn and the accordion trees on the coffee table (from AllModern), I was like “ok, let’s go pattern, color, and fun”. And yes, my family made the paper chain from leftover wallpaper patterned samples (but you can barely see the pattern, even in person).

Blue Barb Sofa | Round Pillow | Blanket | Velvet Lumbar Pillow | Mini Faux Pre-Lit Alpine | White Ceramic House

I LOVE this shot. The blue Barb is Barbing, and it feels inviting and fun, like these people want you to have a good time (very accurate). We’ve never had an adults-only party; we are a frat house for families with young kids, so going more whimsical feels right. And while I love a curated tree, I love our family tree more, with each ornament telling a story. “Henderson Ornament night” is where I’m shamelessly at “peak nerd,” and my kids LOVE it too, despite likely wanting to say it’s cringe:)

Elliot got home in time to jump into a shot with me – listen, I try not to involve them in my job/photos, but it’s really hard when she wants to snuggle on a pillow with me. I went a little extra this year on the mantel, which at times I was like “too much??” but most of the time I LOVE it.

Wood Bead Garland | Gingham Bow | Faux Wreath (similar) | Stocking Garland | Flocked Reindeer (similar) | Green Wood Trees (unavaliable) | Faux Garland | Wood Nutcracker | Flameless Taper Candles | Stockings (unavailable)

Most of the styling we already had, but we added the advent stocking (full of candy and kindness prompts), and we painted the black mirror a darker rose, which really softened the entire vignette in the best of ways. The faux tapers are still going strong, and the stockings from Schoolhouse are so playful and fun, while popping off the white so well. The big gingham bow is new (from Anthro), and the nutcrackers are old, from Michaels. It’s a lot, but it makes me pretty dang happy.

Rechargeable Table Lamp | Multi-Colored Lumbar | Burgundy Pillow | Striped Velvet Lumbar | Floral Tapestery Pillow | Blue Round Pillow | Pre-Lit Garland | Round Bells | Larger Bells

The little nook got an upgrade with the cutest pleated rechargeable lamp, and we switched up the pillows to pop a bit more. I’m clearly really into mushroom stools (not a typical obsession, but here we are).

Plaid Dog Beds | Pink Barb Sofa

Around 3 pm, it got so glowy and cozy (hours later, it’s even better – but so hard to shoot!). It’s busy and layered, for sure (which is why we kept the kitchen styling so simple), but when you are in the room, it feels so cozy, warm, casual, and inviting. Oscar is modeling our new Pendleton dog beds from Chewy (which are admittedly too big – I bought two “larges,” which I’m now using in our family room as floor pillows for Survivor nights in front of the fire/TV, and then I ordered mediums instead to go in here, which hadn’t arrived in time). I love the color palette of the plaid in this room, though.

I really, really love how it came together. It’s not the” Ralph Lauren” vibe I planned, but as you know, I have to shoot it again this week for a magazine (for 2026), and I’m going to use the green Alice sofas and see how hard I can lean into red/green/kitch. You don’t have to ask me twice to go all out…twice:) I’ll show you a sneak peek here, I promise (and def on stories).

*Photos by Kaitlin Green