Christmas: Modern Rustic Decorating Ideas
Put your own spin on Christmas with these decorating ideas for modern rustic schemes that prove you can go festive in pared-back style
Cathy Rebecca
2 December 2014
London-based freelance journalist
If you’ve embraced the modern rustic look, your home probably has clean lines, a pale colour palette and plenty of natural materials, such as wood and stone. This can be at odds with the bright lights, vivid colours and glittering baubles of a traditional Christmas, but it doesn’t mean you can’t create a thoroughly festive mood in keeping with your interior. Why not get creative and put a fresh spin on Christmas? Check out these ideas for bringing holiday cheer into your modern rustic home.
Do the tree, but hold the tinsel
There’s nothing to say you can’t go in for a traditional Christmas tree. The key to making it work with a modern rustic interior is to stick to a restricted colour palette and include some home-spun baubles. The simple, single red baubles tastefully hanging from the beams make the perfect finishing touch for a magical modern country living room.
There’s nothing to say you can’t go in for a traditional Christmas tree. The key to making it work with a modern rustic interior is to stick to a restricted colour palette and include some home-spun baubles. The simple, single red baubles tastefully hanging from the beams make the perfect finishing touch for a magical modern country living room.
Create a candle vignette
Group a bunch of candles together to create a vignette. If you throw a festive ornament or two into the mix, it will have an even more pronounced Christmas feel. You can combine a variety of different types of candles – votive, pillar, taper and tea lights – to create your vignette. Stay in keeping with the modern rustic vibe by ensuring they are all white.
Group a bunch of candles together to create a vignette. If you throw a festive ornament or two into the mix, it will have an even more pronounced Christmas feel. You can combine a variety of different types of candles – votive, pillar, taper and tea lights – to create your vignette. Stay in keeping with the modern rustic vibe by ensuring they are all white.
Shelf your expectations
These worn metal baskets have that vintage, pared-back feel so crucial to the modern rustic look. Fastening them to your wall is a fun way to create some additional and unexpected shelving to house all of your festive paraphernalia. Think laterally – these balls of wool look festive thanks to their colour and arrangement.
What’s even better is that the baskets can be left up after the festive season to hold an ever-changing display of seasonal pieces (Easter chicks, anyone?)
These worn metal baskets have that vintage, pared-back feel so crucial to the modern rustic look. Fastening them to your wall is a fun way to create some additional and unexpected shelving to house all of your festive paraphernalia. Think laterally – these balls of wool look festive thanks to their colour and arrangement.
What’s even better is that the baskets can be left up after the festive season to hold an ever-changing display of seasonal pieces (Easter chicks, anyone?)
Reach for the wreaths
Wreaths are unmistakably festive, but don’t dominate a room, so they can be the perfect way to add a subtle touch of holiday cheer to your design scheme. Hang them above a dining table, as shown here, to create an unusual centrepiece that doesn’t take up precious space on the table for the big Christmas meals.
Wreaths are unmistakably festive, but don’t dominate a room, so they can be the perfect way to add a subtle touch of holiday cheer to your design scheme. Hang them above a dining table, as shown here, to create an unusual centrepiece that doesn’t take up precious space on the table for the big Christmas meals.
Do your own take on a tree
If you can’t bear the thought of spending the winter months picking pine needles off the floor, don’t banish hopes of a tree altogether – get creative. This homeowner has constructed their own version of a christmas tree using hats, vintage cameras, an old typewriter and a card catalogue storage cabinet. It’s a great chance to reflect your own interests and tastes.
If you can’t bear the thought of spending the winter months picking pine needles off the floor, don’t banish hopes of a tree altogether – get creative. This homeowner has constructed their own version of a christmas tree using hats, vintage cameras, an old typewriter and a card catalogue storage cabinet. It’s a great chance to reflect your own interests and tastes.
Reclaim wood
One of the key components of any modern rustic scheme is wood, so why not incorporate it into your festive décor, too? You can carve out whatever tree shape works best for you and keep it as bare or as decorated as your like. Here, a reindeer, a garland and a few other ornaments are cheerful and festive without being overbearing.
Check out how to use wood for a modern rustic look
One of the key components of any modern rustic scheme is wood, so why not incorporate it into your festive décor, too? You can carve out whatever tree shape works best for you and keep it as bare or as decorated as your like. Here, a reindeer, a garland and a few other ornaments are cheerful and festive without being overbearing.
Check out how to use wood for a modern rustic look
Bring back bare branches
Why go for a whole tree when you can make do with just part of one? Bare branches are the perfect way to keep the midwinter feel without compromising on the colour scheme of your modern rustic home. Decorating them with little ornaments, like the silver hearts shown in this photo, just adds to the charm.
See ways to bring sheepskin into your home for winter warmth
Why go for a whole tree when you can make do with just part of one? Bare branches are the perfect way to keep the midwinter feel without compromising on the colour scheme of your modern rustic home. Decorating them with little ornaments, like the silver hearts shown in this photo, just adds to the charm.
See ways to bring sheepskin into your home for winter warmth
Use fairy lights to your advantage
If you’ve decided not to opt for a tree of any sort but still want to create that Christmas atmosphere, try hanging fairy lights in unexpected places. If you have beams, what better way to accentuate them than by lighting them up? Fairy lights will help to give your home that Christmas twinkle without compromising on the design scheme you’ve worked so hard to create.
TELL US…
How do you decorate your home for Christmas? We’d love to see photos in the Comments below.
If you’ve decided not to opt for a tree of any sort but still want to create that Christmas atmosphere, try hanging fairy lights in unexpected places. If you have beams, what better way to accentuate them than by lighting them up? Fairy lights will help to give your home that Christmas twinkle without compromising on the design scheme you’ve worked so hard to create.
TELL US…
How do you decorate your home for Christmas? We’d love to see photos in the Comments below.
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Take a look at our "Lisbet at Christmas" page (or is it "Christmas at Lisbet"?!) on www.lisbethomeandstyle.com re. how to approach Christmas decorating which can be a really daunting task for the uninitiated - also those who fear overdoing it.
Lisbet Home, love that Father Christmas!