Decorating
Christmas: Contemporary Decorating Ideas
Sprinkle your home with simple, stylish decorations for a cool and utterly contemporary Yule
If you’re a modernist at heart and shudder at the prospect of all those garish decks and glitzy tinsel this Christmas, never fear – a more subtle, restrained festive look is achievable! Keep things simple and stick to a palette of frosty white, sparkling silver and dramatic black, and utilise Mother Nature’s seasonal offerings with bare branches and unadorned greenery. And work with what you’ve already got in your home: fill oversized urns with twigs and lights and lay the table with classic crystal, bright white china and just a scattering of baubles. It is Christmas, after all…
Keep it natural
Harness natural materials and organic shades and work with your own décor. A simple ring of emerald-green foliage makes for the most spirited and striking wreath (particularly hung against a block of colour), while the oversized lantern draped from a weathered trunk creates a modern twist on the traditional Christmas tree.
Harness natural materials and organic shades and work with your own décor. A simple ring of emerald-green foliage makes for the most spirited and striking wreath (particularly hung against a block of colour), while the oversized lantern draped from a weathered trunk creates a modern twist on the traditional Christmas tree.
Make it bold and modern
If you live in a small apartment, and haven’t got space for a full-blown Christmas tree, try this idea instead. Spray paint a few branches in jet black, place in a simple, small-necked vase and drape with midnight stars and inky baubles for a striking look. It will also make for the most fabulous decoration all year-round.
If you live in a small apartment, and haven’t got space for a full-blown Christmas tree, try this idea instead. Spray paint a few branches in jet black, place in a simple, small-necked vase and drape with midnight stars and inky baubles for a striking look. It will also make for the most fabulous decoration all year-round.
Maximise with dramatic hues
Modernists will drool over this cool and contemporary table setting. Layer charcoal and white-tipped ceramics, inky black mats and introduce the merest hint of colour with sweet pinstriped napkins and a simple star tie. This is how to do Christmas in serious style…
Modernists will drool over this cool and contemporary table setting. Layer charcoal and white-tipped ceramics, inky black mats and introduce the merest hint of colour with sweet pinstriped napkins and a simple star tie. This is how to do Christmas in serious style…
Don’t be afraid to use colour
Channelling a modern Christmas vibe doesn’t have to equate to an instant colour ban. This bare branch looks charming and contemporary when hung with vibrant handmade decorations, shiny baubles and clip-on neon birds.
Channelling a modern Christmas vibe doesn’t have to equate to an instant colour ban. This bare branch looks charming and contemporary when hung with vibrant handmade decorations, shiny baubles and clip-on neon birds.
Make your own wrapping paper
While I do adore bold, kitschy wrapping paper, I also love this simple DIY idea that’s thoroughly modern and bespoke to boot. Cheap brown paper has been decorated with blobs of white paint (very easy to do yourself), tied with long lengths of black satin ribbon and finished off with a sprig of ruby berries, rustic twine and even an old photograph. Because after all, a thoughtfully wrapped gift says so much.
While I do adore bold, kitschy wrapping paper, I also love this simple DIY idea that’s thoroughly modern and bespoke to boot. Cheap brown paper has been decorated with blobs of white paint (very easy to do yourself), tied with long lengths of black satin ribbon and finished off with a sprig of ruby berries, rustic twine and even an old photograph. Because after all, a thoughtfully wrapped gift says so much.
Stick to your own style
If you love a crisp, modern decor for 51 weeks of the year, don’t feel under pressure to shatter the look with a bling-tastic, colour-packed Christmas. Instead, stick to your design credentials and make the seasonal decorations work for you. Against an icy-white backdrop, this incredibly chic Christmas tree needs nothing more than a few strands of glittery coins to create a room full of festive cheer. Who needs tinsel and baubles when nature looks this good?
See the rest of this festive Netherlands home
If you love a crisp, modern decor for 51 weeks of the year, don’t feel under pressure to shatter the look with a bling-tastic, colour-packed Christmas. Instead, stick to your design credentials and make the seasonal decorations work for you. Against an icy-white backdrop, this incredibly chic Christmas tree needs nothing more than a few strands of glittery coins to create a room full of festive cheer. Who needs tinsel and baubles when nature looks this good?
See the rest of this festive Netherlands home
Take a Scandi approach
There is something oh-so festive about a Scandinavian look – and it’s utterly stylish and dead simple to pull off, too. Use silvery woods and slate tones and decorate liberally with silver stars, pretty strings of fairy lights and heaps of Christmas spirit. (And if you do hanker after a dash of colour, a slash of bold crimson will instantly warm things up.)
Find more Scandi style ideas here
There is something oh-so festive about a Scandinavian look – and it’s utterly stylish and dead simple to pull off, too. Use silvery woods and slate tones and decorate liberally with silver stars, pretty strings of fairy lights and heaps of Christmas spirit. (And if you do hanker after a dash of colour, a slash of bold crimson will instantly warm things up.)
Find more Scandi style ideas here
Highlight with glass
You really don’t need any sort of OTT centrepiece or glitzy tableware to make your Christmas feast look ultra glam and full of Yuletide cool. Lay a simple linen cloth and set the table with clear, sparkling glassware, classic white china and oversized candlesticks. Sprinkle with a few metallic baubles and a sprig of greenery and let the festivities commence!
You really don’t need any sort of OTT centrepiece or glitzy tableware to make your Christmas feast look ultra glam and full of Yuletide cool. Lay a simple linen cloth and set the table with clear, sparkling glassware, classic white china and oversized candlesticks. Sprinkle with a few metallic baubles and a sprig of greenery and let the festivities commence!
Decorate with stars
There is nothing like a scattering of stars to say it’s Christmas. Mix and match punched white tin, rustic timber shapes, sweet silvery foils and even homemade cardboard designs and hang from your mantelpiece for a fresh, classic vibe.
TELL US…
Will you decorate your home with a cool, contemporary vibe this Christmas? Share your festive spirit in the Comments below.
There is nothing like a scattering of stars to say it’s Christmas. Mix and match punched white tin, rustic timber shapes, sweet silvery foils and even homemade cardboard designs and hang from your mantelpiece for a fresh, classic vibe.
TELL US…
Will you decorate your home with a cool, contemporary vibe this Christmas? Share your festive spirit in the Comments below.
A smattering of simple decorations can make for the coolest Christmas display. Make your own paperchains, hang up a single statement piece like these gorgeous angel wings and keep to a palette of bright white and neutral tones for an overwhelming sense of peace, calm and tranquillity.