With temperatures dropping and some regions experiencing their first snowfalls, the winter holiday season is officially approaching. While stores began to display their seasonal stock back in September, itโs finally time to decorate the home or cottage for the Holiday Season in Muskoka.
There are many style options when it comes to holiday decorating; some prefer minimalism, while others get excited to unload Santaโs entire workshop into the home.
A very popular design idea is transforming your home into the cozy winter cottage youโve always dreamed of. Some cottage owners are fortunate to enjoy their cottages during the winter season, like these Port Carling real estate opportunities, but there are many ways to bring the cottage feel into your own home for those who are staying closer to home.
Here are some tips for winter decor and how to do it.
Faux Fur and Plaid
When we think cottage, we can help but think of the great outdoors. When it comes to fabrics, utilizing textures and prints that reflect this will help bring the nature indoors. Faux sheepskins can be used as floor mats or tossed over ottomans and benches to create a soft spot that exudes warmth.
If sheepskin isnโt your thing, other faux furs will do the trick as well. White faux fur offers a soft snowy vibe, while dark brown faux furs make us think of rugged animals you might find in the woods.
Other accent fabrics like plaid also pay homage to outdoorsy professions such as lumberjacks and can cozy up a house.
Natural Wood Accents
Most modern cottages arenโt built like traditional log cabins anymore, yet this is often where our mind goes when thinking about cottage country. While your interior walls are likely finished with drywall, bringing wood accents into the home can help emulate the feeling of being at the cabin.
Rustic wood cutting boards or charcuterie boards, serving trays, and table coasters can bring this aesthetic to your kitchen and coffee table. Replacing flowers in the house with balsam branches or other holiday planters can bring indoors the woody, natural feel. Additionally, live edge furniture pieces are very popular and come in a variety of shapes, sizes, colors and can often be custom designed to perfectly reflect the style of your room. A quick google search will yield several local small businesses who carefully and respectfully comb the forests, being selective with the pieces chosen to preserve and maintain the forests. Be sure to check out some of the amazing talents and support our local artists.
For those fortunate to enjoy a fireplace in their space, electric, gas, or otherwise, having a decorative bundle of branches or white birch logs near the fireplace (within a safe distance, of course) can create a feeling of having a wood-burning fire. If you donโt have a fireplace, putting decorative branches or floral accents along your TV mantle can help create the same effect paired with a free YouTube fireplace stream for the cozy look and feel.
Of course, winter decor things like garlands, wreaths, and the coveted Christmas tree all will help add to this aesthetic as well!
Natural Fragrances
This may not strictly be a visual design tip, although candles can add a complementary color to a room and enhance the natural aesthetic with candlelight. It’s one of my favorite winter decor items.
Having natural fragrances in the house like pine, apple, and cinnamon can all evoke a comforting wintery feeling in your home. If candles arenโt your thing, potpourri or real bundles of pine can achieve the same effect and keep your home smelling great all winter long.ย
You can use an essential oil diffuser with delicious blends like Cozy Cabin and Coffee Crumb Cake to fill the air with cozy scents too.
