The Halls Are Decked

Decorating for our first Christmas has been something I have been looking forward to ever since I created my gmail account with my new name months before we got engaged. Just ask Kate about it. However, I was unaware of the intensity and costliness of the process. I started buying decorations in early November. The shopping bags piled up in our one tiny storage closet, but when it came time to decorate I was amazed at how unsubstantial the items I accumulated were. It turns out Christmas napkins, stickers, cups, and treat bags can't get you very far when trying make your apartment appear festive. After many trips to Target, Michael's, and Hobby Lobby, I feel as if our decorations are blog-worthy.






Helpful hints for others looking to spruce up their space for Christmas:

- Home Depot is where it's at. We got our lovely 8 foot Fraser Fir tree for $39.99. The other tree lot we browsed had prices between $70-$150. Rip off.

- Hobby Lobby has garland that looks very real. And they run it half off for a few weeks after Thanksgiving.

- Christmas scented candles make me oh so happy. An even cheaper way to add a festive fragrance to your house is to let water, orange peel, cinnamon, and cloves simmer on your stove for a few hours. A trick I learned from my mom that smells heavenly

- BUY A DECENT TREE STAND. I will spare you the sappy details of our experience with a shoddily made tree stand that was too small for our tree, but if you are trying to decide between the $7 tree stand and the $12 tree stand just splurge on it. It will save you blood, sweat, and tears. We experienced all three.