G'day.
Monday morning here, it's beautifully hot. I have sore back of legs from yesterday's too long on the beach. It seems to be that I worry so much that the kiddos are sun safe that I miss out one area of myself every time. So last night, very sore, I googled 'natural sunburn remedy' and found aloe vera and considering I have two aloe vera plants in the garden, hopped out there in my pyjamas and picked a few – splodged out the gel and wacked it on. Wow, that stuff rocks! Instant relief…
Anyway, enough of my stupidity. We spent most of Saturday putting up Christmas decs. Did you?
This is our first Australian Christmas in our own home. And our first real Christmas at the Beach Cottage, as last year we headed North to Queensland for Christmas. And I have to say that I'm quietly excited about that because ultimately, putting aside all the horrible commercialism around it, there's nothing I like more than fiddling around with decorating, sparkly things and cooking big birds!
So, after vague ideas of keeping it sparse this year, I decided stuff that and rather thought we'd go for it. I use that term loosely though, because I'm sure that some of you reading this, especially if you are in the States, could well think my idea of going for it pretty pathetic.
After trawling through the ideas in the magazines and not being inspired by anything I decided on keeping it to one main palette of white and silver, and then adding flowers, things from the beach, things from outside and basically stuff I already had.
This was the first thing I did – I wanted to create something in the hallway and I'd seen a mantle dressing in a magazine where they'd used real live fir tree branches stuffed with all sorts of twinkly bits and a few rustic cones.
Well without wishing to bore you with that budget thing again *smile, I had two problems with live fir or buying an artificial. One even if I found a real one, I didn't think it would last more than a week in these temps and two, I had set myself up to dress this place without spending much and after looking at the artificial ones in my price bracket, I thought I would rather go without.
But press on did the hardy Beach Cottage Decorator On A Budget.
I decided, as I did with the shell wreath to Do-It-Myself and shopped the house.
I don't have a mantel here yet (I'm cooking up a way to get one though), so I cleared off the vintage unit in the hall – this is how it looked before (and go to Susan's for more makeovers)
Three main ingredients equals one DIY garland…candles, greenery and pretty things…this turned out quite OK…and I can easily replace the greenery every week and add a few fresh flowers every now and then to keep it looking cool…
I didn't spend a penny on this, everything came from things I gathered from this very tatty and very messy-at-the-moment old cottage.
Whaddya think of my playing Christmas-dollar-free dress-up? I'd love to hear your comments…
The giveaway winner from last week, is Tiffany, thanks to Susannah Tucker for this and there'll be another one, a beachy one this week…stay tuned beach chicks!
here's the comment she left: my kinda girl 
hey Sarah! So I am addicted to your site I just bought my first place, not a beach cottage on the outside (a condo in the burbs) but inside I have brought the beach. Your budget friendly ideas have so inspired me! I have done a white wash table, end table, coffee table…..on and on….but my fiance knew I was addicted when the wooden oars I ordered arrived
So if you need a fan to ship these lovely prints to, count me in!
xo
tiffany from maryland
oh and a little housekeeping thing – if you subscribed with Feedblitz, please re-subsribe here or with the button at the top as Feedblitz no longer works, thanks!
You are preaching to the converted about not having a Christmas tree! I don’t have one either, but I love wreaths and bowls with ornaments. I am American and I still love how you decorated your mantle. Yes, it is simple, but it is elegant and I may even copy your idea on my own white mantle!
Oh I love use what you have decorating! It’s my favorite kind! (Well… other than maybe Ikea decorating – so glad it’s far, far away.)
We have a big tree, but keeping it simple is ALWAYS a good plan. Silver & white makes everything right.
It’s beautiful!
I love what you did Sarah. I also shopped around the house this year. Putting silver ribbons from around the house on things I already owned. Christmas only comes once a year and why spend a lot of money on it (more money for gifts from hubby). White and silver are my Christmas colors, I use them every year. I also went to Ikea for Christmas (I picked up the large paper stars, and put them in the windows). You can also count the dollar store in my Christmas shopping for decos (I spent $2.00 for tree decos and a tinsel tree). Christmas can be done cheap and elegant, as you have just shown us. Great job again.
Sarah, I love your white & silver palette! I’ve got a whole bunch of silver grouped & love it all together. You always do a great job with your vignettes & it looks beautiful. Love going around the house to see what you can find. And the natural look is so pretty anyway! Merry Christmas, friend!
Sp pretty!!
*hugs*deb
How beautifully elegant…
Sarah-I love the white and mercury glass! The combination says “holiday” to me! I’m sorry you are sunburned, but right now I might trade with you!
soooo pretty Sarah. The simplicity speaks to me
I was at IKEA today and almost picked up the silve candle holders….ended up buying the lanterns for my daughter and daughter-in-law. My kids are grown, and I still spend more money on my kids!
Anyway, love what you’ve done…festive, clean, gorgeous!
Beautiful!! I love that it’s so different from more traditional/typical Christmas decorating. Don’t get me wrong, I love traditional too — but it’s nice to see a fresh and different spin on things
Have fun decorating your cottage
Kelly
sarah, it looks super! no surprise, however!!
i don’t have a tree either. well, i call it a tree, but it is really a few branches in a large crystal vase with the glass beads in the base to help the branches stay up where i want them. i used the little balls i have and i wrapped a string of beads around the pinched in part of the vase. it coordinates with the little ball ornaments. so pretty, easy, and *free*! in the den on the mantle i put the old fake bough with little white lights up, and decorated it with pinecones (courtesy of the neighborhood trees) and some nests i had collected from the yard, and the odd votive (out of firehazard reach) and called it done. the bookshelves have their own cones and candles, and VOILA it looks like christmas. it was easy, fun, fits the mood, and looks lovely! i didn’t spend a cent and it’s bc friendly! LOVE this blog for inspiration and encouragement! jkj
I enjoy “dressing up” my home with things I already have. Sometimes I get the urge to rearrange the furniture or move the rugs around. Down here in the south (USA), we call it “fluffing.” Fluffing is using what you already have to brighten up your home. I know a lady who makes good money at fluffing. Maybe you could sell your services, too.
I love it….and I love that white flowery+looking shell…what is it exactly?
Fabulous look Sarah. I got out my ‘white’ christmas tree yesterday and to my horror it has gone all discoloured and creamy in some places. Such a dilemma – I’ve only had it 2 years. We think it has discoloured on the side that faces the window. I was just going to ditch it as I was so angry but today decided to play around with it and face the creamy discoloured side to the window one more time. So far all it has are lights as I was so disappointed when I opened the box and saw it that I just aren’t in the right frame of mind to go through the decorations I have boxed in my garage. Maybe I should just decorate my dining table and ditch the tree now!!! arghhh….
Alison
Hi Sarah,
I love having a peek into your beautiful home…Thanks for letting us in and sharing your great ideas with us! I just thought I’d share a remedy for sunburn with you. Aloe Vera works wonders for all burns, however, cut a ripe tomato in half and get a loved one with a sense of humour to ‘gently’ rub all over the burn…crazy I know but it works =) I know I need not tell you though ‘Prevention Is Better Than Cure.’ From a fellow Aussie, Cheers Amanda.
I love your style! I am new to blogs and just in the nick of time…you see, after 30 years of living in the middle of the Mojave Desert of CA my husband and I have bought a house in a beach community!! I am still pinching myself. We were pretty isolated as far as shopping goes for so many years…it will be so much fun to be near shops… and not too far from us are lots of thrift shops, and bargain shops.
I am beginning to decorate the house and its all such a change that I can’t figure out what to do!! We did have paneling installed on the ceiling in the living room and painted it High Gloss white…it looks great. We are also having paneling installed in our family room and we’ll paint it white, I have mostly brown furniture and I think the brown will look good with the white? Any advice? AFter 30 years of looking at desert, brown and desolate I can’t tell you how excited I am…however, I will miss my friends here but our new home is only 3 hours away and they can come visit and be blessed with a place by the beach..we are taking our time moving in so we have time to make some improvements…just no ideas!!
Love your home and everthing you do looks wonderful..thanks for the inspiration!
Patti
Love it! Love the simplicity…I was going for that look myself, but it wasn’t enough for my teens sooooo, out came more sparkle and twinkle. White, silver and beach blue is what I decorate in…except for my Tea Rose Room…I used pink this year.
Oh yeah, ispired by your last post, I made a visit to IKEA today. Bought some more white candles, paperbag brown paper, white ribbon, and the cutest little lamp for my daughter with a tiny red china paper lantern pattern shade.
I don’t have a mantel either and I am always looking for ways I can fake one.
I love the look you created here! I am going all girly and sparkly and over the top in my craft room but for the rest of the house I will tone it down. I chose red and gold years ago and would so love to change that to more neutrals and whites and silvers. But I have a budget too, so I am going to see what I can do with my current color palette.
Keep up the good work!
the decorations are simply perfect! my husband put up the pre-lit christmas tree this weekend & i didn’t decorate it because one of my cats tried to climb the tree & the other cat wants to eat the tree. i’m perfectly happy with white candles, greenery & vintage mercury glass ornaments displayed here & there. our families stopped the gift giving maddness years ago – instead we give to charities. since then it’s amazing how much more we enjoy the holidays. thanks sarah for always keeping it simple. ruby
Fabulous Sarah. No decorations here yet, I’m in Bah Humbug mode after yesterday!
Needless to say punish did come into it and there is no playstation until further notice! Mind you, it won’t make a jot of difference until next time. Not sure if it is the autism, or he just doesn’t have the will power! The jury is out on that one…
I am glad you enjoyed my blog post – I used to have some Christmas demons but I think I have finally laid them to rest, by following my own philosophy. And when you get older, the memory side of it can potentially be quite overwhelming – I try to err on the side of mindfulness.
And speaking of getting older (and I am sure that you are not nearly as old as me), when I was young I never got sunburn wherever I went, being dark-haired and not at all fair-skinned, but with advancing years, I now find that I only have to venture out into the weak Kentish sunshine to get heat rash and sunburn – perhaps your skin gets thinner? Either that or the hole in the ozone layer is now enormous.
Love the decs – you are so clever – it all looks very beautiful and stylish.
Pomona x
I love the leaves! You didn’t mention what they are…..I do have a Christmas tree but also something else that is probably even more beautiful. I discovered that the crape myrtles in my yard have unusual branches – I put a couple of them in a large mercury glass container and hung icicles. I’m thrilled with the effect.
Wanna know what I noticed? Your pictures keep getting better and better!
Oooh absolutely beautiful
I love your dollar free decor! Your leaves look wonderful and tropical-Christmassy, rather than cold-weather Christmassy, like ours. I am very impressed with how beautiful it is! Hugs, Cindy S.
I think you did a beautiful job! And I think it is the perfect look for a beach cottage. Kudos!
I love the white & silver, so pretty.
Love
Alison
x
Well done, Sarah. Here in the States, a lot of people are tiring of the excess and the expense of Christmas. I love the simplicity of your decorations. Beautiful.
It’s beautiful. The sparkly white and silver make it sing Christmas. I would miss evergreen touches in my home, but I often opt to decorate those bits of evergreen (including the tree) with white and silver or clear glass. Though this year I went way out there and decorated my tree all in green sparkles and green baubles. And of course, twinkling little white lights.
Your ability to play with what you have to create a mood is a gift. Enjoy your holiday ambiance!
I love it! I’m in transition from traditional reds and greens to white and silver. So, this year it will be a hodge podge of both until I have the summer to rummage sale again. (It’s snowing and hunkering down time in Vermont.)
It is exactly what I would have guessed your Christmas decorating would be. Just beautiful.
Very beach cottagey ….You did a great job.
we are getting a light sleet..not snow yet but..maybe later…it’s so cold..brrr
Hi Sarah
I love your deco and the way you shopt around in nature and in your house. But what is going on.. I hear so many people who are sick of buying and buying… apart from some emaille thinghie with a scandinavian Christmas prayer on it (see my latest blogpost) I did not buy a thing….
In my way of searching the perfect inperfection I even decided to buy that one little tree that was looking a bit bent.
I LOVE the decor. The glass ball and sequin ornaments are to die for. Did you make those? If so how…
I resubscribed as soon as I came over before reading your post because I have had do many problems with FeedBurner and have lost HUNDREDS of subscribers-just gone=poof. If you subscribe to me-re subscribe as well.
Thanks so much for posting to the party. You should have seen me this morning. I was so giddy, telling my hubby that SARAH from A BEACH COTTAGE posted to my party.
Cheri
I think it looks wonderful! Simply beautiful. I’m such a sucker for silver any time but I think with white at the holidays…well you can’t beat it!
hi! i just got back from a trip to target for stocking stuffers. then i treated myself to blog-reading. i found that i had missed the post about the trip to ikea. WHAT WAS I THINKING? why didn’t i go there? i’m about to meltdown just from the nuttiness of it all. soOOO O O O tomorrow i will make the trip. how much fun can one girl have ? i can’t wait to find out! i’m still shaking my head!! jkj
Beautiful! I’m digging out my silver, white and light blue decor this year. Haven’t used it in a few year and now I am even more inspired.
Congrats to lucky Tiffany
And fantastic display just perfect for a modern beach side Christmas
Everything is just lovely! I especially like that sequence ornament. By the way, I missed you last week at my Furniture Feature Friday party. Hope to see to see you there again, soon.
white and silver are my fave christmas combo! so sprarkly and serene. lovely job!
Sarah, it looks beautiful! I’m reading your blog so late because someone ahemmm inspired me to paint my bathroom white! OOOO I JUST LOVE IT. I have no idea why I fought it so long? Or why I’m doing it with so much left to do before the holidays hahah.I picked up a beautiful cabinet this summer at a yard sale and of course painted it white. Tomorrow I’m hoping to put it up in the bathroom. I’m going to try and get a pic of it to you( I’ve never done pics online ) because you might be the only other person in the world who will understand. I’m determined to figure it out. <3
It’s fantastic!! Really elegant. Don’t you think the best ideas come from creativity, and not spending? You are obviously quite good at it!
Cheers, Andrea
Oh, so lovely. So peaceful, serene, and beautiful. My Christmas decor is all red-and-green. I love the reds and greens, yet your things look so very sophisticated. Good job.
Very simple and elegant.
The beach sounds pretty good
about now. Ice and snow storm in the forecast for tomorrow where I live.
I just love the silver and white combo, Christmas at it’s finest!
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Gorgeous as usual Sarah! I tried so hard to keep it simple and neutral this year but no such luck. I’ve got red and green and LOTS of clutter.
A mess? No way-BEAUTIFUL!
Sarah, I think we gals in the states are learning a little about thriftiness after this spastic economic year! I know I don’t indulge myself as much. I’m doing a “whatever I have on hand” Christmas myself. Great job!
Brenda
You’ve been featured on my blog.
Cheri