Textured Christmas Decor: A Cozy Eclectic Home Tour

I have missed all opportunities to participate in any Christmas home tours with my blog friends this year. I’m really bummed about that. I was so busy traveling home to Germany, and I also stayed off Facebook and Instagram for the most part because I just can’t take it anymore, and I missed all the invites that were sent to me.

Actually, I think it’s the first year since I started blogging over 10 years ago that I’m not participating in any. I always really enjoyed seeing what others have done and virtually visiting our homes. I think you all enjoyed that too. Let’s see if I can change that again next year. So much is just different this year and feels a bit off. At least to me it does.

I haven’t decorated too much and focused mostly on crafting. There is nothing more soothing to me than to sit in the evening with my cats, a glass of wine, a fun craft, and a new show to unwind. (This year, it was Younger for me on Netflix)

This year, my Christmas decor is all about layering textures. From soft faux fur and velvet ribbon to handmade paper ornaments and cedar garland, I’ve created a cozy, tactile space that feels warm and inviting. If you love mixing different materials and finishes in your holiday decor, this textural approach might inspire you.

So let me show you how I decorated my home for Christmas minus the blog hops.

Our real Christmas tree decorated with glass and paper

As you might know already, my favorite ornaments of all time are my glass icicles, and they will return every year. I also brought all the disco ball ornaments back again because I also love them so much. The reflective surfaces add such a fun textural element that catches the light beautifully. I did buy a “new-to-me” giant vintage disco ball at an auction this year, and I am obsessed with how it looks in my Christmas decor. It is just so cool and oversized, especially in our tiny home. These giant disco balls can go for anywhere between $400 to $800 online, and I got mine for $75.

The difference from last year’s tree is that we finally bought a real tree again, versus the faux one last year. It just makes such a difference. The fairy lights for the Christmas tree are also still the same. I don’t use regular Christmas light strands anymore.

I also added new folded paper stars to the tree (check out the tutorial). Hopefully, the tutorial will be ready this week or next week. They are so affordable and customizable, and the dimensional paper adds wonderful texture against the smooth glass ornaments.

The large fabric disco ball ornaments are from Target’s dollar section last year.

If you like handmade ornaments, check out all my DIY Christmas ornaments that I made over the year. And they can all work together to create a cohesive look. There are 24+ affordable, crafted ornaments! I’m sure you’ll find something you like!

Our large Christmas tree is, as always, in between the living room and the fireplace area. That way, you can see it from both seating areas.

Layered textures on the fireplace mantel

Once again, I made more DIY honeycomb ornaments. This time, they are two-toned in dark green and ivory with the same terracotta velvet ribbon that I used for the dining room ornaments. It is my favorite! The three-dimensional honeycomb paper creates such beautiful texture and visual interest.

I’m still loving the faux cedar garland that I bought last year. The soft, feathery texture pairs beautifully with the tin bell ornaments, the paper stars, the disco balls, honeycomb ornaments. I bought the gold mirror at the beginning of the year and layered the vintage starburst over it.

I also made melted disco balls for the fireplace bookshelf. I love how they turned out!

Cozy textured living room Christmas decor

I found the large vintage basket tray on the coffee table at an auction this year. It is perfect for my old Advent candle tray that I found at Target a couple of years ago. We Germans love a good Advent wreath! I added four new spiral taper candles, faux Norfolk pine (also from last year), pinecones found on my walks, and a bow to match the bow on my mirror that I bought at the end of last year.

Check out my Christmas coffee table decor ideas for more inspiration.

Here is something that I’m doing completely differently this year: I don’t have a tabletop Christmas tree in the corner of our living room, and there are two reasons for that. I love having a real Christmas tree in that corner, and I wasn’t going to buy two. I told the kids it’s either or. They agreed on the big tree to be real this year.

I wanted to have something I could carry over into winter decor, specifically my fairy light-lit branches. I always feel disappointed when that corner of the room loses all its Christmas sparkle. The icicle branches will serve as perfect winter decor, transitioning beautifully into early spring as the ice and snow melt, and I finish my job at the local ski resort.

It is definitely a more minimalist look than the previous years.

I haven’t felt the urge to change anything in my living room this year, except for removing the one rust colored area rug because the robot vacuum ruined it. I still love my living room just the way it is. The layered fur throws, tufted leather sofas, and woven macrame create such a rich mix of textures that feels cozy without being cluttered.

See how I transitioned all of this from Christmas to winter decor!

Dining room Christmas decor with handmade ornaments

When I shared my new DIY tin ornaments with you last week, I didn’t have the tree fully decorated yet in our dining room. Below you can see it all done now. I love the combo of the terracotta-colored baking soda ornaments, DIY mushroom ornaments (from two years ago), and the new embossed ornaments. The mix of matte baking soda paint, velvet ribbons, embossed metal, and painted mushrooms creates such an interesting textural variety on one little tree.

I splurged on the faux mink fur that Willy is sleeping on in front of the tree in our dining room because it’s just so soft. For my defense, it is on sale though 😉

I found the two small honeycomb Christmas trees at Aldi’s two weeks ago and thought they’d be perfect for my dining room table. I’m definitely still loving all my green accent colors throughout my dining room and kitchen.

UPDATE: I added some more texture to my dining room Christmas decor by making light-up yarn star ornaments with leftover jute yarn and fairy lights for the jute pendant light.

Kitchen window display with ceramic houses

And lastly, I bought some more white ceramic houses while I was in Germany. I also ordered some here, but only one came so far. I just love how they look in my kitchen window.

Unfortunately, they are incredibly hard to photograph with the lighting coming from the outside and the lights inside the houses. My trick is to string fairy lights through the rows of houses instead of having that many tea lights. Right now, there is only one house with a tea light since the strand of fairy lights wasn’t long enough.

My favorite house is from a German company called Räder, and they handmake their ceramic houses.

The mixed matte and shiny white ceramic adds another soft texture to my Christmas decor.

This year’s Christmas decor felt more intentional and less overwhelming, which I really needed. (Mostly everything else overwhelmed me this year, unfortunately) Sometimes doing less but focusing on what brings you joy is exactly the right approach.

I hope you saw some things that inspired you today.

Happy Holidays,