A Vintage Christmas - December 2024 part 2

December 22, 2024

A Vintage Christmas - December 2024 part 2

I slump on the sofa, exhausted, trying to ignore the pile of boxes begging to be whisked into festive magic around the house. Golden baubles and kilometres of tiny lights. While my body aches from the lack of exercise and the incessant breastfeeding, my mind races with wild decor ideas - I'd do anything to make baby Francesca's first Christmas unforgettable I hear myself saying. Even though I know damn well she won't remember any of this.

Christmas can feel unmanageable sometimes. And it did for us for the past two years when we did skip the whole tree thing altogether. This time around our battered, dusty, plasticky pine made it out the box and into the living room (hurray). But to date it has no baubles, no hanging delights or figurines to adorn it, except for a string of fairy lights. And that's how it's going to stay.

After some initial hesitation, Pier and I agreed that we don't need to go all the way through and that a pared down decor is actually beautiful in its simplicity. This decision came at the right time. One where we need to free up resources for more important things: spending quality time together as a new family, saving energies for long conversations at the table on Christmas day, maybe baking a batch of biscotti in between feedings.

I may still do a little decorating though; I'm thinking small craft activities that take no longer than a handful of minutes - like sawing a string of dried orange slices or wrapping velvet bows here and there. And maybe, if the stars align, we may even pop into a vintage market or our local deli shop "to look for presents", but really, just to make memories together.

These are the guiding words for this year's festive season: quiet, understated, intimate.

And this below is where I'm finding inspiration for a tranquil Christmas time. Screenshot edition.

- deep, organic brown and burnt orange tones. An interesting alternative to the classic red and green palette. Grounding, but also rich and warm. Spiced cookies, fruit cakes and dried oranges spring to mind.

- pretty bows made of salvaged ribbons for decor and wrapping presents. Sit down with a bunch of ribbons and knot away. Repurpose old fabric in solid velvet or printed cotton. But also wool yarn sounds like an interesting idea. Arrange the strings and ribbons into dainty bows that you can hang on door frames, picture frames, candle holders and whatever you can think of. I like to wrap mines around mandarins.

- second-hand porcelain plates and dessert coups. Here's what I'd set the table with if I were hosting Christmas lunch. (I just got a small selection of plates from Neroli to shoot recipes with...amazing stuff!).

...and here's what I'd fill the coupes with for a slightly different Christmas dessert that's not panettone, pandoro or Venetian focaccia: panforte ice cream.

- shiny second hand finds made of glass. Luminous like the new year ahead. Mouth-blown vintage vases, decorated mirrors and unique pieces from local producers are particularly good. Fill the vases with flowers, baubles or candies then give them to your loved ones as presents. Take advantage of the last brocante markets around you to scavenge for these shiny gems.