If you love the holiday season but don’t love the excess it brings, a calming holiday decor theme may be the style to which you gravitate. Subtle colors, natural accents and understated lighting are all elements that create a calming decor theme. If this decorating style sounds appealing to you, read on for ways to embrace the holiday season in an understated way.

Select a minimal color theme

A color theme incorporating one or two colors will create a cohesive, understated look. The less is more approach to colors will result in a home that feels seasonal yet elegant. Selecting colors that complement your home’s existing decor will create a cohesive feel accentuated by the holiday ambiance.

Par back the decorations

As you set out your holiday decorations, assess the finished space, then remove several pieces. Keeping decor items to a minimum creates an understated holiday feel that embraces simplicity, restraint and elegance. It also allows you to focus on the details that you’re most aesthetically drawn to, complements your home’s decor and means the most to you.

Eliminate kitsch

Holiday novelty items and brightly colored decorations can quickly take over your holiday decor theme. If you have these items and feel nostalgic about displaying them somewhere, keep them in a spot where children might spend time, such as in the toy room or in their bedrooms.

Focus on natural elements

Items you find in nature, such as evergreens, birchwood and pine cones, can often be all the decor you need. For example, incorporating evergreen boughs — real or faux — throughout your home on shelves or tables, filling vessels with birchwood logs and displaying groupings of pinecones in small dishes can create a welcoming seasonal effect that is timely and doesn’t overpower the space.

Create visual space

Set out a crystal piece for areas you need to display an object, such as a shelf or a table. This may be a crystal bowl, picture frame, or clock. Using crystal is a visual trick that fills the area while also giving the eye some breathing room.

Tip: Visit a vintage shop or even HomeGoods to pick up a few pieces.

Add lights

Lighting is one of the best ways to add elegant ambiance. Selecting warm white lighting will create an inviting atmosphere and tie the rooms together. In addition, real candles, flickering battery-powered candles and warm string lighting will result in an elegant and holiday-ready experience.

Be consistent

Carrying your minimal theme throughout the house will create a visually soothing, elegant effect. Incorporating the same color scheme, lighting, natural elements, and carefully curated decor pieces is a beautiful way to decorate for the holidays. In addition, carrying the same scent throughout the home is another way to update the senses to please the senses and help add to the calming ambiance.

An elegant holiday decorating will create a soothing palette for you to retreat to after a busy day, work, holiday shopping, or festivities.

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Calming Holiday Decor Ideas