Modern Farmhouse Style Christmas Porch and Patio Decor
During the last holiday season, in the midst of a particularly crazy year, the MINT Event Design team began offering holiday decorating services. It began as a way to spread a bit more cheer and help some existing event clients with turning their homes into the magical and comforting Christmas scenes of their dreams - however, I loved doing it so much, I decided to continue to offer it as a service moving forward! I’m thrilled to share this Farmhouse Style Christmas Porch and Patio Decor from last year with you for your own inspiration, but if you are in the Austin area (or know anyone who is) and would like me to help you design and set up your own cozy Christmas setting, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
The Process
The first thing I did was sit down with my client to discuss the look she was going for. My #1 goal is always to make sure that I listen and understand exactly what the client wants - only then can I use my styling expertise to make it happen! In this case, the client was looking for the warm and comforting feel of a farmhouse style, while keeping it a bit modern. That meant lots of natural materials and textures, and a mix of rustic pieces with updated fabrics and lush greenery. With this idea in mind, I went shopping! The decor items I used here are from a variety of stores, including Michaels, Hobby Lobby, At Home, Target, and some local vintage markets.
The Front Door
The gorgeous double doors at the front entrance of the house served as the perfect backdrop for unique Christmas decor. Rather than a regular round wreath or two, I used two elongated greenery hangings wrapped with black and white gingham ribbon and embellished with pinecones, magnolias, sprigs of white pine and pops of red berries.
In front of the door, I set out a cute red and gold sleigh, holding brown paper packages tied up with black and white ribbon and a sprig of greenery. A white blanket and natural basket held additional faux foliage.
The Front Porch
One fun aspect of this project was that I pretty much started with a blank slate! Check out the photo of what the porch sitting area looked like before and after!
I started by using their rosy red rug as a foundation, and adding some comfy white textured pillows to the bench. Adding a black and white grid pillow with tassels and a black and white gingham pillow brought some updated chicness to the area. Then, I added a rich green wreath on the window above the bench, filled with snowy pinecones and black and white striped ribbon to complement the pillows.
Then, I set up each side of the sitting area with cozy Christmas elements. On one side, I used a few faux snowy evergreen trees in burlap sacks as a backdrop for a variety of decor - stacks of birch logs, wooden snowflakes and signage, and an abundance of additional natural items, such as pinecones and holly berries. I used rustic metal containers to hold many of these, and added pops of color with a bright red wool and fur stocking, and a cute little bright green Christmas house on a stand.
On the other side, I used more faux greenery, pinecones, and berries, and a couple of wooden sled decorations.There may not be much snow in Austin, Texas, but we can pretend and imagine with our decor choices! I tied everything together with a red and white bucket that complemented the rug, more black and white striped ribbon, and a cozy black and white plaid blanket draped over a decorative wooden ladder.
The Back Patio
This client also had a lovely outdoor patio space in the back, perfect for entertaining close family members during the holidays (thank goodness for mild Texas winters!). For this space, I decorated the fireplace mantel with lovely draped greenery, pinecones, and magnolias.
Then, I took an existing succulent table centerpiece of the client’s, and redesigned it with some holiday flair by adding natural elements to match the mantel, and some complementary green and white Christmas ornaments.
Below is the before and after - what do you think?
This was such a fun project and different from what we normally do - I’m so looking forward to doing more holiday decorating this year! Contact me if you would like my help with your holiday decor, and in the meantime, let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
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For more Holiday Decorating and Party Inspiration, check out these other posts!
