This past December, as I was sitting on my leopard print swivel chair cozied up with a fleece electric blanket, drinking russian tea, listening to Christmas music, and gazing at our flocked Christmas tree, I was in total holiday bliss.
I wondered… How do we keep this feeling alive all year? And what makes us love the holiday season so much?
Would you agree that there is just something about the feeling of christmas? It’s just an energy. It’s in the air. Everyone seems to be have a little more pep in their step, and it seems like as each year passes people start decorating earlier and earlier. I shamelessly text my gf Diana on September 1st every year and tell her Merry Christmas lol.
So this past December, as I was in all up in my Christmas feels, I pulled out the notes app in my phone and started writing down the things that most people seem to love and look forward to that time of year. Next I broke it down (if we love X Y Z at christmas then we do X Y Z throughout the year in a fresh kind of way).
The interesting, or well, sad thing is that often people have the post-holiday blues. WHY? Well, there’s so much buildup to the season, then there so so many holidays back to back (Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Kwanzaa, Boxing Day, NYE, New Years Day, Orthodox Christmas..what else am i missing? And if you’re extra lucky you have someone’s December birthday thrown in the mix.. yes, that would be us!), and then it’s ALL OVER and back to “normal” life.
When I take all the Christmas decor down, the house feels fresh, but bare, almost like it lacks a bit of life. I find myself still longing for the coziness of the holidays, and due to living in South Carolina, it only STARTS getting cold in January, so I feel weird forgoing all the wintry traditions and stepping into a spring mindset. In January I find myself wanting to have
So here is the post breaking down just HOW you can keep that holiday vibe, the holiday coziness, and simply the feeling in the air ALIVE all year.
Place special, intentional items in your home all year
- During the holiday season we often place sentimental items around our home. Perhaps you have holiday decor that has been passed down in the family, or you have beautiful pieces that you’ve invested in and they mean a lot to you. Curate items in your home that have a story, so that any time of year you can walk past it in your home and it brings feelings of loved ones, positive nostalgia, or it reminds you of a great time you had. Curating an intentional space is KEY to loving where you live at all time (even if it’s a temporary place).
Bring LIFE into your home
- During the holidays, many people bring a real tree into their home – aka they are literally bringing nature (LIFE) indoors. When the tree is finished, it’s make all the sense in the world that the energy in the home feels different. I bet you know what’s coming next. YES, find ways to bring nature back inside. Whether it’s flowers, or whatever grows seasonally in your area, bring what you can indoors. I promise it will make a huge difference and it will amplify the vibe that you’re feeling at home.
- I also recommend this book for ways to make your home FEEL amazing.
Seasonal curated snacks
- I’ll go ahead and say it; I love a damn good snack plate. I like to make them all year. I can find any reason to celebrate with beautiful bite-sized snacks arranged on a pretty platter. YES, to more of that. Seriously though, the holidays is all about pretty appetizers & bite size beautiful things that make you say ooo la la. Something about eating pretty bite-sized food on a platter or better yet, a cheese board, just screams THIS IS SPECIAL. Guess what babe, you can create that vibe all year. Whether you’re by yourself or with friends, choose one night a week or each month and treat yourself to a seasonal snack plate. Go all out – make something savory & sweet and make a seasonal cocktail or mocktail. ALL OF THAT is something to very much look forward to.
- My fave things for a snack plate are cheeses from Yvonne’s Vegan Kitchen, Marcona Almonds, fig jam, mini quiche bites, Poshi marinated veggies, Ithaca lemon dill hummus & carrot sticks, grapes & strawberries, and raw dark chocolate.
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Mood lighting
- No longer do enjoying lights have to be reserved for November / December only! Have you ever been to a restaurant that has an outdoor patio with the hanging lights above? If so, doesn’t something about sitting under the lights feel more special? Bring that vibe into your home. We just put twinkle LED lights on our patio and it was the BEST decision ever. Our patio feels like a little vacay anytime of day. I love to use Luminara flickering candles, and lanterns everywhere so it’s a real mood when the overhead lights are off and it’s time to wind down.
- Also speaking of outdoor lights, I am crazy about these pastel lights, but I’m not 100% sure what to do with them (maybe you do though! They are too chic not to link.)
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Seasonal bar cart
- I think bar carts are a great way to keep the good vibes alive and feel festive and fancy anytime or any day of the year. Whether you drink alcohol or not, it doesn’t matter. For ex, your bar cart could be a tea/coffee cart or a mocktail cart. A bar cart is all about your signature, personal style, and it small enough and easy enough to swap out the items for the season. On my bar cart, I like to have a mini (and seasonal) cocktail book and/or mocktail book on the cart, seasonal flowers & cocktail napkins, I swap out holiday booze like Baileys or Peppermint vodka for Empress Gin or a sleek Grey Goose. Add your favorite glasses for that time of year (and if you don’t have any seasonal styled glasses & cups, Anthropologie has new collections launching multiple times a year and their collections are always unique & gorgeous). Off the top of my head, you could have a Valentines day cart, a spring vibes bar cart, summer season cart, and then of course we are back at the holidays, and you can damn sure have a fall-inspired bar cart situation). K, do we love this? Or do we LOVE this??
- I love these mini size cocktail books for your bar cart: Romantic Cocktails book for Valentines Day, this Mocktail Recipe Book for all year long, & this shiny, gold, Bubbly Book all about how to make epic champagne cocktails.
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Use your good stuff now
- People often wait until it’s a special occasion to use their nice things, and it’s really sad. Here’s the truth sister; you woke up today – celebrate it; it’s a VERY special occasion. You never know what day is the last for you or anyone else. So use the good china now. Use your favorite mug for your coffee/tea today. Use the wine glass you only use when guests are over. Transfer your Chinese take out onto your favorite dinner plates you own. Buy the fancy shoes, and wear them! Here’s the trick; if you find yourself hesitating and wanting to save something until…… NOPE, CHECK YOURSELF! Do it now, use it now, enjoy it alllll right now. You are worth it. Doesn’t that feel good?
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Playlist check
- Why else do we love the holidays? The music of course! The goal here is to find new music for other time of year, and not the standard top 40 kind of thing. Since I’ve used the word “curated” a lot, so why not use it again? A curated playlist would be ideal. I am encouraging you to explore new types of music this year. Spotify is a great place to start. I personally LOVE bossa nova music. It really sets the scene. Love is an understatement for how much I love bossa nova music. Bossa nova french music is my favorite. There are endless amounts of bossa. It’s lounge-y & vibe-y, and perfect to elevate any party or simply a home that needs an energy pick-me-up.
Season with the seasons
- Another reason we looooove the holidays is because of all the marvelous scents. How good do cinnamon, cloves, rosemary or sage smell that time of year? You won’t have to miss out on all the amazing herbs and spices once December is over. Look forward to the upcoming months & seasons by eating seasonally. My suggestion is to experiment with other types of herbs / spices / roots that are perfect for the season you are in, AND of course, do not shy away from loving up on cinnamon or cloves at any time (I actually like russian tea any time I want to feel cozy, and I drink chai tea as often as possible).
- For ex, for spring / summer months, try using fresh Basil (homemade pesto with garlic crostinis?!), Mint (mojitos or a fruit bowl with lemon & lime + chopped mint, OR my fave Watermelon Mint Smoothies).
Simple & stress-free gift-giving anytime of year
- We love the holidays because it’s a time to give and/or receive gifts. It’s a time we often put extra thought into what those we love would enjoy and the act of giving releases endorphins in our brain that makes us have a warm glow feeling about us. Scientists also believe that altruistic behavior releases endorphins in the brain, producing the positive feeling known as the “helper’s high.”
- I LOVE gift giving, and I often use Giftagram to make giving gifts easier. It’s an app thart has a huge collection of beautiful gifts (from books, chocolates, tea, jewelry, forever roses, gift boxes, etc) to send to anyone in an instant WITHOUT needing their mailing address details. You simply link up your card, pick a gift, text the gift link to a friend (you only need either their phone # or email), and the recipient is the one who inputs their details for delivery.
Moments to look forward to
- I think that one of the reasons the holiday season excites us so much is that there is often many things to look forward to. It’s never-ending festivities, until well, it actually ends for real, and often that can bring in the post-holiday blues. Do you plan other activities / festivities to look forward to in January – March (and beyond)? If not, start putting some dates on the calendar in December for the upcoming new year months. Even if you are hitting the detox train hard in January, could you plan a wellness retreat/weekend wither by yourself or with a friend. Could you buy an awesome new cookbook and work your way through the book during January & February (ya know like Julie & Julia style!)? Perhaps even plan a Galentine’s healthy brunch, or a spring tea time soirée where you have a tasting of new kinds of tea. The point is to find things to look forward to and do it on purpose. (Also did you know that creating lots of memories each year makes you feel younger and stretches time? And no it’s actually not a trick question; it’s something I discovered recently that made a lot of sense. More on that coming soon)
I hope something here has inspired you to live each day as it’s something spectacular…because it absolutely IS.
XO, Ashley.
Make every day a holiday and celebrate living.
