Christmas at the Do-over-necks

I have been trying to pin down my interior Christmas decor design since we were married 6 holiday seasons ago! If you're feeling like your holiday decor is Hodge-podgy and it's not quite all coming together - you're not alone, I'm right there with you! It takes TIME.

Over the first 5 years I have bought and returned pink glitter-tipped poinsettias, red and cream plaid ribbon, many pink and gold glitter picks, fabric-wrapped farmhouse-ey ornaments, and red berries in many different forms. I've tried just about every trendy design style and none of them settled with me. I realized the design I was trying to accomplish wasn't necessarily "trendy" and I needed to create it from scratch. But what was it? What was my design style?

I knew I had a foundation to build off of which was some white, gold, and dark blue ornaments that I loved and, among all my other returns, managed to stay in my Christmas bucket year after year. But was just missing something...

Dried oranges!

Last year I added dried oranges to our tree and mantle and that's when I hit my breakthrough and caught a full vision of what I was trying to accomplish!

This year I added dusty blue bows that was the icing on the cake and tied it all together!

Here we have it! My custom-made "Do-over-neck Christmas Design" by yours truly, Jessica Doberneck. It's natural, authentic, and classy, with a little touch of vintage elegance sprinkled with homemade love.

In light of celebrating this 6-year-long endeavor, I had my FAVORITE photographer, Julie with Julie Ann M Photography, come photograph all our Christmas Decor. Take a look, she absolutely nailed it!

You should all know by now that I swear by the Samsung Frame TV. Not only is it an extremely high-quality TV, but having art as your default screen makes all the difference in the world. Often times visitors genuinely think we have art hanging on the wall, not a TV. And to be able to pick holiday art for each season is the the best! The Samsung Frame TV makes my little design heart sing! Haha

Here are all the links to what's on our tree:

• White bulbs - Hobby Lobby

• Dark blue bulbs - Hobby Lobby

• Gold picks - Hobby Lobby

• Large gold bulbs - Hobby Lobby

• Leafed bulbs - Hobby Lobby

• Angel - Target

• Blue ribbon - Amazon

• Dried oranges - Handmade (Slice, pat dry, and bake in the oven at 200 degrees on parchment paper for 2 hours, flipping halfway through.)

Every year, Tyson and I visit our hometown of Sacramento for the holidays. We've made a tradition to visit this darling Christmas store in Oldtown Sacramento to pick out an ornament together. This blue bird ornament was one we picked out together during our second year of marriage. It is my absolute FAVORITE and was the inspiration for tying in more dusty blue. I would love to track them down and purchase more!

Julie with Julie Ann M Photography knocked my socks off with these photos. She made me see my designs in a new light. Julie highlighted all my work in a way that made me feel proud all over again for all the time, intentional design planning, and vision that went into achieving this design.

I mean look at this?! Stunning. Julie truly captured "Christmas at the Do-over-necks."

Do you remember last year's DIY mantle project? Or even further back, our whole fireplace remodel? This moment right here is 3 years in the making.

Moving on to our console table that you see right when you walk in the front door. "The Thesis Statement to Your Home," as I like to call it.

Peep the dusty blue bow again! I'm obsessed!

After watching me drool and dream over this nativity set, My mother-in-law purchased it for me as a Christmas gift from Deseret Book about 4 years ago. It didn't match my current home decor at the time, but I knew it screamed for me and one day it would fit in perfectly.

And now look at it! The shining star tying in all my blues, golds, and whites! I love it more than ever.

Many items on my table are symbolic of how I want to remember Christ during Christmas.

I loved how Julie Ann M Photography captured these bells from Amazon and the framed sheet music behind them. Sidenote: I bought the frame at Goodwill for $5, the sheet music from Etsy for $3, and printed it at UPS for less than $1. Normally, framed sheet music this large is easily $50!

When I think of how I want to worship my Savior, it is typically through song. These bells and sheet music for O Holy Night, are more than decorative to me, they are a sweet reminder of the prayerful hymns of praise in my heart.

I deliberately added olive branches (from Hobby Lobby) to my garland framing our nativity for many reasons.

First, to remember the branch of peace we strive to extend to others as well as our gratitude for the many olive branches extended to us over the years.

Second, it serves as a reminder of the peace we strive to have in our home and peace we hope others feel as they enter our home.

Lastly, the history and symbolism of the ultimate atonement our Savior performed in the Garden of Gethsemane.

"The Garden of Gethsemane is a small grove consisting of eight ancient olive trees located at the foot of the Mount of Olives just outside the Old City of Jerusalem. Its name derives from the Aramaic word gat semãnê, which means 'olive press' and suggests the presence of a mill in ancient times." -www.oliveoiltimes.com

Some may use the symbol of the olive press (or milling) process to remember the physical, mental, and emotional pressure of all man-kind that Christ accepted upon Himself and suffered under in that Garden of Gethsemane.

And just a fun fact I have to share:

"...In addition to its religious significance, a scientific study has shown that the olive trees in the garden are some of the oldest in the world approximately 2,000 years old." -www.itraveljerusalem.com

To continue the theme of music and hymns, I added a garland of bells running through the middle of our dining table on a bed of eucalyptus. I added dried oranges, of course, and in lue of being an intimate room for eating, I included red berries as well.

I look forward to adding to this centerpiece next year, but this is a great start and I love the direction we're headed!

I read a meme once that said "As a grown up, I've learned that all of the 'Chrsitmas Magic' I felt as a kid was just a mom who loved me so dang much." It's funny yet so true.

Christmas is a time to teach about giving, kindness, and pure love. It's a time to remember our Savior and help our children feel His love through our love as parents.

I hope that we've created not just a design, but a feeling this Christmas season. It's my hope that when my children and visitors enter our home they feel loved, welcomed, and at peace.

We wish everyone a very merry Christmas, happy holidays, and a wonderful month of December!

And a special thanks to Julie Ann M Photography for capture the feeling of "Christmas at the Do-over-necks."

Sincerely,

Jessica & Tyson Doberneck of