Simple Steps To Festive Elegance on Your Christmas Front Porch
Unveil the secrets to crafting a festive and elegant Christmas front porch with these simple, step-by-step instructions and bring the spirit of the season to your home’s entrance.
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There’s no better way to invite the magic of Christmas into your home than by dressing your front porch with festive elegance.
I’ll give you all the necessary steps to easily turn basic Christmas decorations into a showcase that welcomes guests and captures the attention of passersby.
Sources for the exact or similar products I used are below.
I’m excited to once again be joining the annual Christmas Porch Tour hosted by Amy from Atta Girl Says.
A small group of bloggers have been getting together annually, for several years, to share our festive front porches with you. There’s something for every taste, so be sure to scroll down to the bottom of the post for links to everyone’s tour.
So, let’s talk about making your front porch not only festive, but elegant for Christmas.
Start with a plan
If you want to have a beautiful, cohesive look on your front porch, come up with a plan before you do anything.
- Look for inspiration. It could come from an image or an item.
- What will your color scheme be?
- What kind of style do you want?
- What parts of your porch do you want to decorate? The door? The windows? Other places?
- Whether you have a small or large porch, it’s helpful to have a space plan.
- What do you already own that you can reuse?
- What’s your budget for any new items you may want or need?
I had two sources of inspiration for my porch.
First of all, I wanted it to be a reflection of how I decorated the interior of my home.
My dining room is elegantly decorated with rich burgundy and gold. (A full tour of this room is coming on Monday!)
And my living room is more casually decorated in a traditional style with red and green and touches of chinoiserie.
I was also inspired by this yummy dupioni silk ribbon from my stash.
Begin with the basics
Once I had my plan together, it was time to decide what elements I wanted to use on my porch. These elements will be the first layer.
TIP: The key to creating any style front porch is to decorate in layers.
Did I want to add garland around my front door again, like I have for the past few years? Did I want urns flanking my front door? Did I want to make my own wreath? How many wreaths did I want to hang? Did I want a tree on the front porch?
Just how elaborate did I want my porch to be this year?
I opted for simple, but festive and elegant. With that decision made, it was time to add the basic structures.
The only basic items that I needed were a pair of lighted trees to fill the urns on either side of my front door and the base for a front door wreath.
Add a second layer
When the basic structures are in place it’s time for the real fun to begin! The actual decorating fun, that is.
To give my porch decor a festive, elegant look, I chose:
- ornaments and accessories in rich, traditional colors
- velvet for the pillows
- white lights on the small trees
- 4″ wide silk ribbon
- gold accents
I have always made my Christmas wreaths from scratch. But this year, I stumbled across a beautiful readymade wreath that already had a simple elegance to it.
I don’t usually care for readymade wreaths, but this one was very full and well made. With its gold leaves and fruit, it already had the elegance I wanted and I knew that I could zhush it up a bit to give it a custom look.
I added simple non-breakable ornaments, in the same colors as the ribbon, to the trees.
And added loops of ribbon to both the trees and the wreath. Frosted gold berry picks added to the trees tie them to the gold leaves and fruit on the wreath.
Add the finishing touches
This third layer is what will really bring your festive porch decor to life. Think of it as adding jewelry to your outfit or as garnish for a lovely meal presentation.
Our front porch is fairly wide with a matching pair of Adirondack glidders and a wrought iron bench on each end. The two sides are basically mirror images of one another.
Inexpensive solid burgundy velvet and sagey green cut chenille pillows match the colors used on the trees.
As a finishing touch to the sitting areas, extra ornaments were added to glass hurricanes.
Of course, only a faux fur throw blanket will do when sitting outside in the chilly weather!
Large blue and white ginger jars adorned with preserved boxwood wreaths echo the chinoiserie elements in the living room.
A festive welcome mat with touches of glittery gold was added in front of the door.
Thank you so much for visiting my Christmas front porch today! I hope you found some inspiration for your own porch.
By following these steps and adding your own personal flair, I know that you’ll be able to create a welcoming space that will bring cheer to everyone.
Keep in mind that the real joy of Christmas comes from the true Reason for the season and the memories we create.
SOURCES
Be sure to visit the other bloggers for even more festive ideas.
Atta Girl Says // Our Southern Home // First Day of Home // Our Crafty Mom
Worthing Court // Today’s Creative Life // Postcards from the Ridge
Suzy, it’s all so beautiful. I love how your porch decor hints at the decorating magic you create inside at Christmas. That wreath was a fab find — but you made it even better with that ribbon.
Your porch is so stunning, Suzy! I can’t believe you found a ready-made wreath that matches so well, and I love the ribbon you used throughout. Pinned!
So elegant! I love the mixture of chinoiserie with the holiday decor!
Suzy, it’s always inspiring to see how you’ve decorated your beautiful home. I love the colors you used on your porch and all the decor is so pretty. Enjoy the holiday season!
Suzy,
Knowing you for so long, I love seeing how your style has evolved. I just love this look. I’m kicking myself for not picking up the oversized ginger jars at HomeGoods a few months back! Just gorgeous, my friend!
Suzy, I’m always so inspired whenever I visit your blog. Your Christmas porch is just fabulous and I love the colors you chose. Such a welcoming front porch. Merry Christmas!