Getting the Farmhouse Ready for the Holidays
THE FARMHOUSE
It’s beginning to look a lot (well, a little) like Christmas! Last weekend we started hanging up holiday decorations at the Farmhouse with a traditional red and green festive feel. I’m a fan of simple when it comes to the holidays and our decor definitely reflects that. Since our halls are starting to get decked, I thought we’d share how we get our home ready for the holidays.
*this post is sponsored by Behrens Manufacturing.
Earlier in the season, Behrens, the Winona, Minnesota-based manufacturer of galvanized steel pails and tubs, asked us try their handcrafted heritage products, and we replied with an enthusiastic “YES!". Behrens is a 100 year old company that still manufactures most of its products in the USA. More durable than plastic and better for our environment (no Prop 65 warnings and 100% recyclable), they are exactly the kind of long-lasting, multiple-use products we like to have in our home. They can be used for chores, play, storage, decor, entertaining, and anything else you can dream up.
And this time of year, galvanized steel tubs go perfectly with our simple, sustainable, and budget-friendly holiday mantra. Right now we’re using our 7 1/2 gallon tub to store the fresh garlands I bought at Costco, but it’ll soon be stocked with ice and drinks for our Christmas family gathering.
One way we like to keep the holidays simple is by limiting our decor to what fits in one tub. That’s right…all of our holiday stuff (except exterior lights) lives in one storage tub in our basement. Everything else we use for Christmas decor is either fresh greens or whatever we can find at home (like say, galvanized steel tubs and pails). Simple, simple, simple.
It’s been a long time since you’ve seen our upstairs landing (I’m thinking since we bought the Farmhouse…!). All of our bedrooms open onto this space, so we wanted to add a little holiday cheer here. It’s the perfect place to keep our small but mighty collection of Christmas books.
I love getting out our Christmas books! They really get us in the holiday spirit. We have a dozen or so books and usually bring them out early in the holiday season so we can read them over and over again and hopefully get sick of them by New Years. Ha!
This year we put our little book collection in a Behrens 9qt oval tub. The kids have been picking out one or two books and we read them before bed. At the end of the season, we’ll pack them back up in the basement and use this oval tub for something else.
We added a little holiday cheer to our bedroom, as well. A poinsettia found a home in a Behrens 10qt utility pail and it really adds to our festive atmosphere. And once the poinsettia is done for the season, we’ll use this pail for chores, playing outside, and whatever else we dream up.
I love that these steel pails and tubs are durable enough for chores and pretty enough to leave out. After the holidays, they’ll survive our kid’s heavy play and then with a quick wash, they’ll double for storage, decorating, and entertaining. Having pieces in our home that can function for so many things and be used all year makes our simplicity-craving hearts happy.
How are you getting your home ready for the holidays?
Here are the Behrens products we shared in this post:
7 1/2 gallon oval tub (holding greens)
9qt oval tub (holding books)
10qt utility pail (holding poinsettia)
You can find all Behrens products on their website.
Thanks to Behrens Manufacturing for sponsoring this look inside our Farmhouse!
