Christmas is coming…

We had a great Thanksgiving at home hosting family and friends, and are now in full-on Christmas mode. Pete and I are in the midst of some tense Christmas tree discussions (Real or Fake- and if fake, Flocked?) which is stalling our decorating attempts a bit, but not our general spirit.

Last year I had a pretty big Christmas Fail. One of my favorite traditions that I inherited from my mom is picking/customizing really special, intricate stockings for my family. You can pick a canvas from a local needlepointing store, and change some small details here and there to make each stocking a personal treasure that- for me at least- is a highlight to hang each Christmas season. The only issue is that, because of the customization and detailing in the stitching, they take a really long time. Like 9+ months. Which should have been fine because Harry was born in January- plenty of time. The problem was, Harry was born in January. When Christmas was the last thing on my mind.

I remember having the fleeting thought of “oh, I should go pick out his stocking” during one late night feeding. But I never had the thought again literally until I went to hang the stockings and realized I had never done his. It wasn’t even like a few months before I realized it was too late and ordered a temporary backup for that year- nope, I had nothing. So I took to the internets to search for a suitable replacement, and was truly shocked at how few appealing options there were! We ended up using my childhood stocking for Harry, and I don’t think the incident did any permanent damage- which is good because we are probably going to have to do it again this year since his still isn’t ready (!#$?#%&!)

ANYWAY when we were planning Biscuit Christmas this year, I remembered the dearth of options, and thought we should design a few stocking options that looked like they could actually live in our homes.

5N2A8935_fireplace

We used our family Christmas stockings -which are nice and roomy- as the pattern guide and came up with two different styles; One that is a little southern Christmas in the country, and the other a bit more fancy shmancy.

5N2A8963_fireplace

We used one of my favorite fabrics by Brunschwig & Fils as the inspiration for the collection, and created a tree-skirt out of the fabric as well.

5N2A8976

We wanted people to be able to mix and match their favorites for a more collected look, or if one in particular was a better fit for each style to be special enough to look good hanging all in a row.

5N2A8937_fireplace

For the checkered style, we banded the top in one of my favorite embroidered tape trims. I am getting these for our Shmamptons stockings, and I am thinking about adding a little charm to the stocking loop with each of our names.

5N2A8940_fireplace

The other style is a luxe flame-stitch velvet with cording along the top. They are lined in silk and could be embroidered with individual names if you wanted, but I love how they look as is.

5N2A8942

Both stockings work perfectly with our tree skirt for a look that is festive and cohesive, but still fits with a year round design vibe we favor.

5N2A8950

We rounded our stockings & tree skirt by bringing in a few ornaments and other decor options for an heirloom-inspired Christmas collection.5N2A8959_fireplace

5N2A8971

5N2A8982

5N2A8992_fireplace

I love how this room looks all cozy for Christmas. I am so enjoying putting out our old decorations in our new house- especially because it helps the house feel more homey lived-in since there are a few things we have been taking our time in finishing- and I can’t wait to get our tree up and use our Biscuit tree skirt and never look at our fug faux velvet/gold appliqué/burlap mess I used in previous years again.

AND! If any of you want to help yourself to some Christmas Cheer ala Biscuit, on this cyber monday we are offering 15% off everything site-wide with the code CYBER. Merry Merry!

9 thoughts on “Christmas is coming…

  1. Hi Bailey! I wanted to comment to thank you for starting to blog a little more often. I’ve been following along for a while, and totally understood your decision to pull back a bit, but I’m really glad to see you back. You and your style are cool, your family seems lovely, and I just love seeing a new Peppermint Bliss post pop up in my blog reader. Thank you, and merry Christmas to you!

  2. YESSS! Nothing like some Bailey inspiration for the holidays. Your needlepoint stockings had me trying to create some for my own family (failed in the end). Would love to see how you decorate your two homes differently for the festive season. And my two cents in your tree debate, if you go fake choose one that clearly doesn’t look real =) I had a tinsel one for years and years and the extra sparkle was pretty fun.
    Loving these posts!

  3. Holy #4 on the House Beautiful 16 Top Trends for 2016! Congratulations to you! I adore your style and applaud your success! Way to go.

  4. Love, love your blog posts! Also love that your family is doing so great this holiday season. Many thanks for sharing with us – and here’s to a great 2016 for you and yours! P.S. I bought my own copy of Coastal Living just so I could keep those pictures nearby!

  5. You are really the best! I just love your blog, it always brightens my day. Any chance you could tell me what the paint color is on these walls? It is perfect! We are moving in a few weeks and looking to paint.

Have a Comment?