Every year, my husband and I (ie. mostly me) pick a color scheme for our Christmas decor. This year, we chose turquoise and gold (with a tiny bit of lime green added for a little extra pizzazz). The problem? We owned exactly two ornaments in any of those colors. In years past, we have always incorporated silver into our Christmas color palette. Not a speck of gold. Ever. So what’s a girl to do? Buy a whole tree’s worth of ornaments? You know me better than that 
It seems like I just put my daughter on the bus for the first day of school, and already Thanksgiving is near. Where did the time go?
My husband and I cook every year, but we usually don’t have any company. This year, my little brother (who’s not so little any more) and a couple of other family members will be spending the holiday with us so I feel challenged to really put on a good show, complete with a wonderful meal and beautiful decor. Of course, there are some things that won’t change, including my intention to make the holiday as eco-friendly as possible.
Last year, my husband and I went to a local Christmas tree farm to cut down our own tree. This year, however, we live in a different city, and the farm that is closest to us ran out of trees really early. The next nearest farm was a half hour away via the Interstate, and the idea of lugging a tree on top of our tiny Honda Accord for a half hour didn’t sit well with us. So we got real tree from Whole Foods instead. I was hoping we could find a retailer selling Georgia trees, but EVERY retailer we asked had had their trees delivered from farms in North Carolina. Not quite “local,” but apparently as good as it was going to get. And a real tree, as a general rule, is better than a fake one — particularly if it comes from a tree farm where the trees are replanted every year.
This year, for the first time ever, we have a fireplace and a mantel where we can hang our Christmas stockings. In years past, we’ve used ledges, wall hooks and even window sills since we never had a mantel. Last year, we bought two stockings from Amenity in their silver print for my husband and I. But the kids were still using cheap felt stockings we’d gotten from a dollar store years before. This year, I was determined to give them better stockings. I was also determined to get far, far away from the traditional red, white and green color scheme that I can’t seem to avoid, no matter what I do.
EDITOR’S NOTE: I originally published this post last year. Because many of my tips are still the same, here it is again, with some edits and important additions.
Photo by CarbonNYC
I hate to say it, but I’ve never been big on decorating for Thanksgiving. After I have spent all day in the kitchen over a hot oven and stove, the last thing I want to think about is how to make our place settings look nice or about lighting candles for ambience. This year, however, I have vowed to make our table a sight to behold, even if my husband, daughter and I will be the only ones who get to enjoy it. So here are some tips for making your Thanksgiving table sustainable:
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I’m Jennae Petersen, and I’m a lot of things. A mother, a graphic artist, a connosieur of beautiful interiors and a purveyor of all things design. Green Your Decor was borne of frustration in my attempts to find eco-friendly housewares that were also beautiful, and inspiration to do something to reduce my own carbon footprint and help others do the same in a beautiful way.
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