It’s the most wonderful time of the year! And creating a welcoming, cozy Christmas home-for-the-holidays vibe is one of the most fun jobs of the year, and it all starts with the front door! This year, I went with the classic Christmas greens and created a nostalgic vintage feel for our little front porch.

The big six foot swag sets the tone for this year’s decor, and it was a fun DIY project made from Christmas tree trimmings and other greens from the yard. I also completed some other super simple DIY projects for the porch which I will get to a little later.

First, the door topper!

Supplies:

Pine branches

Other greens (holly, boxwood)

Glittered branches

Wire

Shatterproof Christmas balls

Wired ribbon or a pre-tied outdoor ribbon

Step 1: Decide how long you want your topper to be and measure that out on the floor. I worked on the garage floor on a tarp for my project to make cleanup a little easier.

Step 2: Cut some pine boughs to some workable sizes. I used some branches from the bottom of our Christmas tree, but any evergreens are perfect. I also trimmed some branches from some other bushes in our yard, such as holly, boxwood, and other pines to add some variety. I added white glittered branches at the center as well.

Step 3: Starting at one end and working toward the center, lay out your branches so that they overlap and the swag looks full, without any bare sticks. Put smaller pieces over top to hide any thin areas.

Step 4: Starting at the opposite end and working toward the middle, repeat the previous step working in the opposite direction. At the center, place a glittered branch on each side, and make the swag look symmetrical.

Step 5: Carefully wire all of the branches together. Each bough must be tightly connected to the next, or the swag won’t be stable. Mine had a few loose spots and had to be fixed before it could be lifted above the door in one piece.

Step 6: Make a large bow out of wired ribbon. Securely attach the bow to the center (where the branches meet) with wire.

Step 7: Add shatterproof Christmas ornaments. You could add smaller ornaments, vary sizes, or add more than I did depending on your preferences and your own creativity. I attached the ornaments with wire bag ties.

Step 8: Twist some wire to make a solid hanger for your topper at the center and each end. We put cuphooks in our doorframe to enable us to easily attach the swag from the hangers.

You’re done!

Here’s the front door at night. We put an outdoor spotlight on the door so the decor is lit up at night!

I also created some simple rustic vintage style decor for my porch this year.

Here are some fun ideas for a rustic vintage Christmas porch!

1. Galvanized bucket arrangements. I placed floral foam in the bottom along with some fresh greens and artificial berries. The great thing about the stick on chalkboards is you can write whatever you want for the day. My messages are “peace on earth” and goodwill toward men.”

2. Use logs as decor

We had some pretty birch logs from part of a tree that had to come down this summer, so I used those to create varying heights on the porch and also in other arrangements.

3. Repurpose garden shed finds

I used a large galvanized bucket to display some decor, and a big wooden crate to hold birch logs and greens.

4. Keep some of the fall ornamentals.

I had some flowering kale that’s still looking really nice, so I combined that with pine, holly, and Christmas ornaments in arrangements. It’s definitely unique and suits the rustic look! I also used dried red ornamental peppers as decorative sprigs in some of the arrangements.

5. Make votive holders from birch logs. The full post is coming up later this week, but this is another easy DIY project.

The beautiful wreath is Valerie Madelyn from Amazon.

Have a beautiful week, and have fun decorating for the holidays! 🙂