Christmas came early for me this year! I’m absolutely tickled to see my St. Simons Island home featured in the Cottage Journal Magazine let alone grace the cover! I’ve been so excited to share it with you but I couldn’t post anything until the issue was out on stands! We actually shot this last year during the holiday season so I’ve been keeping it under wraps for almost a year! So today I’m sharing a few mages from the shoot but you’ll have to grab the latest issue of Cottage Journal to see the full feature!

Getting my home ready for print was a lot of work but I was very grateful to have a great deal of help and support from friends, family and businesses. A very big thanks to Pierce and Parker Interiors for helping make my home holiday ready with their beautiful home furnishings. They absolutely pulled out all of the stops and I’ll be forever grateful. In addition, Lauren Hopkins with LBH & Co. was instrumental in making this feature a reality — thank you!

I thought that it’d be fun to share a little bit of the behind the scenes to give you an idea of everything that had to happen to pull off this shoot. I compiled a handful of FAQs to give you a peek into the planning.

How long did it take you to decorate?

Because I used a lot of fresh greenery from Fifty Flowers, I actually couldn’t start decorating until the week prior. I wanted everything to be absolutely fresh for the photo shoot by Kelli Boyd Photography. However, I did sketch my ideas about two months prior. So I knew exactly how I was going to decorate my home which helped me narrow down the varying businesses and brands that I wanted to incorporate. For the actual decorating, it took about 4-5 full days. I’ve never spent so much time decorating a home for the holidays! (Which is why we hosted a Christmas party the weekend following!) Because we shot the exterior, entryway, dining room, kitchen, living room, bedroom, the space near the piano and my master bathroom it was very time consuming to ensure that every space was picture perfect. Luckily, I have some pretty loving friends that were interested in drinking Hogwash Rosé in exchange for wrapping gifts, hanging greenery and arranging flowers.

Where did you get all of the fresh greenery and flowers?

Casey and I always get our Christmas trees from Webster’s Christmas Tree Farm located in Darien, Georgia. So I already knew the owner and I was familiar with all of the variety of trees that he grows. I ordered two Carolina Sapphires, a lot of garland and about 4-5 wreaths. For fresh flowers and even more wreaths, I worked with Fifty Flowers. They were awesome and ensured that I had everything delivered in time and as fresh as possible. I loved their rosemary, pine and eucalyptus wreaths. I opted for white tulips for the dining arrangement and they turned out beautifully.I also worked with Markey Mossman with Hatch Cove Designs to bring a handmade touch to the decor. She hand-painted silk ribbon that I used on the wreaths and garland in my home. I’ve worked with her in the past and her talent never ceases to amaze me. Her hand-painted greenery was the perfect touch, especially for the wreaths displayed on my front doors! I saved all of her ribbon to use in my home this year.

Why did you decide to showcase two trees?

The magazine editor actually asked me to have a very full tree overflowing with ornaments. However, it wasn’t necessarily my style since I’m a bit of a minimalist. So I decided to group two trees of varying heights to achieve the same full look that the editor was looking for but in a way that fit with my style. Instead of ornaments, I wrapped a bunch of presents with Minted wrapping paper and stacked them under the tree. I absolutely loved how it turned out and it was even easier to break down after the holidays!

What was the inspiration for the dining room table?

Every year, Casey and I drive to Warrenton, Virginia to spend the holidays with family. This past year, we actually took the trip in an RV from RVshare! We packed our bags and with the pups in tow headed North in style. It’s really a special time for us because my mother-in-law pulls out all of the stops for holiday decor especially the dining room table. My goal was to bottle these memories (riding in the RV, enjoying Christmas Eve dinner, and caroling) and create a tablescape that was nostalgic. I found a beautiful light green tablecloth from Beachview Event Rentals and Design and used this color to set the tone for the whole tablescape. I set the table with gold chargers, dinner plates and gold rimmed wine glasses from Vietri and then added monogram dessert plates from Sasha Nicholas for the finishing touch. The last step was to incorporate greenery into the flower arrangement and place settings to give it a touch of Christmas.

How did you decorate your master bedroom?

I just wanted to add small touches to remind me of the holidays. So I added a rosemary wreath above the bed in addition to my Face to Face Designs handmade frames. I also added clippings of eucalyptus to my bedside vases. The last piece was to pull a few presents into the room to add a pop of red.

Check out the full feature in the most recent issue of Cottage Journal. Thanks for stopping by and special thanks to Hoffman Media for the feature!