I love setting the scene with Holiday Décor. These winter decorations make the house feel cozy and warm when it’s cold outside. Added bonus, with all the fresh fir and citrus, it makes everything smell good too. I like using seasonal ingredients as Holiday Décor while they await their turn to be the kitchen stars in an eventual recipe. Oranges are Holiday Décor in the winter along with berries, and your more traditional holly and pointsettias.

Sometimes you want winter, but not Christmas. Marc and I both have December birthdays, so I try to keep some décor around that’s not red and green. Look for satsuma oranges with leaves at your local grocery. Sometimes florists have them too, believe it or not. Pile them on a platter that’s simple, or offers color contrast. Add a vertical element with a small vase of twigs or berries. It’s simple and best of all, it’s a very thrifty way to decorate, since it’s edible. Most of the year, my Swedish horse is full of lemons. They’re bright and happy. But it’s fun to change things up. This year, I emptied out the lemons and replaced them with pine cones, all of which were foraged, and some of which I sprayed gold, pomegranates, fir branches I clipped from our tree, and holly sprigs. It turned out beautifully, and it makes the horse feel brand new and very festive.One of my favorite retail experiences is right here, near Philly. It’s a beautiful garden store called terrain. It’s full of beautiful sculptures, plants, and gifts and run by artists and landscapers, so it seems. Everything there is absolutely enviable. I go at least once a season, for a few key pieces that you can’t find anywhere else and to find lots of inspiration. This year, I bought a stunning peppermint hydrangea. It’s ivory with red edges around each petal. Then I went to home depot and bought paper white bulbs, green moss, tiny poinsettias and used an urn I already had. From the florist I bought some holly sprigs, fir branches and eucalyptus seed pods.  I started by placing the hydrangeas and poinsettias; I just left them in their plastic pots. Then I began to fill in with peat moss. Next I placed the bulbs. Then I packed in with peat and watered until it was firm. Then I topped with the green moss to hid the plastic pots. Finally I stabbed the holly sprigs, fir branches and eucalyptus seed pods around the plants. It looks gorgeous, it was a fun project, and I saved a lot of money compared to buying one from a professional. Look, you can just see the bulbs beginning to pop out. $pendy/Thrifty Alteration: Save some $ by clipping some branches from the base of your Christmas tree or ask for scrap branches from a location that sells them. They almost always have a “free” bin this time of year.