I long for the change of seasons because that usually means I get to change up my everyday view of my home! So many little changes to my decor can bring me so much joy, even just changing up my front door pots. When it came to this years winter decor, I wanted to be able to enjoy this decor well into February without getting tired of it. I’m pulled towards simplicity this Winter season. My Mom always taught me, “Simplicity is the key to all good design” (she should really trademark that..) and I am craving to fill my home with all the natural, neutral tone elements and textures this season!

So lets talk Winter Outdoor Decor!! Do you like to flush your summer pots out this time of year and fill them with all the greens? I strive to keep this decor minimal, budget friendly and not so Christmas heavy. I like to call it Winter Decor to remind myself that it needs to last right into February/March. My favourite area to decorate for Winter is my front door!! I have two wooden DIY pots that stay year round and I simply change out the pot within them every season. This year I went for pine greens, cedar greens, spruce greens & magnolia stems. I love height in my pots for Winter – so the ‘sticks’ are free overgrown dogwood bushes that have lost their red colour, but aren’t too thick like a ‘tree’ branch, found in the woods on my parent’s farm. Perfect to create some height and character in my pots. I like to treat myself to one ‘non-natural’ decor piece that I can’t pluck in my back yard – so this year I decided on adding Magnolia stems has my accent piece. If you’d like to use Magnolia stems as well, I suggest sourcing them out from your local greenhouse provider vs a box store – they will be much better quality!

Now, when I was taught how to do my pots I was told to think of adding ‘layers’ strategically using different angels to create fullness & an ‘overflowing’ feel. So I wanted to share with you my process and get you inspired to create your own Winter Pots! First off, you have to go harvest some greens and of course, make your working area as abundant and accessible as you can! This space is usually our Summer outdoor Buffet space, but in the Winter it’s the perfect height to become a mini work space!  I am now ready to rock!

Start with a pot of loose dirt. I reuse some pots from plants from the summer if need be, or you can find some pretty large pots inexpensively at your local Hardware Stores.

Insert your height pieces in the middle of your pot, for me this is those Dogwood branches I was talking about! Make sure they are nice and deep in your pot and as closely bunched together to withstand any wind or storms etc.

Start your bottom layer of greens working on angles so they fall ‘out’ of your pot rather then stand straight up. I like to do two layers of two different greens – typically Spruce and Cedar as they cover the most area with their canopy of the pine needles etc .

Keep adding greens decreasing the angle so you fill all space of your pot working the angel so branches start to stand more upwards. [PS- when I get working I forget to take pictures! Any questions you may have mention in the comments and ill answer as best as I can!]

It’s really that simple! I like to encourage friends to keep filling their pot even when they feel like they have enough… never enough fullness in a pot in my opinion 😉

Once you are happy with your greens and your fillers, you can add your accent pieces! For me, it was the Magnolia stems and I added 3 ‘bunches’ per pot. This gave some more texture and colour in my pots. I love the natural feel of them, and the shades of brown & greens.

Now to display your pots, hopefully you’ve worked your angles properly with your first few layers and they should ‘cover’ the rim of your pot giving an ‘overflowing’ feel! If you are inserting your pots into another display space like mine – I have two tricks for you! First, to give my pots height and so I don’t have to fill the whole planter with soil etc- I have a larger pot flipped over at the bottom of the wood planter for this pot to now sit on! To give even more fullness or to ensure your pot is hidden, I like to add grapevine wreaths at the base of the pots! This adds even more texture to the views of the pot! Grapevine wreaths are another great option to have on hand when decorating for certain seasons because they are so reusable! Ill be sure to make a tutorial to make your own grapevine wreaths – because I think you have access to grapevine close to you and you dont even know it! This garland is so fresh and so easy to make too. Ill let you guys know all my secrets soon to making these fresh garlands! They are too easy!!

I carried out the same theme from my front door pots to my back door pots- adding a bit more height with Birch logs that I saved from a dead birch tree we had to take down when we moved in. Now no matter what door I enter into – I have some Winter Decor to welcome me!

I hope this has inspired you to roll up those sleeves and get to work on your Outdoor Winter Decor! As far as sourcing out these greens – I challenge you to look around you as you may just have one of these trees in your back yard or along your neighbours fence that maybe they’d allow you to snip a few branches! Your local greenhouses have these materials always available as well. Have fun my friends and tag me in your Pictures so I can see those beautiful pots!! Happy weekend!! Thanks for stopping by xx

Talk soon,
Sam