Ringing in the New Year With Fresh Finds

Happy New Year! Are you gung-ho to start a new year, full of enthusiasm and plans? Or, do you prefer to ease into the new year and a new season? I am never super motivated at the beginning of January, mostly because there is so much winter going on outside that I tend to want to hibernate. And while I am never eager to take down my Christmas decor, I do enjoy freshening up my home and making it cozy and comfy for winter. 

Some post Christmas thrifting finds helped me to curate fresh shelf styling for the built in bookshelves next to my library shelves.

I found a couple bells while the thrifting. I placed the vintage green bell in a wood bowl of anagram letters,

 and spelled out NEW YEAR to RING in the NEW YEAR.

I found a large gold, rustic, "cowbell" like the ones that I showed you how to replicate back in October. This was only $1.25  so I decided to buy it and set it on top of an old book.

I kept some of the same shelf decor I had used for Christmas, the tealights in green glasses and the trio of pine trees. 

I removed the extra pine branches and the gold "house" lantern and added a brass candlestick. The watercolor of the Missouri Headwaters my daughter painted in high school.

In this corner I included my grandma's autograph book that is more than 100 years old and my grandpa's pocket watch.

One of the trees needed a little something extra so I set it in an oblong, pine needle basket from the thrift store. I added a gold bell tied with jute on the basket to have a third bell, more brass, and to add balance to the tree in the oval basket.

I like the different textures from wood, leather, brass, and the basket. The tones are warm.

A brass cricket box from the thrift store was placed on another shelf with a wood abacus behind it and our wedding photo sitting on an antique oak hand mirror next to it. I didn't do anything to the cricket box, but I did put some cotton balls with essential oils on them in the box. Because the cricket box has holes, you can faintly smell the oils when nearby.

Family pictures, a ukulele made by my son, an old pair of green wooden shoes also fill the shelves. 

The pine trees and bells will stay for a few months and then I will change up the styling again. 

Repeated elements, creating different heights, using personal and vintage items, and decorating with different textures give your shelf displays a curated look that makes them unique and cozy.