Photo by Ashley Hylbert, Makeup by Brittainy Hall
1. Wrap It Up
“I always say wrap early. I just stick a Post-it note on it and I add bows and tags later. There were years where I'd end up with a pile [to wrap], and you're up all night and you don't even do it pretty because you're just over it. You're just like, ’I can't wrap another thing!’
2. Less Is More
“Think small on décor—don’t overdo it. If you’re like me, on December 26, I'm like, ‘I'm done. I don't want any more glitter in my house!’ I hate everything, I want my house back." I get the tree, I decorate a little bit of the mantel, I add some really simple decor—like maybe it's a bowl full of ornaments and some little sprigs of greenery on my kitchen table, but it doesn't look like Santa threw up. I just can't, I've done that before, and I hate it because I'm the one who has ended up putting it all away.”
Photo by Ashley Hylbert, Makeup by Brittainy Hall
3. Stock the Bar
“People pop over during the holidays, so you want to make sure you have soda water, and your mixers, and pretty little straws or drink stirrers, or any of those little pretty [things?]. It’s even great to pick up that stuff when the season's over and everything's on clearance, just for next year.
4. Stock the Pantry
“The same goes for your pantry, so you’re not like, ‘Oh, let's bake cookies. Crap, we're out of vanilla!’ I try to get my pantry staples ahead of time.
5. Set a Deadline
“I'm like, ‘OK. I'm going to be done with work, done with wrapping, done with everything by the 15th.’ It doesn't always happen that way, but at least I feel like I tried. I did a good job of it last year and I'll tell you, it was the first time in a couple years that I actually enjoyed the holidays. I just try to really knock it out and give myself a minute to enjoy it, because that’s what it's all about.”