“The Holly Green, The Ivy Green”: More Fashion-Inspired Christmas Décor

Last week I focused on some options for décor inspired by Lolita fashion. This week, I’m going to the other end of things with mori girl, dark mori, and dolly kei.

Mori Girl

While there are a lot of rustic Christmas ideas out there, my idea of a mori girl Christmas is informed by my own family traditions. I grew up with a lot of Scandinavian holiday influences, so when it came time to think of a mori girl Christmas all I could think of was my family’s shabby straw julebok with its red velvet ribbon and its little wheat beard.

Source

Scandinavian-inspired décor is pretty perfect, though, when you think about it. Heavy on straw ornaments with red and white as the primary colors, this stuff is very mori girl. It’s rustic but still has an undeniable charm to it.

Mori Girl Christmas

The main colors I chose for this Christmas set are red and the golden beige of straw. Most of these ornaments can be purchased pretty easily, but there are also books floating around that will give you instructions on how to craft straw into snowflakes.

For gift wrapping, I can think of no better way for a mori girl to wrap her gifts than simple brown paper and string, raffia, yarn, lace, or ribbon. If you feel like getting creative, you  can make your own gift tags, tuck a doilie or candy cane under the string, or do something cool like the woven bits of ribbon on the box above.

Most of all, I think mori girl Christmas decor should be as bright and happy as it is simple.

Mood music: “White Christmas” by Bing Crosby

Dark Mori

Oh, dark mori. Instead of being brightly rustic, dark mori décor is on the shabbier, more worn down and slightly creepy end.

Dark Mori Christmas by bespectacledbibliophile featuring st nicholas ornaments

Essential for a dark mori Christmas, I think, is a twig wreath or two. The added bonus with these is that, if they're larger and thin and you're a brave soul, you can wear them. If you don't want to wear them, they also make great year-round decor.

Moss wreaths are a good alternative to twigs (or, if you’re feeling brave and crafty, you could even add some moss to your twig wreath). You can add a few mushrooms, a butterfly, some ragged scraps of lace, or even a skull or two if you're feeling slightly morbid.

Another fun detail would be terrarium ornaments. They’re foresty, but ever-so-slightly creepy. You can find a tutorial for making them yourself here.

The crow skull ornaments were a lucky find, but you could easily use a pendant or pendants if you, like me, have a small collection of these things. Resin skulls are a creepy and natural looking addition to the tree that really ups this from natural to kind of creepy.

As for store bought ornaments, these antler ornaments are available pretty much anywhere you can find a "rustic" ornament collection.

That pile of acorns there is actually a handmade garland. You can find the tutorial for it here.

The stocking I picked for this is a gray cable knit because it looks handcrafted without being too delightfully charming. The gray color almost makes it look like it was found in a gutter (in a good way!).

Mood music (and, to be honest, mood video!): “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” by Annie Lennox

And now I'm off to pack up my Christmas baking to bring it to friends this weekend. I hope the holiday season has been and continues to be bright for you this year (whether you celebrate or not)!