Christmas in the Country & Re-Arranging for a Christmas Tree in a Small Apartment

Our first year on the farm was a simple barn Christmas. In our country-side, the snow thinly lays on the tin barn roof, where we live on top of a red horse barn. It’s as magical as it sounds, and a bit more.

Throughout the year, I make my best effort to keep the one bedroom suite simple. Mostly, to keep it free from piles of stuff stacked around, or stashes of things we don’t use. I do this because we have a small space. If you have ever lived in a small space, you can resonate with the feeling that every “free spot” gives a freeing feeling.

So naturally, this season I kept our home a simple barn Christmas in the country side.

Picking our Christmas tree at Oh Christmas Tree Farm

The first day our local Christmas tree farm opened, we selected and sawed down our Christmas tree with some friends. With our Christmas trees loaded in our cars, we poured warm hot chocolate and celebrated the start of the season.

Watch a tour of our simple barn Christmas in the country

Re-arranging for a Christmas Tree in a Small Apartment

It was an ordeal to pick the perfect spot in our living area for this big tree. It’s not very tall, but a real tree is naturally wide.

Imagine our small living suite with a big ol’ round Christmas tree right in the centre. It took some getting used to the big branches sticking out into the middle of the living room. The couches face the tree from two angles, so a lot of time was spent looking at the tree this year. And it felt perfect. You surely cannot miss the big tree, and I love that.

Christmas holds the best news for the world, and it shouldn’t be missed.

Our tree is on top of a wooden chest, decorated with warm strings lights, surrounded by books and potted plants at the base. Comfy blankets in baskets are nearby, and the bookshelf beside the tree creates an inviting sense of “come, sit cozy by the tree and read”.

Tips for re-arranging your 1 bedroom suite

1. Move furniture away from walls

For this arrangement, I wanted to pull the furniture away from the walls. My thinking was that the more wall space we could see, the more open the place would feel. This totally happened!

We placed our office desks together and pulled them away from the wall. This opened the corner for us to be able to move freely around the desks. It also opened wall space which alludes an open feeling to the eye.

Having the desks away from the wall and stacked together is allowing us both to work and still look out across our work. By this, I mean that one can look out of the window or look out into the suite. Having this kind of desk arrangement is far batter than looking at a wall and has health benefits. Looking into a large space creates freedom and triggers inspiration for the creative minds.

2. Create an island and hide clutter

Another benefit of this island desk set up is that it hid the ugly chords that come with computer and telephone lines. It finishes off this nook with a uniform feel.

3. Change up what you add under the Christmas tree

This year, we had house plants and books under the Christmas tree. These simple design touches made it feel like OUR Christmas, because familiar things were in place of unfamiliar things. Nothing in our house felt out of the ordinary, except for a giant Christmas tree. However, the tree fit is very well because it was surrounded by well loved home items.

I know in future years, I would love to add more decorations. For now, this is the perfect simple barn Christmas in the country!

Learn to make simple treats

If this kind of content interests you, I also write posts when I discover food I can make myself or tips I’m learning while growing food and flowers in our garden each season.

Find recent recipes I’ve tried here.

Find recent garden adventures we have embarked on here.

Pin this simple barn Christmas

Remember this Christmas barn tour for when you need inspiration to re-arrange your Christmas season with simple touches.