If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen my poll last week about hosting an ornament swap this year. I participated in the one organized by Southern Weddings for several years, and it was such a fun way to kick off the holiday season. In a year where we could all use a bit of Christmas joy, I decided to launch my own ornament swap!

Here’s how the swap will work:

1. By Saturday, November 28th: Complete the Ornament Swap Sign Up form with your basic contact information for swapping purposes.
2. By Monday, November 30th: I will email the names and addresses of up to four people who will be your swapping partners. (assuming at least four people will decide to sign up!)
3. By Friday, December 11th: Drop your ornaments in the mail. Of course, the sooner you mail them, the sooner your partners will receive a little holiday magic in their mailbox!

Your ornaments can be store-bought or homemade! One year I sent pinecones dipped in glitter and last year I sent stitched Santa pillow ornaments that I found at Target. Since you don’t necessarily know how your partners’ decorating style, I stick to swapping ornaments that I would hang on my own tree. It is always fun to find the ornaments that I have collected from past swaps when its time to decorate each year.

Finally, pretty please do not sign up if you do not plan to participate. Nothing is sadder than sending out ornaments and not getting any in return.

As for decorating our tree, Jody and I plan to head to the tree farm to cut ours down on Friday, with the hopes of being fully decorated by Sunday night. We typically cut a long needle pine each year (less to vacuums – hallelujah!), but they tend to be hard to find in our area. This is also the first Christmas with our kittens so if anyone has tips on kitty-proofing Christmas trees, please send them my way!

I am so excited to launch this Ornament Swap and can’t wait to see who joins! Be sure to tag me when you start sending and receiving ornaments. I hope this will bring a little Christmas cheer to your mailbox and trees!