Mini Modern Holiday Farmhouse

There’s just something undeniable about this season—maybe it’s the soft, warm lighting. It could be the smells of cedar and cinnamon. Or the persistent optimism of holiday music. By November, no matter the weather (or whatever ick the kiddos are bringing home from school) our collective moods rise.

We put together this Mini Modern Holiday Farmhouse with all of our hopes and dreams for the season. It focuses on monochromatic, minimalist and Scandinavian-inspired furnishings.

The Exterior

We kept the exterior very simple, painting this assembled Mini Modern Farmhouse bright white with a silver roof and awning and decorating with wreaths on the double doors. (The fun part was definitely making those very tiny wreath hooks.)

The Upper Level

We wanted this area to have a magical, dreamy quality—the kind of bedroom where you might fall asleep with the tree lights still on. We kept the white shiplap to a minimum and only on the side walls and the same light herringbone throughout.

The tree is a simple affair with white flocking and warm white string lights and surrounded by gifts in little trees wrapping paper.

We’ve been working a charming little folk chair and couldn’t resist including a beige one here.

We wanted to fill the vintage bookcase with books and gifts, but also tucked in some holiday word art and a little bottle of perfume. And you just can’t get that good hygge without a set of candles.

For the bench at the end of the bed, we designed it to have very subtle scandi embellishments and then painted it winter green. And, because we just couldn’t resist, we topped it with a little cream dollhouse and a couple more books.

Question—is a sleigh bed too on the nose for a holiday house? Too bad. That’s what we’re going with. We painted this one white and made some beige double-striped bedding for it. We topped it off with a For Goodness Sake pillow and a hand-knitted throw.

To make the bed corner extra cozy, we went with a monochromatic fringed rug in our largest size.

One of my favorite parts is the paper cut art print though. I wanted something that had a holiday feeling, but that wouldn’t be blatantly Christmas-y.

To finish off the corner, we added a little beige nightstand for the lamp to sit on.

The Lower Level

A proper holiday house needs a good spot for whipping up baked goods, enjoying a meal together and watching the fire crackle. We’re keeping it light and airy with a mostly white theme and the same light herringbone flooring as we’ve used on the upper floor.

I honestly kind of wish our own kitchen was set up like this—a blend of classic and modern. The shaker style cabinetry in white is paired with a modern chevron wallpaper and a custom cut backsplash. The apron sink is a bit more old world, the silver faucet is all clean lines and contemporary. To keep the feeling light, we used only one upper cabinet and a couple of open shelves.

For simple holiday decor, some word art framed in walnut and a distressed black star tree topper sit on the upper shelf. And since coffee is a must, we’ve set out a coffee pot and a couple of mugs on the shelf below.

Finally, we kept some countertop items contained in a wood tray—some cutting boards, a houseplant and a holiday baking book.

For the dining area, we put together a little white round trestle table and paired it with some cross back chairs painted winter green. For a neutral holiday centerpiece, we filled a basket with mini white ornaments and an off-white bottle brush tree.

We paired the minimal white shaker style cabinets with this cafe gas range, a monochromatic fringed rug and some custom cut backsplash.

I’m not gonna lie, Robb and I pulled out the mantel over our own fireplace about a year ago, and the only time I miss it is around the holidays. So we outfitted this cute little house with the perfect holiday mantel. A large round framed mirror anchors the top half.

I made a couple of little stockings and hung them under some little white holiday houses. Of course, a few holiday cards needed to be strewn about to add some realism. And, because a fire in the fireplace wasn’t an option, we added a set of three candlesticks.

The Lighting

We wanted to do enough lighting to provide a good, soft glow, so ended up with four different sources of light—two on each level. Our favorite part is turning on just one light at a time to see how the whole effect changes.

On the upper level, the tree is wound with battery string lights. The soft glow is everything hygge. To add a bit more light in the opposite corner we popped a small battery light into one of our sloped shades.

Down on the lower level, we used a pretty powerful battery push light in a 3D-printed scallop ceiling fixture. Then, the range hood has the option to light up, so that’s pretty cute.