Hi Friends! It’s officially cozy, gathering season, better known as holiday time! I don’t know about you, but I’m really looking forward to spending quality time with my family and celebrating the season. Especially all the food, fun, and family traditions that come with it. Whether you are decking the halls, creating cozy gathering spaces, or cooking up some delicious meals for family and friends, IKEA can help create a comfortable and inviting atmosphere perfect for making memories this holiday season.
Y’all know I love a good-themed event, and since there are so many opportunities to get together for the holidays with friends and family, why not put a spin on your next gathering and incorporate one of the following 3 themes?
1. Holiday Pajama Game Night
Game nights are always a great idea, but they’re especially fun around the holidays. Gather your friends or family and make it a pajama party! We love hosting game nights in the comfort of our sitting room. The key to a successful game night, however, is having the right setup.
Decking out the space with comfy cushions for floor seating, covered in lush cotton velvet, like the SANELA cushion covers around a good-sized coffee table, is ideal for game nights. Round tables, like KRAGSTA coffee table, encourage conversation and keep things cozy and intimate in smaller spaces.
When it’s not in use for game nights, you can style it with beautiful decor and accessories. I’m loving these SKÖNJA glass domes and base. They come in 2 sizes: 6 ¼” and 8 ¼”. For the fall you can fill them with seasonal items like small pumpkins, gourds, pinecones, or colorful leaves—and for Winter, you can use a mini set of twinkling lights, or fake snow and bottle brush trees to create a mini wintery scene, similar to a snow globe.
The SKÖNJA glass domes, paired with a beautifully scented candle like the GLASBJÖRK scented candle in ceramic jar, make a stunning coffee table centerpiece.
And speaking of game nights . . . another IKEA furniture piece that is crucial in our home for game storage is the HAVSTA cabinet. This cabinet is so beautiful and spacious and is perfect for storing board and video games out of sight. We use three of them in our family room under our TV. You can opt for glass doors, too, if you prefer to use them as display cases for home decor and art.
2. DIY Holiday-Themed Paint & Wine Night
Another great idea for gathering with loved ones is a DIY Holiday Themed Paint and Wine Night. My mom, my sister, and I have been dying to try this idea. It’s perfect for a girl’s night! Search online for a wintery scene to recreate, gather a list of art supplies for guests to purchase (or you can provide them if you wish), and have them bring them along with their favorite bottle of wine to share.
Set up a bar station on either a counter or you can use a NISSAFORS utility cart as a bar cart for easy access and serving.
You can offer a beautiful assortment of wine glasses for your guests to use whether stemmed, like the elegantly patterned SÄLLSKAPLIG wine glass,
or something more simple and stemless like the STORSINT stemless wine glass.
When entertaining I love mixing up a batch of holiday-themed sangria. The TILLBRINGARE drink pitcher is perfect for this. You can serve seasonal garnishes, like orange slices, sugared cranberries, pomegranate seeds, and cinnamon sugar for rims on these fun patterned FRIKOSTIG side plates.
Alternatively, you could mix it up and do a Paint and Champagne brunch, complete with mimosa or bellini bar, using stylish STORSINT champagne flutes. The possibilities are endless. IKEA glassware is so affordable that you can even let your guests keep them as a party favor.
For storing your beautiful collection of glassware, the HEMNES cabinet with glass doors with 3 drawers is a gorgeous addition to a dining area and can work perfectly as a sort of dry bar for your next gathering.
Lately, I’ve had my eye on the HAVSTA storage combination with glass doors for my sitting room. I love that it’s solid pine, and offers both hidden storage as well as a visible display area.
3. Holiday Karaoke Night:
I’ve mentioned this idea before on the blog, but it is truly one of our family’s favorite holiday traditions. Karaoke, but holiday themed! Doesn’t get much better than that! You can make this party idea simple or extravagant depending on what you want. IKEA has a beautiful selection of holiday decor, so how fun would it be to create a karaoke “stage?”
For taking photos, videos, and social media, you can get STRÅLA lampshades to create a fun backdrop.
A simple meal can include charcuterie arranged on the two-tiered GARNERA serving stand. You can even make one for dessert! These are convenient because they’re easy to transport from the kitchen, and they’re space-saving as well!
You can pair them with a stack of GLADELIG plates, which are perfect for finger foods!
Whether you’re planning to host or hibernate, to slow down or spruce up this season, IKEA is here to help make sure your home brings you – and those around you – comfort and joy! Be sure to visit IKEA-USA.com to shop for the holiday season.
