This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Pier 1 Imports. All opinions are 100% mine.
I should start off by saying that I was thrilled when I was contacted by Pier 1 to write a post about holiday decorating featuring items from their stores. I initially thought I would peruse the Pier 1 Website, pick out my favorite holiday items and that would be all. Later, I was informed I would receive a gift card to do a little shopping. Then, the bad news came; I wouldn’t be getting the $50.00 gift card after all. The good news? I would get a $100.00 gift card instead! Holy cow! Almost immediately, I decided to focus my holiday entertaining primarily on Christmas decorating.
My requirements: 1. Get the best deals possible. Hello, clearance! 2. Buy items that flow seamlessly from Christmas to year round decor. You know that I hate storing unnecessary stuff, so I tried to keep Christmas specific items to a minimum. 3. Try to get decorations for the most-visible-by-guests-areas: outside, living room, dining room and guest room. 4. Stick to my color scheme of silver, white, blue and green. With my goals in mind and gift card in hand, Everett and I took a little (2 hour) shopping trip to our local Pier 1. Before I show you what we returned home with, I’ll show you some items I loved that didn’t fit all requirements. First up, these cute owl and bird salt and pepper shakers. Cheap? Yes. Cute? Check, but my other requirements weren’t there. 
I also loved so many of the Pier 1 dishes and drinkware, like these beautiful silver stemware glasses. 
I don’t have much in the way of kitchen storage, nor do we do much fancy entertaining, so I took only a few items home with me from that department. If you didn’t know this already, Pier 1 has such a fantastic candle and candle holder selection. This angel tealight holder is beautiful, but doesn’t transition easily from Christmas to year-round. 
These ornament candle holders are really cute, but red wasn’t in my palette. 
I know I’m really picky, but are you ready to see what did make the cut? I’m sure you are, I won’t keep you waiting any longer. 
Yep, all of this for $101.98! Sa-weet! I decided to splurge on two items because they were perfect for Christmas, but also year round. Splurge number 1: this mercury glass pillar holder. It was $22.00, but it’s timeless and says, “Look at me. Here I am, love me.” You CARS fans should know that one. Splurge number 2: the beautiful silver leaf bird tray for $29.95 
Ain’t she a beaut? (as the Australians would say). It spoke to me: “Take me home! I fit ALL of your requirements!” So, I listened. I love the generous size, bird design and the splash of silver. Perfect for Christmas and beyond. Here’s a breakdown of everything else I walked out of Pier 1 with:
6 metallic gold place mats for $.98 each
1 metallic silver charger for $4.00
1 glittered golden Christmas tree decoration for $4.95
1 small silver candle lantern $4.98
1 large silver candle lantern for $10.48
1 short glass pillar candle holder for $3.88
1 golden bird ornament for $4.95
1 nest ornament for $2.95
2 small leaf bowls for $.98 each
2 golden star ornaments for $1.00 each
4 jingle bell ornaments for $1.00 each
Now, let’s continue to the decorating, shall we. First, let’s visit our doorstep. 
My one-heck-of-a-deal clearance candle lanterns are accompanied by a few evergreen branches, faux snow (Epsom salt, a trick I learned from Better Homes and Gardens) filled drinking glasses turned tea lights. 
Yes, I know my candle lanterns are missing the candles. Forgive me. A silver ball ornament wreath, inspired by this one from Pier 1, hangs on our door to greet guests. Nothing says “Christmas” like silver glitter. 
We don’t have a mantle to decorate, so I treated our entertainment center as if it were. Here’s what it looked like BCD (Before Christmas Decorations): 
And here is our entertainment center now, decked out in glitz and glitter: 
The books, picture frames, magazine file, monogram ceramic balls (from a previous Pier 1 trip) and some candle holders stayed. To infuse Christmas cheer, more glass and silver candle holders, including the Pier 1 mercury glass pillar holder, were added along with glittered snowflakes, my Pier 1 glittered Christmas tree and silhouette ornaments. Don’t fret, I’ll provide more details in later posts. Along with our Christmas tree, decorating the entertainment center completed the holiday decorating in our living room. To decorate another guest visible room, our dining room, I hung our stockings from hooks hidden behind the quarter round moulding. The silver charger and golden star ornament turned napkin ring add some sparkle to our everyday dinnerware. 
The mercury glass candle holder, glittered Christmas tree and apothecary jar filled with monogram ceramic balls at the center of the table add height, texture, and Christmas cheer to the tablescape. This centerpiece arrangement is rounded out by the golden bird and nest, to add layers of height. 
Here’s another tablescape option I whipped up using assorted silver toned candle holders, my Pier 1 clearance gold metallic placemats and jingle bell ornaments as napkin rings. Two things that could make this setting better? Metallic gold salad plates, like these, to replace the blue ones and a few brass or gold candle holders to bring the gold throughout the arrangement. 
I kept the decorations in the guest room simple and functional with the pretty silver leaf tray topped with a few guest essentials and a special treat. 
A white IKEA planter contains travel-sized guest essentials such as toothpaste, soap, and a washcloth. A Christmas-y reindeer print in a silver frame and votive holder turned vase add sparkle without competing with the silver leaf pattern. Another faux snow filled candle and the Pier 1 small leaf dish filled with M&Ms round out the tray. 
The items are strategically placed to show off the most of the beautiful pattern possible. Want to know what else is on my Pier 1 wish list? Here are a few more of my favorites:
ourhumbleabodeblog.com 