A Modern White Christmas Home

The white Christmas home living room decorated with several snow-crusted pine trees and many pillows and blankets in a neutral color scheme.

Written by Autumn Krause

Photography by Karen Palmer

Styling by Jo Shetley

The iconic phrase ‘White Christmas’ gets a modern farmhouse redo in this Missouri home. Hair dresser-turned-interior designer Jo Shetley avoids the usual red-and-green holiday color scheme in favor of a neutral palette. Jo, who styles and posts about her home on her Instagram account, @the_simple_farmhouse, is known for embracing a serene colorscape year-round.

“You’ll find out pretty quickly that I love shades of black and white wood,” she says. “They make a clean starting point that can be enhanced with texture, and I carry this through right into my Christmas décor.” During the Yuletide season, Jo turns her interiors into winter-themed wonderlands that enchant her Instagram followers and, more importantly, her three children. Jo says, “It’s so wondrous to see everything through our kiddos’ eyes.”

A small, white couch is placed in front of a white shiplap wall beneath the garland-adorned staircase. — Homeowner Jo Shetley uses signs throughout her home—the sweet sentiments capture the beauty of life. This Timber and Gray sign calls to mind old carols, while its delicate script interplays against the symmetrical shiplap wall treatment.

The white front door of the white Christmas home decorated with a thin garland and wreath. — It’s only fitting that the paint for Jo’s front door is called “Extra White” by Sherwin Williams. It sets the tone for the neutrals that await guests inside. The entire area is dressed for the holidays with greenery, including two carriage lights, which Jo adorns with wreaths. “Fresh evergreen embodies Christmas,” she says.

A Winter Welcome

At the Shetley home, holiday styling begins at the entryway. Every passerby can enjoy a taste of the Christmas spirit and carry it with them into their day. “I like to keep it simple and inviting,” Jo says. She drapes the front door in an evergreen garland that smells as fragrant and fresh as it looks.

She even puts extra branches to good use. “I used some of the leftover garland to create a wreath,” she says. The wreath hangs on the front door, creating an iconic image that’s full of handmade heart. Fireplace logs double as décor and lean up against the door, immediately invoking images of cuddling up by a fire during the cold night.

The wooden office desk next to the living room with a "Bakery" sign behind it in their white Christmas home. — “This little desk area is where I wrap Christmas presents,” Jo says. She gives it a festive touch with two tiny tabletop trees.

Festive Forest

With walls covered in shiplap and a pine mantel to add dimension, the living room embodies Jo’s principles of clean farmhouse design, and she enlivens it with texture. “It’s such a great space to style,” she says. She transforms it into an enchanting forest during the winter months by bringing in several small flocked trees and layering in fur throws and pillows.

By leaving the trees unadorned and wrapping them in simple white lights, she captures the wondrous nature of a Christmas forest lit by starlight. “Evenings are magical around here,” Jo says. “We enjoy hot cups of cocoa by the crackling fire.”

The living room of the white Christmas home, decorated with several snow-crusted pine trees. — Hickory wood floors and a rug are the foundation for Jo’s styling, which includes elevating some of her small trees so they have varying heights and give the natural appearance of a snowy wood.

A simple pine tree with twinkle lights and brown paper presents beneath it. — To complement her neutral palette, Jo wrapped her presents with brown parcel paper, using plaid ribbon in green and white for a bit of texture.

Midnight’s Eve Bedroom

The master bedroom also has Jo’s signature design elements: shiplap walls and a neutral color scheme, highlighted by the black bed frame and décor pieces. She continues the forest theme into the bedroom with flocked trees, white strings of lights and fur pillows, giving a sense of continuity to her interiors.

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“I consider the master bedroom to be a smaller version of the living room,” Jo says. She added sweet details that are both romantic and lighthearted: a sign that says ‘Stay Awhile,’ and a bit of mistletoe. “Those explain themselves,” she says.

The master bedroom of the white Christmas home with pine trees decorated in faux snow and twinkle lights on either side of the large bed. — As evening descends, the master bedroom takes on a starry-night romance with twinkle lights on the snowy trees. “Who says bedrooms can’t be magical?” Jo asks. The holiday details shine against the simplicity of the bed.

Laundry room of the white Christmas home with white shiplap walls and hand-painted black and white patterned tile flooring. — Stenciled tiles give the laundry room a stylish twist. “Stenciling my floors felt like doing 10,000 squats,” Jo says. She used primer, Valspar Boot Black paint and Rustoleum Chalked Linen paint, along with a stencil from Etsy, to create this textured floor.

Two children beside the glowing Christmas tree in red and white striped pajamas. — During Christmas vacation, Jo loves lounging in PJs with her children. They turn on the twinkle lights in the living room and sit by the roaring fire. “Experiencing the holidays with my kids is the best,” she says.

The holidays may suggest a vibrant color palette, but Jo shows how to inspire interiors with Yuletide wonderment—one that’s as soft and fantastical as newly fallen snow. “There’s nothing better than cuddling up with the ones you love on a chilly Christmas night,” Jo says. With her cozy, magical interiors, she encourages just that.

The outside porch of the white Christmas home with stone flooring, a decorative pine tree and a galvanized steel bucket full of chopped wood. — Black eucalyptus wood rocking chairs add a homespun touch to Jo’s porch and complete the feel of a white Christmas home.

Can’t get enough Christmas trees? Neither can we, so click here to find unique ways to decorate with Christmas trees. Of course, don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest to get your daily dose of farmhouse inspiration!