Cast Iron Christmas Decor: 16 Vintage Kitchen Ideas That Look Like a Farmhouse Holiday Magazine

Cast iron Christmas decor is the cozy farmhouse trend hiding in your kitchen cabinet right now. That heavy black skillet you use for cornbread? It can hold a wreath, a painted snow scene or a pile of bright clementines. Old pans are cheap at thrift stores and yard sales, and cast iron Christmas decor never looks cheap. The deep black finish makes red bows, fresh pine and cream ornaments pop like a page from a holiday magazine. Below you will find 16 simple ideas using skillets, trivets, waffle irons, muffin pans, kettles and even antique flat irons. Grab a pan, clip some greenery and let your kitchen tell a warm, old fashioned Christmas story..

Cast Iron Christmas Decor Skillet Wall With Mini Wreaths

This is the look that stops people in their tracks. Three black skillets hang on a white wall, and each one cradles a small pine wreath with a red velvet bow. The trick is size. Pick three pans in small, medium and large, then hang them in a row with a little space between. If you love the classic look of grandma style kitchen decor, this wall will feel like coming home. Once it is up, you will want to keep going..

You will need: 3 cast iron skillets in different sizes, 3 small pine wreaths (6 to 10 inches), red velvet ribbon, 3 sturdy wall hooks rated for heavy pans, floral wire.

How to make it: 1. Wipe the skillets clean and rub on a thin coat of oil so they look deep black. 2. Hang the wall hooks level, about 4 inches apart. 3. Tie a velvet bow onto each wreath with floral wire. 4. Hang each skillet, then rest a wreath inside the pan so it sits in the center.

Skillet Wreath on the Front Door

A big skillet makes a bold base for cast iron Christmas decor on the front door. Wire a lush crescent of pine, cedar, red berries and small pine cones along the bottom rim. Then tie a wide plaid bow right on the handle. It suits a white or cream door best, and it pairs well with the rest of your farmhouse Christmas look. Because cast iron is heavy, use a strong over the door hanger and add felt pads so the paint stays safe.

You will need: 1 large cast iron skillet (12 inches), fresh or faux pine and cedar sprigs, faux red berry picks, small pine cones, floral wire, wide plaid ribbon, heavy duty over the door hanger, felt pads.

How to make it: 1. Bundle greenery into 5 or 6 small bunches. 2. Wire the bunches along the lower half of the rim, overlapping each one. 3. Tuck in berries and pine cones. 4. Tie the plaid bow on the handle, add felt pads to the back and hang it on the door hanger.

Hand Painted Snowman Skillet

An old skillet with a rough cooking surface gets a sweet second life as painted cast iron Christmas decor. Paint a pale blue sky inside the pan, add a snowy hill, then build a cheerful snowman from three white circles. Give him dot eyes, a carrot nose and a red scarf. This is a decor only pan, so pick one you no longer cook with. For more frosty friends, these easy snowman decor ideas keep the theme going around the house.

You will need: 1 small thrifted cast iron skillet used for decor only, chalk paint primer, acrylic paints in pale blue, white, black, orange, red and green, small and medium brushes, a pencil eraser for dots, clear matte sealer.

How to make it: 1. Wash and dry the pan, then prime the inside. 2. Paint the sky and let it dry. 3. Paint a white hill, then three stacked white circles for the snowman. 4. Add eyes and buttons with a pencil eraser, a carrot nose, a red scarf and tiny trees. 5. Seal with matte sealer.

Cast Iron Christmas Decor Skillet Stack Tree

Stack five skillets from biggest to smallest and you get cast iron Christmas decor shaped like a tabletop tree. Short wooden spools between each pan lift the tiers so you can tuck pine sprigs and red ornaments into every level. A small wooden star on top makes it read as a tree right away. It is a fun twist on classic cone Christmas trees, and it costs nothing if you already own a few pans. Set it on a sturdy table, since the stack gets heavy.

You will need: 5 cast iron skillets in graduated sizes, 4 large wooden spools or short wood rounds, fresh pine sprigs, mini red ornaments, a small wooden star, museum putty.

How to make it: 1. Set the largest skillet on a sturdy table. 2. Add a spool in the center with a dab of putty, then set the next skillet on top. 3. Repeat until all five pans are stacked. 4. Tuck pine sprigs and ornaments around each rim. 5. Glue the star to a spool and set it on the top pan.

Lacy Cast Iron Trivet Ornament

Old trivets have scroll patterns that look like black lace, which makes them lovely cast iron Christmas decor. Hang one on your tree with a velvet loop and a sprig of holly, and it becomes a showpiece ornament. Pick a small, light trivet and hang it on a strong branch close to the trunk. If you love ornaments with a story, mix it with these vintage Christmas ornaments for a tree that feels collected over many years.

You will need: 1 small round cast iron trivet, red velvet ribbon (1 inch wide), a faux holly sprig, hot glue (adult help), a strong ornament hook.

How to make it: 1. Clean the trivet and wipe on a little oil for shine. 2. Thread velvet ribbon through the top of the pattern and tie a loop. 3. Hot glue the holly sprig at the top, with an adult handling the glue gun. 4. Hang it on a strong inner branch so it does not droop.

Cast Iron Christmas Decor With a Vintage Waffle Iron

Rescued kitchen tools are having a moment. TysyTube Restoration filmed the rescue of a rusty old cast iron waffle maker that looked beyond saving, scrubbing and seasoning it until it was clean and usable again. The restoration video has more than 9.9 million views. Open a vintage waffle iron on your counter and fill both grids with pine, ornaments and tiny cones. It belongs with the vintage kitchen features people miss.

You will need: 1 vintage cast iron waffle iron (cleaned), fresh pine sprigs, small red and cream ornaments, tiny pine cones, red ribbon, steel wool and oil if it needs a refresh.

How to make it: 1. Scrub off any rust with steel wool, rinse, dry well and wipe on a thin coat of oil. 2. Open it flat on the counter. 3. Lay pine sprigs across both grids. 4. Nestle ornaments and pine cones into the squares. 5. Tie red ribbon around the handles.

Dutch Oven Full of Pine Cones on the Hearth

A black Dutch oven on the hearth is the coziest cast iron Christmas decor you can make. Fill it to the top with pine cones, then tuck in cedar and red berries so it spills over a little. Try a few of these pine cone Christmas crafts with the extras. Keep this display on a hearth you are not using for a fire.

You will need: 1 cast iron Dutch oven with lid, 20 to 30 pine cones, cedar sprigs, faux red berry picks, a baking sheet for drying cones.

How to make it: 1. Bake clean pine cones at 200 F for 30 minutes to dry them and open them up. 2. Let them cool. 3. Fill the Dutch oven, with the biggest cones on top. 4. Tuck cedar and berries between the cones. 5. Lean the lid against the pot.

Cornstick Pan Ornament Tray

An old cornstick pan has seven long corn shaped wells, and it turns into clever cast iron Christmas decor. Fill each well with red, gold and cream ornaments and set the pan on a table with pine around it. For more clever ways to use what you already own, see these Christmas ornament hacks.

You will need: 1 vintage cast iron cornstick pan, about 35 small shatterproof ornaments in red, gold and cream, fresh pine sprigs, a soft cloth.

How to make it: 1. Wipe the pan clean with a soft cloth and a little oil. 2. Remove ornament caps if they stick up too much. 3. Line up ornaments in each well, alternating colors. 4. Set the pan on a table runner and tuck pine sprigs around the edges.

Cast Iron Christmas Decor Tea Kettle Planter

A small cast iron kettle makes a charming pot for a tiny live evergreen. Add mini red ornaments and a little gold star, then set it on a sunny windowsill with a red check cloth underneath. After Christmas, the little tree can go outdoors. Small trees like this are part of why people love mini Christmas trees in every room.

You will need: 1 small cast iron kettle, 1 dwarf potted evergreen (4 to 6 inches), a handful of pebbles, potting mix, mini red ornaments, a tiny gold star, a red check cloth.

How to make it: 1. Add a layer of pebbles to the kettle. 2. Set the little tree in with fresh potting mix around it. 3. Water lightly. 4. Hang mini ornaments and add the star. 5. Place it on a bright windowsill on the red cloth.

Muffin Pan Ornament Centerpiece

Here is a centerpiece you can make in five minutes. Set a black muffin pan in the middle of the dinner table and drop one shiny ornament into every cup. Mix red, gold, cream and green so it looks like a box of fancy chocolates. Tuck pine sprigs around the pan to soften the edges. Find more easy DIY Christmas centerpieces if you want a few options for the season.

You will need: 1 cast iron muffin pan (12 cups), 12 ornaments about 2 to 2.5 inches wide in red, gold, cream and green, fresh pine sprigs, a table runner.

How to make it: 1. Wipe the pan clean and oil it lightly. 2. Lay a runner down the table and set the pan in the center. 3. Place one ornament in each cup, mixing colors in a checker pattern. 4. Tuck pine sprigs around the outside of the pan.

Antique Sad Iron Bookends

Before electric irons, people heated heavy cast iron flat irons, called sad irons, on the stove. Today they make perfect bookends because they are small and very heavy. Line up a row of old cloth bound books on a shelf and stand an iron at each end. Tuck in pine and red berries for Christmas. If you have extra old books, try these old book Christmas crafts too.

You will need: 2 antique cast iron sad irons, 6 to 8 old cloth bound books in red, green and cream, fresh pine sprigs, faux red berry picks, felt pads.

How to make it: 1. Clean the irons with a dry brush and a little oil. 2. Stick felt pads under each iron to protect the shelf. 3. Line up the books by color. 4. Stand an iron at each end, pressed snug against the books. 5. Tuck pine and berries beside each iron.

Cast Iron Christmas Decor Stocking Hooks on a Beam

No mantel? No problem. Mount a row of black cast iron hooks along a wood beam or a shelf board, and you have a stocking holder that looks built in. Hang cream and red knit stockings from each hook and drape fresh garland along the top. Make your own stockings with these DIY Christmas stockings ideas to match the colors. Ask an adult to help mount the hooks with a drill.

You will need: 5 cast iron wall hooks, a wood beam or 1×6 board stained dark, wall anchors and the mounting hardware for the hooks, a level, 5 knit stockings, fresh or faux garland.

How to make it: 1. Mark evenly spaced spots along the beam, about 10 inches apart. 2. With adult help, mount each hook using the included hardware. 3. Check that they are level. 4. Hang the stockings. 5. Drape the garland across the top and secure it with small clear hooks.

Vintage Toy Stove Kitchen Vignette

Antique cast iron toy stoves were once given to children for Christmas, and they are still sweet to display. Set one on the kitchen counter with tiny pots, a mini pine tree and a small red plaid cloth. This little scene fits perfectly with other Christmas kitchen decor like jars of candy and a garland over the window.

You will need: 1 cast iron toy stove (antique or reproduction), mini pots and a tiny kettle, a small potted pine or bottle brush tree, a red plaid napkin, a wooden cutting board as a base.

How to make it: 1. Dust the stove and wipe it with a little oil. 2. Lay the cutting board on the counter and fold the plaid napkin on one side. 3. Set the stove on the board. 4. Arrange the mini pots on top. 5. Place the tiny tree beside the stove.

Cast Iron Christmas Decor Skillet Cookie Gift

Bake a giant chocolate chip cookie right in a small skillet, let it cool, then wrap the entire pan as a gift. That way your friend gets a treat and a pan to keep. Wrap it in clear cellophane, tie it with red and white baker’s twine and add a wooden spoon and a kraft tag. For more food gift packaging, see these Christmas cookie tin crafts.

You will need: 1 small cast iron skillet (6 or 8 inches), your favorite chocolate chip cookie dough, clear cellophane, red and white baker’s twine, a wooden spoon, a kraft paper tag.

How to make it: 1. Butter the skillet and press in the dough. 2. Bake at 350 F for 20 to 25 minutes until golden. 3. Cool it completely. 4. Wrap the skillet in cellophane and gather it at the handle. 5. Tie with twine and add the spoon and tag.

Reindeer Doorstop Dressed for the Holidays

A reindeer doorstop is cast iron Christmas decor that already looks festive. Wrap a tiny red knit scarf around its neck and set it by an open door with a sprig of pine. If you are decorating a front hall, these Christmas entryway decor ideas pair well with it.

You will need: 1 cast iron reindeer doorstop, red yarn and knitting needles (or a strip of red fleece), a small pine sprig, felt pad for the base.

How to make it: 1. Knit a narrow strip about 1.5 inches wide and 12 inches long, or cut red fleece and snip a fringe. 2. Wrap it around the reindeer’s neck and tie it once. 3. Add a felt pad to the base. 4. Set it by the door with a pine sprig beside it.

Skillet Tray With Clementines and Cinnamon

A big skillet makes a beautiful serving tray. Pile in bright clementines with their green leaves, tuck in bundles of cinnamon sticks tied with twine and scatter a few star anise. Want more citrus decor? These dried orange slice projects use the same warm colors for garlands and ornaments.

You will need: 1 large cast iron skillet (12 inches), 10 to 12 clementines with leaves, 4 bundles of cinnamon sticks, jute twine, a few star anise, fresh pine sprigs.

How to make it: 1. Wipe the skillet and oil it lightly. 2. Tie cinnamon sticks into small bundles with twine. 3. Pile the clementines into the pan, leaves facing up. 4. Tuck the cinnamon bundles and star anise between the fruit. 5. Add pine sprigs around the edge.