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Christmas Decorations Tips
Organizing Your Christmas Decorations
Admit it, you love to walk up and down the aisles looking at all of the Christmas tree displays. Maybe you stopped in to purchase a Christmas wreath and wound up buying half of the store. With so many beautiful and affordable Christmas tree decorations on the market, it’s hard to resist the temptation. Before you know it, you’ve got more decorations than house. It’s great to have variety and the option of changing your holiday décor year to year! Last year, you were into burgundy bows and white Christmas lights, and the year before it was navy blue Christmas bulbs with silver garland. As you build your collection of Christmas decorations, take care to organize them in a way that makes it easy to find when the next holiday season rolls around.
Practically all large department and/or home hardware stores sell a multitude of storage options. Look for durable and heavy plastic containers that have different compartments or at least enough room to store your Christmas tree decorations without squishing them.
Organize each box using all of the decorations you would use for that particular theme and make sure to write in permanent marker (on the side of the box where it’s clearly visible) exactly what is in the container, including the colors and objects (i.e. a wreath, beaded garland, tinsel, etc.).
Next year, instead of having to sift through a pile of mismatched Christmas decorations, you’ll only have to pull your desired theme off the shelf.
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Classic Interior Decorating For Christmas
It’s easy to just get by with the same old decorations year after year. Starting all over again with new Christmas decorations can be time-consuming and hard on your budget, but if you invest in a few good strands of LED or fiber optic garland, you’ll actually be spending less on electricity, while adding a whole new look to your home.
LEDtrees.com sells pre-lit garland with both a color unit and a clear unit. This means you are getting two decorations in one! Do you like matching décor and appreciate a uniform and classic look for the holidays? If so, you might consider purchasing LED Christmas trees from the same site. Having pre-lit garland draped above archways, doorways or above the fireplace, will tie in your whole color scheme and giving you a classy Christmas look!
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Swap - Don't Scrap - Those Christmas Decorations
Tired of looking at the same old Christmas tree decorations year after year? When you’ve had enough of your Christmas tree decorations, consider having friends over for a decoration swap. Give your friends a call and ask them if they have any ornaments (even garland, a wreath or mini Xmas trees) that they don’t want anymore. Make some specialty coffee or hot chocolate and invite your friends over. The more friends involved the better! Think back to when you were a kid trading one toy for another, or lunch bag desserts for something that looked so much better. It’s the same idea, except now you’re trading Christmas tree decorations.
Not only is it a great way to get a new look for Christmas, it’s the perfect way to relax with friends just before the craziness of the holiday season sets in. The next time you’re out visiting your friends, you might not even recognize your old ornaments in their new home. Just don’t ask for them back.
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The Christmas Wreath
Traditionally, a Christmas wreath is made with evergreens, twisted into a circular shape and decorated with ribbon, lights, holly, cranberries, etc. People hang them on their front or back doors, as well as inside their homes.
To really jazz up your house this year, consider buying fiber optic or LED Christmas trees and wreaths. For a stunning effect, consider buying a fiber optic wreath and some fiber optic garland to match. Placed together in your home, you’ll wind up with just as many compliments about the wreath as you get for your gorgeous Christmas tree.
These days, wreaths come in just about any style you can think of, but there’s nothing like the gentle glow of a fiber optic wreath. The symbolism behind the traditional Christmas wreath was to celebrate the strength of life. With a pre lit fiber optic wreath, you can also celebrate the joy of light.
Unlike a natural wreath, a fiber optic wreath is going to last years and requires no special care (just pack it up nicely at the end of the season).
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A Change of Scenery Without Spending a Dime
It’s human nature to ease into routines. Christmas time is no different. There’s a certain place you place your Christmas tree, a notch on the wall where you hang your wreath, and shelves that you clear off every year to make room for your scented Christmas candles. Sound like you? Sometimes it isn’t a new set of Christmas decorations we need, sometimes we just need a change of scenery!
This year, purposely avoid decorating the way you have in the past. Ask a friend for suggestions, or look at magazines to get new ideas for Christmas decorating. Maybe instead of lining up your candy cane scented candles this year, you’ll center them on your dining room table, and instead of draping that gold rope of garland over the mantel, you’ll twist it around your new dining room centerpiece for a new look.
Don’t be afraid to exercise a little creativity and try something new with something old. If all of your past Christmas trees have looked exactly alike, consider leaving something off of the tree this year. Instead of displaying your Christmas cards on the television stand, cut them up into a Christmas collage and hang it on the wall. Mix it up a bit. You don’t need to spend a dime to spruce up your holiday décor.
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Xmas Decorating - The Forgotten Room
When you think of Xmas decorating, a few things come to mind. Perhaps you have a Santa welcome mat in the foyer or a beautifully-lit fiber optic wreath hung above a staircase or entranceway.
This Xmas, don't be afraid to extend the holidays into other areas of your home. Hang a wreath on the door or purchase mini Xmas trees (fiber optic ones are battery-operated and inexpensive) to add some seasonal flair! The mini Xmas trees can be placed in any room of your house and spruce up any room.
Other ideas include: Replacing traditional photographs and paintings with Xmas scenes, placing Xmas-themed soap by the bathroom sink and maybe even replacing the shower curtain (just for the holiday season) with something more festive.
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A New Use for That Christmas CD
Kids love to do crafts, especially around the holiday season. When it comes time to decorate the Christmas trees in your home, let the kids decorate their own tree with their own homemade decorations. Take a look around the house, in your car, or even in your office, and round up as many old scratched CD’s as you can find. Can’t find any? You can buy a spindle of 50 CDs for around $20. Clear a space on the floor or on a large table, covering it with plastic or newspaper to protect your furniture. You’ll also need a container of non-toxic glue (big enough to dip the CDs into), and a number of containers filled with craft glitter. Using a large set of tweezers, have the kids dip a CD into the glue, being careful to cover both sides equally. Then, before the glue dries, let the kids choose the glitter color they want to use and dip the CD into it, being careful to coat both sides. Thread some string or yarn through the center hole and hang to dry. Presto! Instant Christmas tree decorations.
Of course, you don’t have to stop there. Use your imagination to come up with all sorts of new and innovative Christmas tree decorating ideas. Forget stringing popcorn and cranberries! That’s old school. This year, get into some new and exciting crafts and really jazz up that Xmas tree.
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Christmas Tree Decorating Without the Hassle
This Christmas, forgot about stringing all of those lights around your tree. Even the indoor lights that enable you to just drape them over your tree are a nuisance. An LED Christmas tree can’t turn your holidays into a completely stress-free event (you still have family to contend with), but they can definitely make Christmas tree decorating and setup a whole lot easier. You might even look forward to setting up the Christmas tree once you’ve got an LED or fiber optic tree to display.
You can find LED artificial Christmas trees at LEDtrees.com. With their trees, all you do is take the tree out of the box and plug it in. Done. Tired of all those colored lights night after night? These trees come with the option of color or clear lights so it’s like you’re getting two trees in one.
Place a few of your favorite collectible Christmas ornaments on the tree and you’re finished. Think of the time and aggravation saved. The best part is, you can repeat the process again next year and the year after next.
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The First Christmas
Remember how tight money was when you were first married? It’s hard enough getting started with your first apartment and everything else that comes with being on your own for the first time.
Think back to last year. Was there anything extra in your Christmas tree decorations that you could stand to get rid of? Are you overloaded with Christmas tree decorations you no longer use? If so, consider creating a package for that college student in your life or the newly-married neighbors. Grab a wreath, some garland, Christmas bulbs, tinsel, maybe even a few mini LED Xmas trees and tie it all up with a ribbon. Recycling your old, but still in good condition, decorations by giving them to friends and family is a great way to help someone out.
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Christmas Decorating with Tunes
When it comes time to pull out the Christmas tree and all of the Christmas tree decorations, do it on a day when you’ve got lots of time. Spending some quiet time decorating the house can be enjoyable, as long as you’re not rushed. If you’re lucky enough to catch some time alone in the house for a while, pull out the wreath, the fiber optic garland and all of your Christmas tree decorations and get to work.
If you’re lucky enough to have a pre lit Christmas tree, you won’t have to spend as much time decorating it. They’re beautiful on their own or with minimal decorations. Take some time to find just the right spot for your fiber optic garland and wreath. The spirit of the season tends to take hold after a respite from the manic shopping sprees, baking marathons and party overload. So, take it easy, and spend some alone time, just you and the Christmas tree decorations.
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Christmas Collectibles
These days, there are collectibles for everyone and every occasion. For some people, the Christmas tree is the perfect place to display years of accumulated ornamental decorations. Maybe it started with a “First Year Married” Christmas tree decoration and progressed into a “Baby’s First Christmas” ornament, and so on. They make great gifts and perfect keepsakes.
Not sure where to start? It can be overwhelming considering the number of keepsake Christmas tree decorations on the market. You’ll find everything from special event pieces (Mommy-To-Be, for example), cartoon themes, angels, religious decorations, and ornaments made from any number of materials including specialty glass, pewter, sterling silver, and handmade wooden Christmas tree decorations. The options are endless. If you know what your friends and family collect, you can consider your Christmas shopping list practically done. All you need to do is pick up their favorite Christmas tree decoration collectible and they’ll be thrilled. If they don’t collect any Xmas tree decorations, this is the year to get them started!
Take into account whether the recipient has any children (glass ornaments are probably not a good idea), if their decorating tastes lean more to the country cabin style (think wooden, hand-made or hand-painted ornaments) or if they go for glamour and glitter (think shiny stars). Whatever you choose, they’re sure to love it.
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The Unexpected Gift
It’s 7 p.m., the sun has set, and there’s a nice fire glowing in the fireplace. Suddenly the doorbell rings. You wonder who it is. After all, you weren’t expecting company. You peer through the slats of the mini-blinds before opening the door. Hey! It’s your fourth cousin twice removed with his wife and three kids. And what’s this? They brought gifts. With a smile pasted across your face, you invite them into your home, wondering all the while if there are any Halloween candy left over you could package up quickly and give them as a gift.
This Christmas, don’t be stranded without a few extra gifts for those unexpected visitors that seem to come out of nowhere during the holidays. There’s always someone you forgot and while it isn’t the end of the world if they don’t get a gift, it would be a nice gesture.
There’s your child’s school teacher, bus driver, or a neighbor who watches your home while you’re away. The gift doesn’t have to be elaborate or expensive. It could be a miniature wreath or a pack of fiber optic, battery-operated mini Christmas trees. The point is to have something that’s not gender-specific on hand, wrapped and ready to go at a moment’s notice.
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Christmas Is for the Dogs ... and Cats
We sure do love our pets so why do we forget about them during the Christmas holidays? Sure we might buy them a squeaky toy or some cat or dog treats, but what about setting up their own little Christmas trees? Think about it. What could be better than giving the cat his own tree to bat around with his little paws? For as little as $20 or $30 dollars, you can buy a two foot Christmas tree completely pre-lit. For safety purposes, make sure there are no loose bulbs or anything the animal could ingest. To decorate the Christmas tree, stay away from anything like tinsel or glass. Remember, the Christmas tree is for the pet to enjoy, not for your friends to admire. Purchase toy mice and string them up by the tails! Your cat will have a blast swatting them off the tree. For your dog, purchase chewable dog bones, or noisy toys that they can take from the Christmas tree. Just remember, the tree probably isn’t going to stay standing for long, but even if you get an hour’s worth of laughter watching your pet enjoy himself, it’ll be worth it the time and effort.
