Deck the Halls! Top Holiday Decorating Ideas

It’s time to dig out the decorations you used last year and add to them to create a holiday extravaganza inside AND outside your house. Before you throw everything out on the yard and on top of your house, we have some tips to make your holiday decorating say, “Ho ho ho” instead of “No no no!” Use these decorating ideas for the most fun, memorable decor you’ve ever created.

Choose A Theme

One mistake people make with holiday decorating is setting up a mishmash of unmatched items without thinking about how they go together. Before you begin, decide the look you want to achieve with a theme. Are you going with formal, a winter wonderland, the North Pole, a country Christmas, all blue, or something else? Setting a theme keeps you focused and helps you choose what to use and what to purchase (and more importantly for your budget, what not to purchase).

Recruit the Family

Holiday decorating is fun and goes faster if the whole family is involved. Pick a time that’s convenient for everyone to chip in, and assign each person with a job. Once it’s all finished, everyone can feel like they contributed to the fabulous look and feel of your home’s holiday décor.

Light, Lights, Lights

No matter the theme you like, lights are essential for proper holiday decorating. Test any string lights you used last year BEFORE you take the time to hang them. Outline your house, doors, windows, and wrap them around your tree trunks. Inside, lights should adorn your Christmas tree. Add candles to further create a warm holiday ambiance in your living and dining areas.

Review What You Have

Don’t hit the stores to grab décor before you check out what you already own. Look through your items and pick out the things you want to use again this year. Throw away broken or tarnished items you can’t use anymore, and donate everything that’s in good shape that you won’t be using.

Decide on Items You Need

Make a list of items you need to buy to fill in what you already have. Think about how you want your décor to look, and choose items that enhance your current holiday décor. Set a budget and get to shopping. If you have time, hit the discount stores first to find some deals, and then finish your list at the more expensive stores.

Create a Focal Point

Start decorating by setting up your holiday mainstay. Usually inside the home it’s a Christmas tree, but you can set one up outside, too. Whatever you choose, make sure it’s in a prominent position. Then work all the other holiday decorations around it for maximum visual impact.

Get in the Spirit

Don’t look at the decorating process as only enjoyable once it’s finished, make it part of the holiday fun! Blast some of your favorite Christmas tunes, set out some hot chocolate and have a good time hanging the lights, adding wreaths to the windows, and putting up the tree.

Engage All the Senses

Lights and decorations are visually wonderful, but getting the other senses involved makes for a more powerful overall holiday experience. Set up speakers to play holiday tunes for a few hours each evening. Inside, burn some pine or cinnamon-scented candles or incense. In addition, use pillows and throw blankets in your theme’s colors to add warmth and softness.

DIY Some Décor

Add your family’s personal touch to your holiday décor plans with a bit of crafting time. Make a wreath, a welcome sign, personalized stockings, or some Christmas ornaments from scratch and use them in your decorating plans. These items will add a bit of whimsy and sentimentality to your ambiance, and you’ll enjoy them for years to come.

Attend to the Details

Once the big holiday pieces are in place, get down to the details. Decorate the tree and add the topper, hang the wreaths and lights, add a big basket of pine cones to your porch and some candy canes to a bowl in your entryway, and lay your favorite holiday books on the end tables. Finish off with a holiday welcome mat and some candles. Don’t forget to decorate your table and fireplace mantel.

Decking your halls with holiday decor, both inside and outside, can be a fun and worthwhile pursuit. Take some time to get focused on the look you’re going for, recruit your family’s assistance, and you’ll have it finished and ready to enjoy before you can say, “Good Tidings to All!”

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