Whether you're decorating your first Christmas tree or your tree of many years needs a "sprucing" up, these ideas can help you have a beautiful, elegant tree by reusing what you already have!
To begin, the only real investment after the purchase of your tree will be the lights. For the most elegant look, I suggest white lights. White lights are classic, serene, and elegant. If that's too dull for you, go for a single color. For a more fun, casual look get the multi-colored. I never recommend blinking lights inside the house. Too busy!
Now, for the free decorations! You probably have the makings of some great ornaments around your home already-- you just didn't know it! A lot of everyday items can be turned into ornaments-- you just need to see them in a new way. Here's how!
• Christmas Balls: Old glass balls that are scratched, the wrong colors, or just look shabby can be reused. Rinse them in a dish tub of soapy water and the color usually comes right off. The glass is actually clear and the color is just a film over it. Now you have clear glass balls that can be painted, glittered, covered in fabric, beads, and ribbon-anything you can think of. Tip: Use a thin paint brush to add glue to the inside of the ball and then sprinkle in glitter. Or paint the inside with the paint of your choice.
• Flowers: Have an old wreath that has seen better days? Any dried or silk flower arrangements you're done with? Pull out the best flowers, fake fruit, and ribbons and use to decorate your tree! Ribbon can be cut and made into several bows. I have a friend who wanted a Victorian looking tree so we found faux roses, peonies, and hydrangeas around her home and used them on her tree. It was beautiful!
• Tiny Christmas Presents: When I was young we decided to add a second tree for just us kids. Since we couldn't afford to buy more ornaments we had to get very creative. We took tiny jewelry and gift boxes and wrapped them with wrapping paper and yarn and then hung them on the tree. They were adorable! To this day we still use some of them! Tip: Use wrapping paper in solid colors or with very small print for the best effect.
• Around the House: Try looking at anything you come across in the house as a potential ornament. Costume jewelry, tiny stuffed animals, seashells, copper cookie cutters, party favors, tiny toys, small pictures in frames, chandelier crystals, strands of pearls, tiny glass perfume bottles, small figurines, collections of small things such as spoons-- really, anything that can be tied with a ribbon and hung on the tree! Start looking around!
• Memories: My most important tip of all! This tip requires planning ahead, but you should start now-- it will be well worth it! Whenever my family travels we bring home a Christmas tree ornament from that place so that when we trim the tree, we remember our travels. We also save party favors from weddings, showers, and other special events so we can add them to the tree. We remember baby Grace's baby shower, Shirley and Patrick's wedding, Aunt Ida's 75th birthday, and many others. We say a prayer for them as we add their ornaments to the tree. Every year the tree becomes richer with memories.
By getting creative with what you have, you too can start making a memorable Christmas tree. Through the years as we've collected more ornaments and memories, trimming the tree becomes more than just another holiday chore. It becomes a walk down memory lane and along with that, gratitude for all we've been given. Merry Christmas!
Michele Rose is a Realtor and Professional Home Stager in Burlington County, NJ. She has been assisting both buyers and sellers with their real estate needs since 2004. In 2007, she founded Rose-Colored Staging, a home staging and redesign business, to help sellers successfully market their homes with professional home staging. She also stages listings for fellow agents, getting those listings sold!
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