Embracing the festive spirit and transforming your home into a holiday wonderland is one of the most cherished traditions of the year. With over 17 years of dedicated experience in holiday decorating, we’ve gathered a wealth of knowledge, tried countless products, and honed our methods to create truly magical seasonal displays. From selecting the perfect artificial Christmas tree to illuminating your outdoor spaces with brilliant lights, this comprehensive guide offers our top recommendations, creative ideas, practical insights, and direct links to our favorite holiday decor items. Whether you’re a seasoned decorator or just starting your festive journey, prepare to discover the secrets to a beautifully decorated home that radiates warmth and joy throughout the holidays.
In this essential guide, we will explore our most beloved holiday decorating elements, ensuring every corner of your home, inside and out, reflects the festive cheer:
- Top-Rated Artificial Christmas Trees: Discover the best faux trees for every space and style.
- Charming Outdoor Faux Evergreen Trees: Low-maintenance options for year-round curb appeal, especially festive during holidays.
- Authentic Real Holiday Greenery: Bring the natural beauty and fragrance of fresh greens indoors.
- Brilliant Christmas Lights & Smart Timers: Achieve that perfect, cozy glow with our favorite lighting solutions and effortless control.
- Enchanting Tabletop Holiday Decorations: Elevate your surfaces with whimsical and elegant displays.
- Essential Other Holiday Decor Items: A curated selection of unique and functional pieces to complete your holiday look.
We’ve meticulously linked to the exact items we’ve purchased and loved, wherever possible. Recognizing that popular holiday decorations often sell out or are seasonal, we’ve also made sure to include links to highly similar, well-rated alternatives when original items are unavailable. Our goal is to make your holiday decorating as effortless and inspiring as possible.
Our Favorite Artificial Christmas Trees: Finding the Perfect Centerpiece
Choosing the right artificial Christmas tree is paramount, as it often serves as the focal point of your holiday decor. Over the years, we’ve experimented with various styles and sizes, narrowing down our favorites that offer both aesthetic appeal and practical benefits. From slender designs perfect for compact spaces to grand, full-bodied trees for expansive rooms, we have a recommendation for every home.
For those in smaller homes, or simply preferring a more understated elegance, our current go-to is a slim 6.5-foot tree. Its modest height and narrow base allow it to be tucked effortlessly into various corners and nooks without overwhelming the space. While our exact model is no longer available, we highly recommend this 6.5-foot pre-lit artificial Christmas tree, which boasts excellent reviews and a remarkably similar profile. To add a touch of texture and conceal the tree stand, we often place our tree into a stylish base. Currently, our preferred wicker storage ottoman is sold out, but this charming basket offers a comparable aesthetic. Alternatively, a beautiful woven tree collar is another excellent way to introduce warmth and texture, seamlessly blending the tree into your decor while adding a sophisticated finish.
The versatility of a slender artificial tree is truly remarkable. Our 6.5-foot tree has graced multiple spots within our home, demonstrating its ability to adapt to diverse layouts. For instance, positioned to be perfectly framed by our glass front door, it creates a welcoming sight from the street and can be enjoyed from various vantage points inside, including the downstairs living area, kitchen, and even the entry to our bedroom. Its narrow base design is key to its adaptability, allowing it to slip into almost any nook or corner with ease. For those seeking this specific size and style, this similar tree is currently available and comes highly recommended.
For those blessed with more expansive living areas, a larger, fuller tree can make a dramatic statement. In our previous, more spacious home, we proudly featured this 7.5-foot artificial Christmas tree for many years. Despite its pre-lit strands eventually dimming after several seasons, our affection for its lush, realistic appearance was so strong that we simply rewrapped it with our own lights. This tree consistently garnered compliments, with many guests surprised to learn it wasn’t real due to its exceptional fullness and lifelike branches. It’s a full foot taller and noticeably wider than the slender tree, making it ideal for grand spaces that can accommodate a more substantial holiday centerpiece. To enhance its cozy appeal, we often drape a few faux sheepskin rugs around its base, adding a luxurious and inviting touch.
Beyond traditional full trees, we’ve also embraced more unique styles. Our “Charlie Brown” tree, specifically the 6.5-foot Alpine Balsam Fir, was a charming addition to our pink beach house. Its compact nature made it easy to store, and its spaced-out branches are perfect for showcasing special ornaments or a delicate garland. Like our slender tree, it boasts a narrow base, ensuring it fits into most spaces with ease. For a similar aesthetic, especially if you’re looking for a more budget-friendly option, consider this similar tree. Again, we love to enhance the cozy factor by adding a faux sheepskin rug at its base, creating an inviting visual foundation.
For smaller areas or children’s rooms, a tabletop tree provides a delightful touch of holiday cheer. We’ve enjoyed using a similar 3-foot tabletop tree in our bonus room, also adorned with a faux sheepskin rug at the bottom. These miniature trees are perfect for showcasing unique ornaments, such as sweet little felt ornaments or even whimsical bacon ornaments for a touch of humor. This size is incredibly versatile, fitting perfectly in a casual family room, a dedicated bonus space, or even a child’s bedroom, allowing them to personalize their own festive corner.
Finally, when the holiday season concludes, efficient storage is key. We highly recommend this Christmas tree storage bag, which proved invaluable for safely storing our larger tree in our previous home’s attic. Its durable construction and sturdy handles make the daunting task of transporting a tree up and down stairs considerably easier than wrestling with a bulky cardboard box. Investing in proper storage ensures your beloved artificial tree remains protected and ready to bring joy for many seasons to come.
Our Favorite Outdoor Faux Evergreen Trees: Year-Round Charm with Holiday Sparkle
Elevate your home’s curb appeal with beautiful outdoor faux evergreen trees that offer continuous charm and effortless holiday transformation. These zero-maintenance additions are perfect for year-round enjoyment, but truly shine when adorned for the festive season. Their realistic appearance and durability make them an ideal choice for adding greenery to your porch, patio, or entryway without the upkeep of live plants.
On our front porch, we’ve repeatedly used this exact set of outdoor faux trees. We originally placed them in large plastic pots (for which similar lightweight planters are excellent), but added a unique touch by spray-painting them a sophisticated copper hue. This simple DIY project dramatically elevated their look, creating a striking contrast against the green foliage. To enhance their holiday appeal, we string warm white LED Christmas lights through the branches, making them glow beautifully in the evening. These lights can also be incorporated into garlands for a cohesive and dazzling outdoor display.
Beyond grand statements, smaller faux evergreen trees are incredibly versatile. We’ve utilized these exact smaller faux evergreen trees year-round at both our duplex and beach house. Their realistic appearance makes them perfect for everyday decor, effortlessly blending into the landscape, yet they are also wonderfully festive for the holidays. While they stand beautifully on their own, adding lights, much like we did with the larger trees, can amplify their holiday charm. For those looking to add a gentle shimmer, our favorite LED Christmas lights are an excellent choice for a warm and inviting glow.
Our Favorite Real Holiday Greenery: The Scent and Splendor of Nature
While artificial decor offers convenience, there’s an undeniable magic that real holiday greenery brings to a home – the rich scent, the fresh texture, and the authentic connection to nature. We cherish incorporating natural elements into our holiday scheme and have a few favorite sources for truly stunning fresh greenery that elevate any space.
Wreaths are a classic choice, and the impact of a fresh, fragrant wreath is unparalleled. For years, I participated in an annual wreath-making event in Richmond, crafting magnificent magnolia wreaths that would retain their beauty for a month or two. The glossy leaves and vibrant green hue of magnolia are particularly striking. If DIY isn’t your preference, consider ordering a similar fresh wreath that can be delivered directly to your doorstep, bringing instant elegance to your front door or interior walls.
Fresh garlands are another simple yet powerful way to infuse your home with natural holiday charm. We are huge fans of the affordable and high-quality fresh garlands available at Trader Joe’s (and often found at Costco as well). A few strategically placed nails on the top corners of window trim are sufficient to drape a long stretch of fragrant fir or cedar over a kitchen sink or a large living room window. For those who prefer convenience, a beautiful live garland can also be delivered right to your home, making festive decorating a breeze. These garlands instantly transform an ordinary space into a holiday focal point, providing both visual beauty and an enchanting aroma.
Beyond larger installations, we’ve also found immense joy in various real tabletop trees. These miniature versions, whether bought locally or delivered live, bring a charming touch to any surface. The photo below shows a small tree we acquired locally, which perfectly exemplifies their appeal. Our children particularly love decorating these small trees with cute felt and handmade ornaments, making it a wonderful family activity. All you need is a pretty pot (this one is particularly adorable) to complete the look. These small living trees add an authentic, verdant touch and can even be planted outdoors after the season, offering a sustainable decorating choice.
Our Favorite Christmas Lights & Smart Timers: Crafting the Perfect Holiday Glow
The magic of the holidays is often encapsulated in the warm, inviting glow of Christmas lights. Our philosophy is simple: when in doubt, add string lights! And for ultimate convenience, integrate timers for an effortless, enchanting display. Achieving the perfect holiday ambiance starts with the right lights and smart control.
For both indoor and outdoor applications, our unwavering preference is for WARM WHITE string lights. Any other shade of white simply won’t deliver that desired cozy, classic holiday glow. While traditional incandescent bulbs were once the standard, LED technology has finally caught up in terms of warmth and quality. We’ve successfully transitioned to these warm white LED Christmas lights, and they are truly exceptional. This past year, when some lights on our tree went out, we easily replaced them with these LEDs. They offer significantly longer life, feature fantastic twinkle settings for added dynamism, and are also available in a multicolor version if you prefer a more vibrant display. Being rated for both indoor and outdoor use, these versatile lights truly do it all, simplifying your holiday lighting choices.
Beyond traditional string lights, battery-operated LED fairy lights provide a remarkably affordable and versatile way to add subtle holiday sparkle. We use them extensively to illuminate mantels, intertwine them with garlands, and even create captivating glowing displays within vases, as seen below. This simple trick takes mere seconds but instantly transforms an ordinary vase into a festive focal point. For outdoor convenience, solar-powered fairy lights are an excellent choice, automatically switching on at sundown to add a magical glow to your garden or porch without any manual effort.
For safe and convenient ambient lighting, battery-operated LED faux candles are a superb flameless option. These realistic candles come with remote control functionality, allowing you to easily adjust their settings from a distance. We’ve incorporated them into our DIYed fireplace, providing a cozy, flicker-free glow that enhances the festive atmosphere without any fire hazards.
To effortlessly control your indoor holiday lights, we rely on these compact smart plugs. They eliminate the need to bend over or squeeze behind furniture to reach plugs, allowing you to turn trees and other decorations on and off with ease. These smart plugs are voice-control compatible (e.g., “Alexa, turn off the Christmas tree”) and can be integrated into your existing smart home routines, ensuring all your lights dim or switch off in unison each night. For a visual guide to setting up smart plugs, which is surprisingly simple and can be done entirely from your phone, you can watch this video on YouTube.
For outdoor lighting, a reliable timer is indispensable. We use this simple outdoor timer for a set-and-forget approach to our holiday lights. Featuring two outlets and multiple settings, it even includes a remote for overriding programmed on/off times when needed. For those desiring more on-demand control, we also own this smart outdoor timer for our year-round patio lights, which offers enhanced control and flexibility.
Our Favorite Tabletop Holiday Decorations: Small Touches, Big Impact
Tabletop decorations are often the unsung heroes of holiday decor, offering a chance to add intricate detail, personal touches, and layered charm to any surface. Each year, retrieving these beloved items from our holiday storage closet brings immense joy, transforming everyday consoles, shelves, and dining tables into festive vignettes. I confess, I’ve never encountered a feather tree, bottle brush tree, or mercury glass tree that didn’t immediately capture my heart.
Our collection includes a plethora of feather trees, similar to the one gracing the top shelf in the image above. We adore mixing these delicate beauties with an assortment of charming bottlebrush trees and elegant light-up mercury glass trees. This combination creates a varied landscape of textures, heights, and finishes. More recently, we’ve introduced small wooden pink trees, adding a touch of modern whimsy and a softer color palette to our growing collection. The key to an engaging display is variety – playing with different materials, colors, and sizes to create visual interest.
Another effortlessly elegant tabletop display is a dough bowl brimming with shiny ornaments. This is a wonderfully simple yet impactful way to add festive sparkle. You can opt for practicality with inexpensive shatterproof ornaments, ideal for homes with children or pets, or elevate the look with beautiful glass ornaments for a touch of refined glamour. The beauty of this display lies in its simplicity; we literally store ours with the ornaments inside, making it incredibly easy to pull out and place on a console table, media cabinet, or as a vibrant centerpiece on the kitchen table. It’s an instant festive upgrade with minimal effort.
To honor my dad’s side of the family, we proudly display this beautiful Menorah each holiday season. Growing up in a home that celebrated both Christmas and Hanukkah, the tradition of lighting the candles with the children is deeply cherished. Incorporating diverse cultural elements into holiday decor not only enriches the festive experience but also creates a beautiful blend of traditions, reflecting the unique story of your family.
Sometimes the most memorable decor pieces are those you create yourself. These vibrant red reindeer, for instance, never fail to bring a smile. We simply took inexpensive cardboard deer (similar ones are available) from a craft store and transformed them with a coat of glossy bright red spray paint. The result is a playful and personalized touch that stands out. DIY projects like this offer a fantastic opportunity to infuse your decor with unique character and color, often at a fraction of the cost of store-bought items.
Another sweet and incredibly easy way to infuse holiday charm into any kitchen is by propping a cute, decorative plate against a wall, on a shelf, or above the stove. A plate featuring a car with a Christmas tree, for example, is instantly endearing and festive. Similar vintage plates offer a nostalgic appeal, while these gingerbread-themed plates would also be absolutely adorable. This simple decorative element allows you to express your holiday spirit in unexpected places, adding warmth and personality.
Never underestimate the power of free, natural decor! A simple bowl filled with shiny ornaments and clippings from an outdoor evergreen tree can create a stunning and fragrant display. This method not only looks beautiful but also brings the fresh scent of the holidays indoors. Additionally, incorporating year-round items, such as adding a festive message to a letterboard like this one, allows for easy personalization and creative expression. Changing the message throughout the season keeps your decor fresh and engaging, from “Merry Christmas” to more playful holiday sayings.
Our most recent and beloved addition to our tabletop collection are these iridescent trees, originally discovered at the Target dollar spot. While not available online through Target’s official site, their unique shimmer and playful aesthetic are irresistible. We’ve amassed 14 of them, and have absolutely no regrets! For those eager to replicate this look, similar iridescent trees are available on Amazon, or you might even find the actual Target ones on eBay. These shimmering trees catch the light beautifully, adding a touch of modern enchantment to any shelf or mantel.
Other Favorite Holiday Decor Items: Completing Your Festive Vision
Sometimes, the most delightful holiday finds defy easy categorization. This section gathers those miscellaneous yet indispensable items that add a finishing touch and unique character to your festive decor. From realistic wreaths to cozy stockings and clever tree base alternatives, these favorites are designed to enhance your holiday home.
A high-quality faux wreath can be a lasting investment. The wreath we acquired many years ago from Target is remarkably realistic and has stood the test of time, proudly adorning our beach house without fading. While that exact model is no longer sold, this faux spruce wreath offers a highly realistic appearance, and this holiday wreath adorned with oranges provides a very charming and unique alternative. Choosing a durable faux wreath means you can enjoy its beauty season after season, making it a sustainable and practical decor choice.
When it comes to stockings, I’m drawn to those that exude warmth and comfort, inviting dreams of cozy winter nights. We’ve found two excellent options that capture this aesthetic perfectly: 1) these adorable knitted stockings with delicate tassels and subtle metallic gleam, and 2) these classic white cable knit stockings. Both options offer rich texture and a timeless appeal. To add a personalized touch, I adorned each of ours with charming elephant chains (my originals are about a decade old, but these elephants are wonderfully similar!), creating a unique and sentimental detail that makes them truly special.
As briefly mentioned earlier, we love the idea of concealing a Christmas tree stand with a stylish alternative. While our specific storage ottoman is currently unavailable, a beautiful woven tree collar provides a similar textured, natural look. Tree collars offer a cleaner, more contemporary aesthetic than traditional tree skirts, adding an extra layer of warmth and sophistication to your tree’s base and completing its polished look.
Last, but certainly not least, is a favorite playful outdoor decoration: “Boots with the Fir!” This clever and charming display is incredibly simple to create, requiring only a pair of rubber rain boots and some faux fir branches (or real branches snipped from a nearby pine tree for an authentic scent). Simply arrange the branches artfully within the boots, and you have an instant, whimsical porch addition that adds character and holiday cheer to any front stoop or entryway. It’s a delightful, eye-catching detail that embodies the fun and creativity of the season.
We hope this extensive guide to our favorite holiday decorations has inspired you to create a home filled with festive beauty and personal touches this season. From the grandeur of your Christmas tree to the subtle sparkle of tabletop accents, every detail contributes to the unique magic of your holiday home. Happy decorating!
Wait, before you go! We’ve received many questions about our gift guides, and we’re excited to share that they are already live! Explore our 2023 Holiday Gift Guide post, featuring nearly 70 diverse ideas for everyone on your list, with options starting as low as $3!
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