We are here to fill you in on ways you can channel your inner elf and decorate your home for a lot less. It’s going to look a lot like Christmas by the time you’re done.
Spruce things up
Pun intended. While I’m sure we are all fans of a nice, fresh Christmas tree plucked straight from the farm, it’s expensive to do so. Once you add up the gas it takes to drive to get the tree, paying for it and then tipping (hopefully) the guy who kindly straps it on top of your car, you’re looking at 100 bucks. Belle from Budget with Belle says that her favorite holiday hack is using a faux Christmas tree.
“I purchased a faux tree during a Black Friday sale in 2012 and still have it today. I love a really uniformed decorated tree, but I’m learning to use sentimental things like my child’s artwork, and family photos [to decorate with]” says Belle.
Create vignettes
A simple way bring the Yuletide spirit into your home is to set up little vignettes. A vignette is a small grouping of objects that creates a pleasing focal point — like what you see as centerpieces on dining and coffee tables.
You can make an easy vignette with just a few items like ornaments, pine cones, candles and boughs of holly. (Have that song in your head now? Us, too)
A lot of your vignette elements can be found at dollar stores, discount stores like Marshalls and TJ Maxx and even thrift shops. Try it for yourself: Fill a couple of clear jars with assorted ornaments and then weave a fake (or real) pine needle garland around the jars for a simple and budget-friendly tablescape.
Bring the outdoors in
Before you go out and buy new decorations, look around your house to see what can be put to good use. Do you have leftover wrapping paper from last year? Perfect. Use that to wrap books on your bookshelf or coffee table to resemble presents. You can also bring the outdoors in by taking a gander around your yard to see if you can find some pine cones, acorns or pine branches for your vignettes.
Back to basics
A great way to decorate for less and get the whole family involved is to dig out the craft paper and scissors. You may think paper chains and paper snowflakes are a bit elementary, but when you string it all together with simple strand lights, it’ll turn the room into a magical, whimsical winter wonderland.
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