Create a Picture-Perfect Christmas Tree with These Easy and Elegant Decorating Ideas

With the holiday season fast approaching, it’s time to start thinking about how you’re going to decorate your home. And what better way to add a touch of festive cheer than with a beautifully decorated Christmas tree?

Today I am going to share my Christmas tree. As a bonus, you will be able to get incredible tree decorating ideas from 8 of my talented blogging friends and learn all of their secrets too!!

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Tips & Tricks for Tree Decorating

No need to be overwhelmed with how to decorate your tree or come up with ideas! Check out all of these ideas for Christmas tree decorating.

It’s so fun coming up with new ideas each year to share with you. Even though I tweak the decorations or colors that I choose year to year I usually follow the same steps when it comes to Christmas tree decorating.

Christmas tree decorating is one of my favorite holiday tasks. I loved putting on the ornaments and the lights since I was little.

Choosing a Christmas Tree

The most important part of it all! First, you have to decide on a Christmas tree to put up in your home. The basic question to answer is do you want a real or artificial tree?

While I love the look of real trees and do love how they make your home smell, I’ve opted for artificial trees for many years. A close call with my son Brendan when he was a baby, where our real tree nearly toppled over, solidified my preference.

Many families in New England, especially in New Hampshire, enjoy the tradition of cutting down their own trees at local farms or even in the White Mountains with a permit. While this can be a fun and rewarding experience, it’s definitely a more labor-intensive approach.

Artificial vs. Real: A Christmas Tree Dilemma

Artificial Christmas trees have significantly improved in recent years, thanks to advancements in technology like real-touch materials. This makes them more realistic and visually appealing.

One of the biggest advantages of artificial trees is their longevity. It’s a one-time investment that can last for many years, unlike real trees that require annual purchases. Especially this year, real trees seem to be quite expensive, at least in New Hampshire.

Another crucial factor to consider, whether you choose real or artificial, is the tree’s height. It’s generally recommended to have at least a foot of clearance between the tree topper and the ceiling.

For example, my 7.5-foot tree fits well in my 8-foot ceiling room, even without a tall topper, as the top of the tree is a bit sparse.

If you are going the artificial tree route then the other decisions you will have to make are:

• Green or Flocked
• Full or Slim
• Prelit or Unlit
• What type of Tree

1. Green vs Flocked: Both options are beautiful it just depends on your own preference and the look you are going for. I have one of each up in my home and love them both! But flocked trees are messy when you are putting them up and fluffing them…I made the mistake of wearing black yoga pants when I was putting my flocked one up this year, I was covered!
2. Full or Slim: Choosing a full or slim tree will really depend on where you want to place your tree and how much walking space is around it. When you are shopping for trees you can filter your searches online for slim or full to make it easier to scroll through the options. Also, check the product details and it should tell you what the diameter of the tree is to make it easier to figure out if you have room for it in your home. Slim trees work best in small rooms generally speaking.
3. Prelit or Unlit: Prelit tree technology has also advanced quite a bit in the past few years with the release of LED lights on the trees and also how manufacturers wire them to make them more durable and long-lasting. But by buying an unlit tree you can add any style of lights to it that you want & control how many bulbs you want to add to fit your style. Some of the newer artificial trees also have options to change from white to multi-colored lights on the same tree! Check the bulb count on the listing, the more lights the brighter your tree will be.
4. What type of Tree: The last factor you will want to consider is what type of tree to get. The most popular are spruces, firs, pines,& cedars. They all have different looks to them and it will depend on what look you love! Take the time to check the tip count on the tree listing, the more tips the more branches you will have to hang ornaments and the fuller the tree will be.

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Decorating a Christmas Tree

In October I sold 2 Christmas trees, 6 garlands, & 2 wreaths on Facebook Marketplace and used that money to buy a new tree that I had saved in my Amazon cart since last year along with a few new decorations to use this season.

My tree is the National Tree Company 7.5 ft Norwegian Spruce. This Amazon tree has a similar look too.

What drew me to this particular tree is that it looks like the real Christmas trees that you would see in New England homes.

Step 1. Fluff the Tree

Yes, I know how tedious and time-consuming this step is but you have to take the time to fluff your artificial tree!! It makes such an incredible difference.

My top tip: Straighten the tree tips closest to the tree trunk, this will disguise the brown fake-looking trunk!!

If you need to add lights to your tree this is when to do it!

One thing that I did was wrap this $3 set of twinkling white lights around the tree trunk running down the tree. I wish I remembered the Instagrammer that I got this idea from! It is unbelievable how dreamy just a subtle twinkle coming from inside the tree is!!

Step 2. Add Garland

After my tree is fluffed my next step is to add garland (if I am using it). This year I used 2 garlands. A 1-inch cream felted garland (Walmart) and a half-inch gold wood beaded garland(or this one that is 18′ long)

On my 7.5 ft tree, I added 6 of the 6-foot wool garlands and 64 ft of the gold bead garland.

I really love the two different textures and sizes of garland hanging together on the tree.

Something new to me this year was adding clip-on battery-operated candles to my tree. I am obsessed!! The candles come in a set of 20.

My husband and teenage son both commented on how much they liked the candles…seriously, I couldn’t believe that they even noticed there was a tree up never mind the candles on it!!!!

Step 3. Add Ornaments

This year I wanted to keep my tree more on the minimal side to go with the natural look of my tree. My color palette is mixed metallics and whites.

I started out by adding sets of types of ornaments that I repeated over the entire tree: gold stars (Target), vintage-looking long baubles (Walmart), and sparkling snowballs (Hobby Lobby).

The baubles and snowballs were from last year but I saw both of the ornaments in the stores this year too.

The gold stars that I picked up at Target (2 for $3) were a little too bright for me so I did give them a quick coat of antique gold Rub n Buff to get a more muted vintage-looking star.

These fuzzy snowball ornaments are so fun!! I pushed them down towards the center of the tree. Think about adding some of your ornaments that way to give more visual depth to your tree.

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Then I filled in the rest of the tree with a few different DIY ornaments. You can learn to make all of these ornaments and more: 22 Christmas Ornaments You Can Make

Step 4. Add Ribbon

This year I chose a vintage-looking green velvet ribbon (Hobby Lobby) to tie to my Christmas tree. I wanted to keep my tree simple so I just tied the ribbon and didn’t make a bow… more minimal.

Step 5. Add a Tree Topper

For this year’s Christmas tree, I chose a simple gold star tree topper (Target 2024 version). How cool is the clip to attach it to the top of the tree…no more shoving it over the top tip and it looking crooked!!

Finished Christmas Tree

Who else is in love?? There is nothing better than sitting in the living room at night with the tree lights on…actually it’s still dark when I wake up in the morning and I love having my coffee with the glow of the tree lights!

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xo, Jennifer

More Christmas Tree Ideas!

Natural Christmas Tree

What is a natural and neutral-themed Christmas tree? There are many different styles for doing a themed Christmas tree. A natural and neutral Christmas tree is decorated with lots of white and brown shades along with ornaments made from natural elements like wood and metals.

Bricks n Blooms

Stacy has a jam-packed article on Christmas tree decorating ideas. You will love her farmhouse style and simple ideas that you can use in your own home to decorate this year!

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The Ponds Farmhouse

I mean…c’mon, is this tree gorgeous or what??!! You must go see Rachel’s beautiful Christmas tree that she decorated with her own dried hydrangeas for a pretty, natural-looking tree.

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Midwest Life & Style

If you have a flocked tree and are looking for easy ideas on how to decorate it this season then Jen has all the answers for you! She used a red, white, and gold color scheme that is perfect for this bedroom Christmas tree.

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WM Design House

Wendy is sharing all kinds of Christmas tree decorating ideas using different styles and colors. There is so much good information here for you!

Shiplap & Shells

Kim has so many ideas and examples of using Christmas trees in smaller spaces. You will adore her cottage style home and all of the vintage touches she incorporates throughout her home at Christmas time.

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Truemans Treasures

If you are stuck on where to put your Christmas tree and need some expert guidance you will love Kylie’s ideas and examples to help you this holiday season! Plus all her trees are gorgeous!

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Amy Sadler Designs

Amy is such a creative and artistic blogger and does wonders with paint! She will show you how to create beautiful DIY ornaments to use on your tree that look just like the very expensive ones you love in the catalogs!

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Tatertots & Jello

I always know when it’s one of Jen’s pictures! She has the most fun, creative style when she decorates her home. Wait until you see all of her 15 themed Christmas tree ideas!! Amazing!

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Looking for More Christmas Inspiration

My 10 Days of Christmas has hundreds of ideas from me and a talented group of friends to make your holidays prettier!!!

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