How to Decorate a Christmas Tree in 6 Easy Steps
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Nowadays we have an infinite amount of Christmas tree decorations available to us, enabling us to create a tree of any color or style that we could possibly desire!
That’s great, but … where do you start?? 😶
How exactly do you decorate a Christmas tree without it looking like a hodgepodge of randomly purchased Christmas ornaments with a mismatched color scheme?
There are 6 steps:
- Pick a color palette or a theme
- Choose your lights (& hang them first!!)
- Pick a Christmas tree skirt
- Add garlands
- Personalize with ornaments
- Add a topper!
If you don’t own any Christmas tree decorations and this is your first year decorating your tree, you will probably want to buy a few things. But fear not: the great thing about Christmas decorations is that they can be saved and reused year after year. Over time you will build a hopefully beautiful collection of Christmas tree decorations that you can pick from and come up with new and exciting creations every year.
(Or do what I did and just buy a beautiful pre-lit flocked tree and leave it at that – worry about buying ornaments next year, LOL!)
The more ornaments you collect over time, the more possibilities you will have to mix and match and create new looks. And if you need ideas on how to store said ornaments, then you had better check out this post all about genius Christmas decoration storage ideas straight away!
But for now, let’s assume you don’t have a lot already on hand, and take a look at exactly what you need to decorate a stunning Christmas tree!
Before you start – Tree Prep is Needed!
Once you’ve chosen your tree, pick a location for it in your home.
Real trees should be kept as cool as possible so that they don’t dry out, so away from radiators and fireplaces. A plug should be handy for your lights and you should ideally put the base of your tree in water.
If you have a faux tree on the other hand, make sure you spend a LOT of time fluffing up the branches!
Separate all the needles as best you can to get a nice, full look. When you think you’re done fluffing, fluff a little bit more!
Unless the scraggly tree look is the look you are going for – the sparse “minimalist” tree is actually a trend, all your pretty ornaments will have a hard time shining if you have a scraggly tree. Basically, the more sparse your base tree is, the more garlands and ornaments you will need to pile on to get a professional and full look. Which means more $$$.
→ TIP: If you don’t want a large tree or don’t have enough space for it, you can always get a smaller one and put it on a table to give it some height in your room. This is what designers Eddie Ross and Jaithan Kochar opted to do in the photo below. I think it looks more than great!
1. Pick a color Palette or Theme
If you have a color scheme in mind for your Christmas tree, it will make things easier. That’s why it’s one of the best things to think about first, before you even start decorating your tree.
Staying within a chosen palette of just a handful of colors will not only make it easier to choose ornaments and decorations, but it will lend itself to a more professional finish.
Some lovely and classic Christmas tree color schemes to consider are:
- silver and gold
- bronze, gold and turquoise
- red, white and peppermint (beautiful on a white flocked tree!)
- white and silver
- black and white
Check out these 76 Beautiful Ways to Decorate Your Christmas Tree over at Country Living for some inspiration. You can also check Pinterest for lots of Christmas tree decoration ideas.
This year, in 2023, many non-traditional Christmas color schemes are trending, such as pinks (there’s Barbiecore again), pastels, and warm rich colors like brown, navy and caramel. Choose whatever palette makes your heart sing!
2. Choose your Christmas lights
Lights are really what create that magical Christmas feeling, so I would advise to always add more than you think you’ll need! In fact, the general consensus with lights is the more you have on the tree, the better.
A lot of faux Christmas trees have lights already attached to the tree when you buy them – they are called pre-lit trees. You could add even more if you want, or just leave the ones that come with the tree if they are enough.
One guideline you could follow is to use at least one 100-light strand per vertical foot of tree. So, 7 ft tree = 7x strands of 100 lights. 8 ft tree = 8x strands of 100 lights, etc…
- The lights are always the first thing I hang. I feel like it’s the easiest way to position the lights the way you like them, without the risk of disturbing or breaking other ornaments.
- When you connect multiple strands of lights, you will want to hide the plug-in connectors. You can do this on a faux tree by pushing the connector deeper into the tree and twisting a branch around it. If you have a real tree, you could tie a ribbon around it or hang an ornament in front to hide it.
- Try to spread and arrange them evenly along the branches. I like to arrange them with the lights turned on, so I can see what I’m doing.
- Make sure the lights are both on the ends of the branches but also deeper within the tree.
→ TIP: Test all your lights before hanging them! It will save you the frustration of having to remove them all if they don’t work.
Remember to look at the warning labels on the box when you are purchasing your lights! Some strands of 100 bulb Christmas lights can only have up to 4 strands connected together. If you need more than the allowed number indicated on the box, you might need to use an extension cord to attach further strings of lights.
Lastly, remember to turn your Christmas lights off at night before bed. 😊 Or buy a plug with a timer so that they turn off automatically! I have this on my exterior Christmas lights and I love it.
Some great Christmas tree lights:
3. Pick a Christmas tree skirt
If you are working with a color scheme, you might want to try and get a tree skirt that coordinates in some way.
Don’t want to buy a tree skirt? No sweat. You can use a ton of other things that you might already have around the house instead!
Instead of tree skirts, you can use:
- chunky knit blankets
- sheepskin rugs
- a basket
- a Christmas tree collar (I did a whole post on those!)
- presents!! Whether they’re real or faux. If you’ve got enough boxes they will easily cover the base of your tree
Anything you like that covers the base will do. Even throw pillows!
My dog likes to pee on my tree skirts 🙈 so I might go with the basket option this year! 🤣
Here are some beautiful Christmas tree skirts!
RELATED POST – EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CHRISTMAS TREE COLLARS!
4. Add Christmas tree garlands
It’s a good idea to put your garlands or ribbons on the tree before placing ornaments.
Garlands are great for filling up space on the tree quickly. Once the garlands are placed, it will be much easier to see where you need to fill in the gaps on your tree with ornaments.
There are so many things you can use as garlands! Ribbons, pom poms, strand of beads, flowers, stars, berries, faux foliage … the sky is the limit.
Ribbon can be draped vertically down the tree, or tied into bows.
Adding a garland that is made of artificial foliage will add beautiful fullness and variety to your tree.
I love all the suggestions from House Beautiful – go check this gallery out if you are in need of some Christmas garland ideas and inspiration!
→ TIP: Fancy garlands can get pricey! If you are decorating your Christmas tree on a budget, and your tree is in a corner, save money by using garlands only on the visible sides of your tree. 🤑
Current favorite tree garlands:
I loved watching this tree trimmer extraordinaire decorate this tree with ribbons and picks galore (see the video below). She has a bit of a different method from what I propose in this post, but it’s still one that you could easily follow if you wanted to! I especially love how she explains how to decorate with ribbon – that was always a mystery to me until I saw her video, lol!
5. Personalize with ornaments
Ornaments are really how you are going to make your tree shine! They are the jewels of your tree.
Pick an assortment of large, medium and small ornaments. Buy a pack or two of cheap solid colored baubles and use those as a base. Then you can get a few really nice big ones that will feature.
How many ornaments do I need for my tree?
Wondering how many ornaments you need? Here is the formula:
| Tree Height | Light Coverage | Heavy Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| 6.5 feet | 70 pieces | 105 pieces |
| 7.5 feet | 105 pieces | 140 pieces |
| 9-10 feet | 175 pieces | 210 pieces |
Another guideline you can follow is:
Trees under 9 feet: approx 10-15 ornaments per foot in a variety of sizes.
Trees over 9 feet: approx 12-15 ornaments per foot in a variety of sizes.
So for example, for a 9 ft tree you could do:
- 10-15 Large Ornaments
- 50-75 Medium Ornaments
- 20-25 Small Ornaments (these could be your accent colors or fun patterned ornaments)
Remember to think about scale, so generally smaller ornaments are better suited to smaller trees up to 6 feet. And trees taller than 6 feet will benefit from larger ornaments.
Here are some tips to keep in mind with Christmas ornaments:
- Stay within your color scheme
- Hang larger ornaments deeper inside the tree, and the smaller ones closer to the tips of the branches. This will create a nice balance. Remember to always decorate deep inside your tree – don’t reserve ornaments just for the tips of the branches. This will give your tree dimension and interest!
- Start by hanging large ornaments first, so that you quickly fill in more gaps. Then hang your mediums sized ornaments, then your small ones, filling in all the gaps as you go.
- If you are concerned about breakage, stay away from glass ornaments and look for shatterproof ornaments instead.
- Make sure your ornaments are always hanging vertically, and not crooked or askew against the branches. If they don’t fit, just push them in between the branches until they hang properly.
→ TIP: If you have a lot of different ornaments that you’ve collected over time, you can still use them all and achieve a uniform look! The trick is to purchase packs of inexpensive baubles that are all the same color. This will balance out all the different styles and colors of your pre-existing ornaments and tie everything together. A cheap and easy fix!
Some of my favorite ornaments this year:
6. Add a Topper!
By far the most popular tree toppers are stars and angels. But you can also get “novelty” Christmas tree toppers as well. Call me boring but I prefer to stick to a star!
There are toppers that can light up, but if you get one that is metallic or has sparkles it will catch the light just fine without need for extra illumination.
Wayfair has a ton of tree toppers, but of course Amazon and Target never disappoint either.
Here are some of my current favorite tree toppers!
Don’t forget to continuously step back and look at the tree as a whole, while you decorate. It’s ok to keep tweaking things until you think they’re perfect! It takes time to trim a beautiful tree, but that’s part of the fun 🙂
If you’re ready to up your Christmas decor to the next level, you could plan to coordinate your wrapping paper with your tree decor. The end result will be stunning! 🎁🤩
If you want to see how a true decorating master puts it all together, go check out Randi Garrett’s post on Christmas tree trimming – her Christmas trees and home decorations are out of this world!
I love her tip about adding tree picks to her tree. Tree picks really help to add variation to the greenery, and they make everything look even more full and lush! Definitely check out her Christmas posts for some elegant Christmas tree decorating ideas.
Lastly, be sure to check out all my Amazon Christmas Decor favorites, in my storefront right here! And check this page for a curated collection of Christmas decor from all my favorite retailers!
More great Christmas posts to read next:
- Beautiful minimalist Scandinavian Christmas DIYs that you can easily make in an afternoon!
- Find out how to store your Christmas decorations with some low-cost storage options!
- Learn about Christmas Tree collars and decide if you want to use one this year!
- Where to buy the best Christmas Stocking holders
- Free Printable DIY Minimalist Christmas Tags
- Make an Anthropologie Dupe Christmas stocking – free pattern included!
- How to Pick a Christmas Tree
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