Hey party people!
*Don’t be a party pooper & leave too early. There’s a giveaway at the bottom of this post!**
I’m giddier than a little girl who just got to meet Elsa from Frozen. Why? Because I am sitting in our living room looking at our beautifully lit new Christmas tree. I adore this time of year. Let me take you on a little tour of our house with some Budget-Friendly and Easy Christmas Decorating Ideas along the way…
I wasn’t so sure about this gorgeous tree, to be honest. I’ve ALWAYS had a real tree. Always. Like since I was straight out of my mother’s womb. BUT…I decided to give it a try this year with this St. Charles Spruce from Tree Classics and I’ve seen the LIGHT! The light of a Christmas tree that already HAS the lights on them AND that doesn’t shed AND that I don’t have to water AND that takes just a few minutes to set up AND I can do it all by myself. I’m never going back to a real one again. Seriously. I’m a b-tree-ver.
Last year, I got totally done putting all the lights on the tree, then I realized I plugged them in all wrong. I had to unwrap them and start all over again. My inner Clark Griswold came out of me. Not fun.
This year, no worries. I just attached the 3 main sections of my Tree Classics Spruce, plugged it in & boom. Done. It even has this cool little step button that you just press to turn the lights on.
Now on to some of the Budget Friendly & Easy Christmas Decorating Ideas…
I typically choose a color scheme that isn’t that popular, so I can never find what I’m looking for. This year was no exception…except that, thanks to SugarPaper, I got my mint green gift boxes.
I wanted to do a mint & gold color scheme. I ordered these gorgeous gold ornaments from Tree Classics and then I made the rest.
This saves some money, and the two ornaments I DIYed are SUPER easy. For the mint ornaments, I just gave plain ornaments a few quick coats of spray paint. I also made these felt poinsettias that I’ve used for several past Christmas trees. Create your own felt or paper poinsettias with this easy to follow video tutorial – DIY Paper Poinsettia. Just think different shapes and textures when decorating your tree.
Chances are you have some really fun accessories or vases you already own that can double as Christmas decorations. Take this bird cage, for instance, I just filled it with a white feather boa and ornaments and it became part of my Christmas decor.
Sometimes I get pretty caught up in the whole decorating thing that I forget to remember what the season is all about. I wanted to set this out to remind myself.
I have a love affair with ribbon. Is there a ribbon clearance bin outside of the craft store? Come to momma. BUT…Ribbon can be stinking expensive. So, when I realized I had a bunch of fabric leftover from my Beetlejuice Halloween Party, I decided to save some cash and use what I had.
I think my husband was shocked I didn’t put a black & white ribbon on him. I went a little crazy.
Based on the average price per yard of fabric, I saved 75% of what I would’ve spent on ribbon. And I love how it looks.
All you need to do is cut a small slit the width you want your ribbon, rip it, and you’ve got your ribbon.
See…told you…a little out of control with the ribbon.
Um…no, I do not have all my Christmas shopping done and presents wrapped when it’s only the 2nd of December. I fake it and you should too. Don’t take that out of context. The mint and gold dotted present above is an empty printer paper box and the boxes below are empty shipping boxes. I love to make presents gorgeous and all matching, but I’m also busy and sometimes don’t have time to wrap a bunch of presents that look pinterest-worthy. So, I wrap a few fake ones for “looks,” then I can wrap the rest how and when I want.
By the way…fabric can also double as wrapping paper.
I’ve done this for years and it’s one of my faves. Create instant Christmas pillows by wrapping them with ribbon or fabric like the pillow below. Easier than Whip n’ Nae Nae.
We’re having out of town guests stay with us over the holidays, so I wanted to spruce up our guest rooms. We’ve got one guest room that’s more rustic/masculine and one that’s more feminine.
I needed something bright and fun for the feminine guest room, so I used a cute tea towel to create some art above. I just slipped it in an Ikea frame and I was done. I may keep that up until July. Kinda love it.
My husband loves the traditional Christmas and is a little over my mint color scheme. So, I decided to spruce (I think we can start a drinking game with as many times as I’ve mentioned “spruce”) up his Man Cave.
Burlap bags became my tree skirt and I got a little creative on the ornaments…
He had some ornaments people had given him – he’s a Florida Gator and loves Penn State. But the tree was looking a little bare, so I saw these fun coasters we had around the man cave and decided those would be the perfect addition.
Because a Red Poinsettia just fits with a Jaegermeister bucket…
After all the decorating, Guinness was pretty pooped. Supervising is hard work. And I decided to sit and enjoy my beautiful Tree Classics Spruce with a glass of champagne.
You can enjoy a glass of champagne next to your own Tree Classics 7.5′ Classic Noble Fir Snap Tree! All you have to do is ENTER to win HERE. This almost a $700 value!
AND…check out the other amazing bloggers sharing their Tree Classics tree and decorations.
December 1: Rhoda from Southern Hospitality
Jenna from Rain on a Tin Roof
Bethany from Southern Couture
Justin & Cassity from Remodelaholic
December 2: Sheila from Plum Doodles
Kellie from Nest of Posies
December 3: Erin from DIY on the Cheap
Sarah from Homeology Modern Vintage
Heather from Southern State of Mind
December 4: Laura from Duke Manor Farm
Vicki & Jennifer from 2 Bees in a Pod
Julie from Julie Montgomery Interiors
* Disclosure: I was provided product in exchange for mentioning Tree Classics, but all opinions and ideas are my own.*
Beautiful work!
Thanks so much Melody!! <3 Heidi
Beautiful, I love the mint color idea I would have never thought that for Christmas. It gives the tree and the room such a softness and cozy feel (just looking at the photo) my me think of a cozy little B&B somewhere maybe up North in NH or Maine.
Thank you so much Victoria! Man…I wish I was in a B&B in Maine! ;p Merry Christmas! <3 Heidi
yes that would be nice, I’ve never been but for whatever reason your decor and tree made me think of it LOL
Love the colors. I would have never thought to do that. The tree looks gorgeous!! I enjoy reading through your discovery of fake trees. Too funny.
haha, Thanks Christine! <3 Heidi
Your mint and gold color scheme is gorgeous, Heidi!
Thanks Sheila!! Can’t wait to check out your decorations!! <3 Heidi
I am inspired!! Everything is just beautiful!
Awe, thank you so much Diana!! Really appreciate it! <3 Heidi
How beautiful is your tree with all those gorgeous packages underneath. I am in love with it! Your ideas are also awesome and definitely going to be useful this year.
Thanks Bethany! Loved yours as well…and so fun seeing your 80s party! Great job! <3 Heidi
Heidi, it’s BEAUTIFUL!!! Love what you did with your tree and the mint is gorgeous with it. Love love the black and white too, always so crisp and fun. You’re a whiz at this, great job! So happy you’re on the housewalk with us! xo
Thank you so much, Rhoda! Really appreciate it. Love YOUR tree. That white is so beautiful. Thanks so much for letting me be a part of the housewalk! Hope to catch up in person soon. <3 Heidi
I love the fabric-as-ribbon idea! What kinds of fabric do you find work best for this? And how do you keep the fabric-ribbon from fraying?
Thanks so much Rachel! 100% cotton fabric is the best to use. If you use buffalo check/gingham, cut your inch along one of the pattern lines. This means your fabric will tear along the grain. Either way, you will have some strings that fray a little bit. Once I cut the first couple off, I haven’t had any additional strings fray. Not sure if this will work, but I thought about spraying a little fabric starch along the edges to preserve the fabric bows until next year. I thought that may give them a little reinforcement. Thanks again, Rachel! Hope you have a confetti filled Christmas! <3 Heidi
Beautiful……love the black and white and mint! Right up my alley girl:)
Thank you so much Sherry! Means so much! Hope you have a beautiful holiday season! <3 Heidi
Love all of these awesome tips! Especially the ribbon on the pillow! I never would have thought of that! Pinning…
Thanks so much, Summer!! <3 Hope you & your adorable son are having a great Holiday season so far! <3 Heidi
Absolutely beautiful tree!
Thank you so much, Tina!! Really appreciate it. <3 Heidi
I’m inlove with your tree! Looks like it’s worth so much more, I love the mix of mint, checks and of course gold!!!!! Your home is just the epitome of Christmas style and classic taste! Love it!
Vel…thank you so much! That means so much to me. I really appreciate it. Hope you have a Merry Christmas! <3 Heidi
Welcome to the world of lifelike artificial Christmas trees, Heidi! I’m glad the St. Charles Spruce lived up to your expectations. Love your decorating ideas, especially the “fake gifts.” It’s sure to save people a lot of money—and a lot of hair! I can’t even begin to describe the amount of hair-pulling involved when it comes to my own Christmas shopping, what with the holiday rush and all. Thanks for the great ideas!
lol…Yes…we don’t want any hair pulling. Thanks so much Sarah! Loving my St Charles Spruce tree. <3 Heidi
Christmas tree decorating competition in our area on Christmas festival. I am searching on google for creative ideas. I get the beautiful tree decorating ideas. Thank you so much!
Oh good Derick! So glad!