Learn how to decorate a Christmas tree like a pro with this step by step tutorial.
While black Friday is super exciting for some because of shopping, for others its a day they’ve been waiting for all year… Time to decorate that tree!
Although I’ve had my tree up since the first week in November it is still just as exciting for me. This year I put a lot of thought into our tree and I’m in no way patting myself on the back (okay maybe a little) but this is hands down the best Christmas tree I have ever decorated!
Christmas tree decorating has always been a struggle for me and even when I’ve tried my best in the past I have never been able to get that designer stuffed to the brim look. So when I started planning our color palette and decor for the season I spent a lot of time dissecting some of my favorite Christmas trees and paying close attention to A.) what all was on the tree and B.) Any variation in size, color, texture that I noticed and after a couple, things became clear.
Armed with my new information I set out on a mission to gather ornaments, ribbon and wrapping paper to kick things off… A few days and three shopping trips later this is how she turned out and since it turned out so good I am going to share the tricks I’ve learned with you today!
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Our flocked tree comes in 7.5′ and 9′ tall options, it is heavily flocked and can be messy but vacuums up easily and in my opinion totally worth it. You can find it here.
They also carry the 7.5′ option here.
If flocked trees aren’t your thing this one has been a best seller this year.
Collar or Skirt: Decide which option you like the best and have it set up and ready to go so you can put your tree in the center. If you like skirts better you can wait until you’re done setting up the tree to put the skirt on. You can find our Christmas Tree collar here.
Fluff: Most people know this one but just in case this is your first time decorating a tree be sure to spend some time fluffing the branches out since they usually get super smashed from the box. Typically I spend one day getting all of our decorations out, setting up and then fluffing the tree. Doing it on separate days helps me not to feel pressured like I have to have it all figured out right now. Last year when it was time to take the tree down I tried to make sure that I didn’t smash it much then I secured it loosely with tape. Doing that made such a difference in the amount of time it took to fluff the tree this year, so keep that in mind when you’re taking it down.
Lights or Extra Lights: Our tree is prelit and although I love the idea of adding tons of extra lights to the tree I have yet to do it because, to be honest, I’m lazy. But if you like the look or want to try it buy strands of lights in whatever color you’re going with or the color that came on your tree, I would say roughly 10 boxes. When you start instead of stringing the lights around in circles all uniform like stuff handfuls of lights inside the branches instead. Twinkle cluster lights are perfect for this and look so gorgeous when the mode is set on twinkle. You can find them here and here.
Large Ornaments: This step is probably the most important step of all… I know it might seem silly and you may not think it makes that big of a difference but large ornaments can 100% can make or break your Christmas Tree game! This year was the first year I invested in roughly 10-20 large ornaments. The amount you’ll need will be dependent on your tree size of course but ours is 9 Ft and I bought 4 boxes of larger ornaments in packs of 3. For an idea on the size, the champagne-colored pinecones I purchased are 9″ Long x 4 1/2″ diameter. I also bought some copper glitter flocked pine cones that are 5″ Long x 2 1/4″ wide.
Medium Ornaments: Then to add in some variation I purchased 8-10 boxes of four medium-sized ornaments.. These are your show stoppers. Where you’ll insert your signature color. For mine, I chose the ridged rose glitter ball ornaments and I literally covered our tree in those suckers because I love them so much!! For reference, they are 3 3/4″ diameter and I have I would say at minimum 48 on the tree. Let me just say these are perfect in my opinion because they bring so much to the table. The ridges make them textured, the sequins give that glimmer when the light hits one and again the size is great for filling up space.
Small Ornaments: Once all of the large + medium ornaments were in place I went through all of our old ornaments and pulled colors like gold, bronze, silver, and champagne in smaller sizes than the Medium showstoppers. If one was too big or the color was off I didn’t use it. When I had a pile gathered I began adding them to the tree, starting at the bottom and working my way up. I ended up not having enough of the right color so I ended up buying 2 boxes of 12 mercury glass look-alikes in plastic because let’s face it, I’m a mess and they would be broken in a day. Both of these are great small options. Here and Here.
Ribbon: This step was when things really started to come together. Last year I went with bows tied onto the branches so this year I wanted something different so I purchased 3 rolls (each roll had 15 yards) of 2 1/2″ wired black and white ribbon. When you are buying ribbon for your tree it is a must that you buy wired ribbon vs regular ribbon. The wire enables you to shape the ribbon if necessary and keeps it in its place. 3 rolls ended up being just enough but if you really want to stuff your I would recommend getting 4-5 rolls. Once you have your ribbon cut it in small strips from the tip of your finger to your wrist then cut it. All you are going to do is cut strips then tuck them randomly throughout the tree. There doesn’t need to be anything uniform about this, simply tuck a strip in and stand back to make sure things look good every now and then.
Picks: This year was my first year using picks and I ended up just grabbing some gold ones that caught my eye, I bought 6-8 of them and that wasn’t nearly enough. Next year I will probably invest in more but the tree looked good at this point so I left it alone. There are some great options here.
Star: I have tried so many different options over the last few years that I started getting frustrated because I couldn’t seem to get it right. I have been crushing on these gold stars and I finally pulled the trigger on this one after last year was another epic fail in the tree topper department and honestly I was a little shocked this simple gold star made such a difference in the look of our tree. It feels like it is made out of paper mache or something so if you end up purchasing one I would make sure that you pack it by itself and add in extra padding.
Finishing Touches: To finish things up and give your tree the feeling of all of those gorgeous trees you love its important to create a vignette under the tree by using matching wrapping paper that matches your color palette, wrap gifts or faux gifts in ribbon and trim them with small sprigs of cedar for a simple but classic look. You can also add in pieces such as baskets, logs, faux fur blankets, and even some tiny fairy lights. Move things around until you create a look you love. You want your tree to tell a story + give off a feeling (you decide what that feeling will be).
That is it!! By this point, your tree should look AMAZING! Now you are all set to be the envy of all of your guests so cozy up and enjoy the holidays! p.s if you use this method please, please, please send me pics of your tree, it would mean so much to me. I hope you and your family have a very Merry Christmas!
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