Hi and welcome back to my 2020 holiday series.
Now that the turkeys have been roasted, pies have been eaten, and that traditional thanksgiving afternoon nap has been had, it's officially time to start decking the halls for the holidays. (That is, of course, if you are a traditionalist and not Christmas-crazed like I am; the first tree was up in my house October 31...judge me.)
Anyway, I hope your holiday season is off to a great start so far. Since we are all filling our homes with a little bit of Christmas cheer, I thought I would share a few of my best Tree decorating tips----plus all 4 of my trees----here with you today.
I am going to show you how I decorated 4 trees in my home.
If you want to actually see what I did, step by step, you can watch my video here:
All of the trees you will see here today, are different themes, different styles, and I used different techniques to decorate them all. I’ve picked up a lot of tips over the years when it comes to tree trimming, and without further ado, here they are.
Trust me, achieving the look you want Is easier than you think, you can do it, I promise! We got this. So let’s get to decorating.
First things first: Setting up The Tree
Tree Tip 1:
Wear Gloves and Long Sleeves when Putting your Tree together.
My biggest time and hand-saving tip here: Wear gloves and long sleeves. Fluffing an artificial tree can and will be cruel on your skin. The branches can leave little cuts on your hands and arms; so this will help prevent some of those. (trust me, this is pro-tip)
Tree Tip 2:
Fluff the Branches as You Put the Tree Together
Next: My best suggestion on efficiently fluffing a tree is Fluff as you go along. This make it much easier and saves time.
Also, this is just a handy hack for those of you that set up flocked trees, I like to remove mine from the box with bubble wrap or you could use plastic sheets then I then lay down under the tree while I fluff and decorate. It just makes the flocking clean up process a whole lot easier.
Decorating the Tree
Tree Tip 3:
Start with Your Statement Pieces
Now that the tree is up and fluffed, it’s time to start decorating. So
what to place on the tree first?
The answer to this question is going to depend on a couple of things:
1. The technique you’re using and the style you're going for this year.
2. Ornament Size: You will want to start with your largest pieces first, and then work your way to the smallest.
Those two things are really going to determine the order of all of your steps in the tree decorating process, but Typically when I begin decorating a tree, I start my statement pieces.
Quick side note: All my trees are pre-lit, so If you do not have a pre-lit tree then you would want to add your lights first. Just a little reminder.
Ok back to statement pieces…
The reason you want to place your Statement pieces in the tree first, wether it’s ribbon or pre-lit boxes---like I have in my entryway tree, or something else, is because those pieces are usually your largest and the main focal points of your design. So to get an overall cohesive look, its a good idea to place those pieces before anything else in the tree.
To that point, I feel like some of you might be wondering, What if you are using statement pieces and ribbon? If I’m using statement pieces and ribbon in my tree, I always add the statement pieces before my ribbon.
Tree Tip 4:
Don't Forget the Ribbon.
Let's Talk Ribbon.
I think ribbon is such an important element in your tree design. The ribbon can really bring that design to life, and can be the determining factor between a tree that wows and a tree that, well, doesn't.
There are tons of ribbon techniques you can use on a tree. I’ve actually used 4 different techniques on my trees this year, and you can see all of those in this post here, where I have a step by step tutorial on how to do ALL four techniques.
I want to show you my living room tree, and the grandest tree in the house I would say.
My theme in my living room this year is "Winter Forrest," and I new I wanted to mix in traditional, nostalgic holiday elements into my design.
So I decided to use traditional red velvet ribbon to make big beautiful bows I could place throughout the tree. I then used smaller strips of the same ribbon, looped sporadically throughout the tree, to give the illusion that the tales of the large bows just kind of continue throughout the tree, magically popping out here and there.
This ribbon technique is also why I chose to use a large bow in the same ribbon as my tree topper. I do think it’s such a traditional and nostalgic way to decorate a tree, and I love how it turned out.
Tree Toppers
Speaking of tree toppers, Your tree top is your big focal point at the top, and it can be as simple or as plush as you want it to be.I have used a variety of different tree toppers this year from the traditional star to a cute tophat surrounded by ornament picks.
Tree Tip 5:
Place your Topper Before your Breakable Ornaments
Once the ribbon is on, I personally like to go ahead and place my topper next. Placing your tree topper before you start to add ornaments, especially breakable ornaments, is best so that you don’t accidentally knock them off when you are climbing up that ladder to place your topper. - just the opinion of one very clumsy girl that has learned this lesson the hard way.
Ok, usually my next step in the tree decorating process is to add my picks and sprays.
Adding Picks & Sprays
You can use as many different pick styles as your heart desires, but I suggest going with at least 2 minimum per tree. These help your tree look a little more full, and help fill in those light gaps and spaces in the tree that may need a little extra fluff.
The good thing about picks, is that you don’t have to buy too many of them to get a beautiful look or the affect you’re going for; You just need to place them strategically, and somewhat evenly, throughout the tree.
Time to add the Ornaments!
A couple things to consider when picking the ornaments you are going to use on your tree.
1. Your theme & color palette.
2. Again, Sizing: you want the ornaments you use to be in a variety of sizes so that you create that depth and balance you’re looking for in the overall design.
As I mentioned before, I start with my largest ornaments first, and work largest to smallest.
When placing larger ornaments, I try to keep them towards the spine of the tree. I place most of my smaller ornaments on the outer layers and towards the top. Again, it’s all about balance and a little bit of Symmetry here.
Remember, this is a process----a Christmas labor of love if you will----and placing pieces can take a bit of time. You may have to move a few things around before you find that perfect spot for each of them on the tree.
Another important thing to remember, When it comes to ornaments. Don’t forget the traditional balls or what I like to call your basic ornaments.
Tree Tip 6:
Don't Forget to Begin with Your Basics
its a good idea to start with your basic ball ornaments and then build out with your other unique pieces from there.
Tree Tip 7:
Remember to Add a Little Pizazz to the Center of the Tree too.
My final ornament tip is something I like to do with my ornaments that I really think makes the tree subtly look more professionally done.
I always place a few ornaments deep inside the tree, not just hanging on the outer branches. This brings the eye through the tree, and again, creates that depth and dimension we are looking for.
I want to give you a little better look at what I’ve done with this flocked tree that I set up next to my fireplace year.
As I mentioned earlier, the theme in this area of the house is winter forest, so I really wanted this tree to tell a little bit of a story. I used some very special, and very cute ornaments to do that.
Since this tree was already flocked and mostly white, I decided to keep a more tonal color palette here and extend that white out to the ornaments.
I wanted to add a little pop of that vibrant red I have throughout the other decor downstairs.
I used these red birds and I think they really bring the tree to life. It’s the only pop of color on the tree, and when you look at it from a distance, it looks as if the cardinal and his two little baby birds just came and perched on this snow covered tree.
Obviously, I love it.
Now its time to add your tree skirts
Tree Tip 8:
Give your Tree Skirt a little Puff
I do have A little tip to KEEP that traditional tree skirt from falling flat before Santa comes to visit.
All you have to do, is take a bit of tissue paper, or bubble wrap, and just lightly stuff a few pieces underneath the skirt. This will give that skirt a fuller look.
I hope you found a few helpful little tree trimming tidbits in this post.
I appreciate you stopping by the blog today, and I will see you soon!
Lots of Love,
Brittney