One of the things I was most excited about this year was decorating my own space for Christmas. What I was not excited about? Starting from scratch buying Christmas decorations. Z and I were determined to not spend a fortune on our decorations, but we still wanted to go all out. So, I figured out the easiest way to do holiday decor on a budget while still looking great, and today I’m sharing my tips.
The Tree
Granted, we didn’t exactly get a ‘budget’ tree, but we got a really great deal for how nice our tree is (it is nearly 9 feet!). The farm we got ours from did have more budget options, and we saw some great trees at Lowes. And you don’t have to get a real tree! Z loves real ones, and I admit the house smells great, but there are plenty of pretty fake trees that still look nice that are a little more kind to your wallet. And besides, once it gets all decorated and done up, you can’t immediately tell. With all that said, I do love having a real tree in the house for our first Christmas.
Decorations
This is definitely an area where your money can quickly disappear. We bought two large boxes of ornaments (we have a big tree!) at TJ Maxx. I found that TJ Maxx and Big Lots had the prettiest, best-priced options for your money. Look around a little before you buy- you might find something you like better (for cheaper!) at a different store.
Our tree, complete with my DIY mantle (I used extra branches from the bottom of the tree that we cut so it would fit in the stand! and our stockings from Big Lots! Notice we have 2 extra ones for the pups! Our topper and lights are from Lowe’s, and our tree skirt is from TJ Maxx.
Extra Decor
This is really where you can spend money. Every little tchotchke that you toss in your cart can add up! I only bought one or two smaller items, and I’m DIY-ing the rest! I made the wreath for our front door, our mantle decorations, and I filled a big lantern with all our extra ornaments. It looks great, and it didn’t cost any extra money. I have a few more DIY projects that I’m planning, which I will hopefully share on the blog soon!
DIY
Speaking of DIY, here’s a little bonus. I bought a plain wreath from Lowe’s for $10 (!!!) and then bought little 99ยข add-ons at Wal-Mart. To secure them to the wreath, I used the twisty ties that came with our lights (like the kind that come on a loaf of bread), cut them in half, and wrapped the decorations onto the branches of the wreath- and voila!
Holiday decor on a budget isn’t impossible. We probably could have saved a little here and there, but I love how the house turned out so far and my bank account is pretty happy too! How are you saving money this season? Let me know in the comments!
3 Comments
Oh yeah I bet the real tree does smell great though! Great idea to look at TJ Maxx!
When we got we had 3 ornaments to our name (the two “1st Christmas” ornaments we got from both sets of parents, and one Silver star ornament my husband’s sister got us. I bought one small set of white glass ornaments with a sparkly silver design on them (to go with the white wedding ornaments and the silver, and the rest we filled in with Paper snowflakes.) It was the only time all the ornaments on our tree matched and it was beautiful. We kept doing that until gradually, from gifts of ornaments from friends and family, and hand-made ornaments from our children, we had a colorful collection to deck our tree with. Now, since my parents passed, I have all the ornaments from my childhood too. Every one holds a memory. Our tree no longer matches but it is still beautiful.
I love this! Right now it matches but I’m sure that will change in the coming years!