Today I want to share some of my favorite decorating ideas for creating a festive home on a small budget with 5 simple tips.
- Christmas lights:
Lights add so much coziness to a space! Even if you don’t have time and money for anything else, just adding a few lights can make a big difference in your home. In our early years of marriage before I had accumulated Christmas decorations, lights were pretty much all I had! Of course this was almost 17 years ago and we didn’t have Pinterest to show us all the lovely & inexpensive DIY decorations! How did we make it without Pinterest?!
2. Christmas fabrics & patterns:
The right fabrics and patterns also play a large role in the coziness of your home at Christmas time. Burlap is one of my favorites to have around the house for the holiday season. This year we added Burlap ribbon to the tree as well as the table runner. One of my favorite combinations is the rustic/natural burlap and sparkly gold accents or the warmth of the golden glow from the Christmas lights. Plad is another of my favorites because of the large variety in colors and patterns available. Combinig the more masculine plads with softer crocheted pieces works very well.
3. DIY Garlands & Greenery:
Store bought garlands can be crazy expensive! The thing is, the right garland in the right place looks pretty amazing! Whether you prefer the good old simple green garlands or something with more color, both can easily be made at home for a fraction of the cost. Depending on where you live…if there’s any kind of evergreen trees in your yard, it may not cost you anything for a simple green garland for a fire place, stair case or shelves.
Other garlands you could try for a pop of color are these cranberry garlands. The beautiful red pairs so well with white and it costs very little to make.
These also go well with the green Christmas tree and pair well with popcorn. Here’s a garland from last year’s tree:
For some additional color, add in a dried orange garland in a window. These look beautiful when the sunlight streams in the window.
4. DIY snowflakes:
Another very inexpensive and easy craft you can try are these snowflakes. They can be a fun family activity as well for the holiday season. They look beautiful in the window or on a fireplace.
The popsicle snowflakes also make wonderful diy ornament gifts. You can add a small photo of your child in the center along with small sparkly jewel stickers and the year, for a sweet keepsake.
5. DIY ornaments:
Ornaments aren’t necessarily super costly if you’re buying one or two a year, but when you’re first starting out as a new husband and wife with not a single ornament to hang on a tree and very little money (that was us)…that all adds up fast when you think about how many ornaments it takes to fill up a tree!
My favorite thing to do is purchase one special “fancy” ornament each year to add to our collection and then make most of them ourselves. We use salt dough and apple cinnamon ornaments mostly and occasionally we’ll add in cranberry or dried oranges as well. I’ve also used pinecones to make ornaments before. Another thing I love about making diy ornaments is the fact that our tree is very different from year to year and as we look back on the photos, there’s fond memories of what we did this year versus the year before and the year before that.
A few extra thoughts on decorations:
Dollar store and Goodwill:
Don’t forget to check places like Goodwill or the Dollar store if you’re looking for inexpensive decorations! It’s a great place to start if you’re just starting out because sometimes you may find an entire collection of glass balls for a few dollars.
Hobby Lobby 50% off sales or 40% off coupons:
I love Hobby Lobby! It’s my “Target”. I’ve had people tell me it’s too expensive but I honestly don’t think it is, even on a small budget. The key with Hobby Lobby is patience and coupons or sales! I’m not sure if I’ve ever paid full price for anything since I found out about their 40% off coupon! Also, if you pay close attention to their sales, the way they work…their sale items change on a regular basis, you’ll have metal art on sale this week…frames the next time….paper goods after that.
Just before Christmas they had Christmas decor on sale 50% off and we were able to get our “fancier” annual ornament for a couple of dollars.
Hand me downs:
This may not be everyone’s cup of tea but I actually really love (some) hand me downs. I have a love of old things so anything pretty and vintage I will gladly use if I have space for it.
I’ve gotten an old adorable wooden rocking horse ornament this way. It’s one of my favorite! This is also why I typically look at Goodwill or other thrift stores for decorations because I thoroughly enjoy the old items.
Multi-season items like candle holders, vases, etc:
If you’re looking for ways to decorate on a tight budget, use items that can work with your style through the rest of the year as well. Wooden pices, metal buckets, glass or ceramic vases. These pieces can easily transition from one season to the next.
The little metal bucket sitting on our table with the greenery looks just as nice with some wheat for Thanksgiving or flowers in the spring and summer.
Simple and inexpensive decorations are just as pretty as the pricier store bought decor and they only require a little extra preparation. Additionally, they can make for wonderful annual family traditions that will help you create lasting memories!
Also, don’t forget to check out my other Christmas craft ideas here:
Mini wreaths:
https://oursimplefamilyliving.wordpress.com/2019/12/08/mini-wreath-tutorial/
Dried orange garland:
https://oursimplefamilyliving.wordpress.com/2019/12/14/dried-orange-garland-tutorial/
We are a bird watching family. We get a pretty decent group of birds that stop by multiple times a day just outside of our living room windows. Since their presence brings us a great deal of enjoyment, I’m always looking for inexpensive and creative ways to feed our little feathered visitors. This bird feeder idea I’m sharing today, happens to be a very simple one to make! You’re likely to have most, if not all, of the items needed on hand already. In case you’re looking for some fun winter crafts to do with the kids, it also makes for a great project for little helpers!
Our Simple Family Living 