Christmas decorating is probably of the most exciting happenings of the year. This is a holiday that really expresses your own personality in decorating, whether you are stringing lights outside, or trimming a tree inside. There are so many different ways to decorate a single room, an entire living space, or just put a couple of decorative holiday candles out.

I grew up in a family that loved decorating for this holiday. My father loved to string garland and lights all over the house. The festive mood my parents created have left me with wonderful memories of my childhood.

The tradition has been kept alive in our home throughout the years. Every family has their own way of decorating, and there is no right or wrong way to decorate for Christmas inside or out. I like to follow a few basic color ideas, bring in some different themes throughout rooms, and more importantly, have fun decorating.

There are many different ways to go about decorating for holidays. Christmas is one of the most traditional decorating holidays of the year. Decorating doesn't have to be stressful or expensive. Here are a few ideas and suggestions that may get you into the holiday spirit.

1. Consider a color scheme in an individual room or entire living area.



2. Do you want to have a theme base holiday? - formal, country, traditional, etc...



3. Display any collectible items in odd numbers.



4. Green and gold, and blue and silver work well together.



5. Make holiday decorating a family project - let everyone get creative!



6. Create a room using just white lights and a few other secondary colors.



7. Traditional colors of red and green can be used throughout your holiday decorating.



8. Balance your holiday lights just like you would balance a room year around with lighting.

Color schemes are great for Christmas decorating. I like to look at the entire color scheme of a room before I decide on how to decorate for Christmas. If your room has neutral colors throughout, think about adding those rich Christmas tones of red and green. Another idea in neutral base colors, is to give the room an eloquent and formal look with those collectibles that are fancy and delicate. If your room or rooms are bold and bright in color, match some of those tones with your Christmas decorations.

Themes are a great way to make your rooms come to life during the holidays. If you have country decor throughout your living space, bring in some country decorations. Plaids are great to incorporate into a country feel. An old sled sitting near a fireplace, holiday stuffed animals in a rocking chair, a picnic basket filled with small presents, or a few country decorations on an accent table.

This is simple decor of nine different items. A couple of inexpensive accent candle lights, two brown decorative tins, a wooden reindeer, and four country collectable items make this a nice accent for a country room. Any type of figurines or collectables can go with many different color themes.

Get the whole family involved! Let your children or family members do some decorating with their own creativity. If you love to decorate for the holidays, get your own overall plan, and give other family members the opportunity to create their own room, or even a little space. A great way to not only have family time, but also give your house that real personal touch.

White lights throughout a room gives the holiday a clean and crisp look. Add some gold and green tones or silver and blue, depending on the color scheme of the room. This is where you can display formal collectibles, crystal, and other eloquent accessories.

White lights also can be put in any color room. Create the look with striking colored bows, an accent table set with holiday dishes, and also a tree decorated with white sparking lights.

The photo above is taken in a dining room and the accent furniture is one of the focal points of the room. The picture may be a little hard to make out as there is a soft blue accent light that creates a wonderful look. This style is great for displaying a few Christmas dishes, Santa's, and even a holiday pillow. Be creative with the items you already have. You can mix and match decorations and give your room a great theme or color scheme. Below are a few more pictures with some simple decorating ideas.

This is a great look for a small table or end table. The wall is done in a bright cayenne pepper color. I accented the small table with a deeper color cayenne linen, which blends well with the wall, and also brings a holiday tone into play. There are five items, three ceramic santa's, and two old accent lamps from my parents house. Just a little creativity can give you a great look for a small table.

This photo is of an informal mantle on a fireplace. Collectibles are put across the entire mantle and garland is strung with the colored lights. The blue garland accents other accessories in the room. A great way to bring out your primary and secondary colors.



If you have that piece of furniture you aren't using and just stored away, bring it out for the holidays, and decorate it. This is a modern piece of furniture that was an end table. There was glass on the top and one of our larger cats broke the glass. Instead of buying new glass or throwing it away, I decided to create a simple holiday look. I added some lights with some artificial Christmas flowers around the entire base of the end table. A great little accent piece for any room.











These last two pictures are of a decorated piano and organ in the same room. The theme is a tropical and beach one and I created a couple of different ideas. The first picture is the piano and the green garland and lights adds a new dimension to the room. There are different figurines placed on the piano, and three stuffed animals. The organ has different beach collectables on it, and I accented them with white garland and lights. Not all the lights have garland around them. This gives you a small light effect on some figurines.

The above ideas and pictures are just a few simple suggestions to take your very own taste and personality, and create a room filled with your very own holiday spirit. There are so many other ways to decorative for the holidays. I will be doing articles on upcoming holidays and ideas to create your very own look.


Tree Trimming And More - Christmas Decorating Ideas And Tips For You
Here is a simple Christmas decorating idea for you. An easy informal or country look using bears and Christmas colors. Garland adds to the atmosphere of the holiday season.

Formal And Simple Christmas Decorating Idea Formal and eloquent can be associated with holiday decorating. This page will share a couple of ideas using gold and white. Simple decorating that creates the formal look you may want.

Steps In Putting Up A Christmas Or Holiday Tree This page gives you some basic steps in putting up your Christmas or holiday tree. I wanted to share with you how Tom and I put up our live eleven foot Christmas tree. Plan your steps properly and this will ensure you and your family a enjoyable and safe holiday season.

Traditional Tree Decorating With Special Ornaments The decorating of a Christmas or holiday tree can be so much fun, but also have a lot of special memories. I wanted to share with you our traditional way of decorating the tree with ornaments that have been passed down as well as collected over the years.

Mantle - Christmas And Holiday Decorating Your fireplace and mantle can be the focal point of a room during Christmas and the holidays. There are different ways to decorate your mantle. Using miniature lights, garland, and figurines are a great way to decorate your mantle. Come check out what I have done the last two years.

Free Christmas Decorating Ideas - Simple And Easy Here are some free, simple, and easy Christmas and holiday decorations for you to get some ideas for your living space. Each of these decorations can be done in no time at all, and will create a festive, yet cozy holiday atmosphere for you, your family, and friends.

Dining Room - Simple Christmas And Holiday Ideas The dining room is a special room to create a Christmas or holiday atmosphere. I wanted to share our dining room with you and what I do to incorporate a couple of different themes. Feel free to share your holiday decorating ideas with all of us.

Cactus- A Great Christmas Plant To Decorate The Christmas Cactus is a wonderful plant that shows off its beautiful flowers around the holidays. The rich shades of red, pink, or white blooms ignite an accent table. A few thoughts for you to do a simple look for the holidays.