The Most Beautiful Christmas Tree Decorating Ideas
These Christmas tree decorating ideas will have you feeling extra festive this season. Here’s everything you need to know about decorating your tree like a pro.
Christmas is in the air, and you can almost smell the fresh-cut trees (or the artificial ones, no judgment)! I love the tradition of hunting for the perfect tree and then bringing it home to decorate it.
If you are looking for some inspiration this year, I have this lovely list of Christmas tree decorating ideas for you to look at. The thing I love about all of these Christmas tree ideas is that you can basically do no wrong.
You can go as simple or bold as you want with your festive decor—don’t be afraid to add your personality in. Many of us struggle with how exactly to master tree decorating—I am happy to help remedy that. You’ll be decorating like a pro before you know it.
I love to share my best Christmas decorating tips with you! Some of my favorites include How to Decorate the Kitchen for Christmas, primary bedroom Christmas decor and how to display kitchen cabinet wreaths. My hope is that they will help you to create a home you love!
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How To Decorate A Christmas Tree
There isn’t a wrong way to decorate a Christmas tree, but the process can be much less stressful and feel more cohesive if you follow these tips:
- Pick a tree. Whether you are going with an artificial tree or a fresh cut one, it’s important to start here. ☺️ I gathered the BEST artificial Christmas trees in this post (click here). Happy shopping!
- Choose a theme. I love to make a themed tree because it adds so much beauty while also keeping the decorating process very streamlined. You can choose a more eclectic design or opt for a classic one if you prefer.
- Select your Tree Skirt or Tree Collar. In the old days you could add the tree skirt at the end of the decorating process. But many of the tree collars have to be added before you put together your tree. So, go ahead and pick it now!
- Add those lights. The first thing to add is always the lights. It will make your experience much smoother. Plus, having your lights in place will help you decide where to put everything else. Make sure to keep the lights turned on as you decorate, so you can see how everything looks together.
- Place garlands, tinsel or ribbons on the tree. If you are planning to add garland, tinsel or ribbon, this is the next step. You can do a variety of all three, or just one, or even skip this step entirely—whatever you like.
- Hang the ornaments. Start with the largest ornaments first! Spread out your ornaments, so they are evenly placed on the tree. A general rule of thumb is that you should have about 10 decorations per foot of tree. So if you have a 7-foot tree, you are going to need 70 ornaments to fill it appropriately.
- Don’t forget the Christmas tree toppers. Use a ribbon, angel, star, or anything else that you love as the topper. It’s going to be the focal point of the tree, so make sure it’s a piece you love.
Easy Christmas Tree Decorating Ideas
Now that we’ve covered the basics of how to decorate a Christmas tree, it’s time to get to the Christmas tree decorating ideas!
1. Go Traditional with Plaid
I used traditional red and green plaid ribbon to decorate this gorgeous artificial real-feel raiser fir Christmas tree. Then I added our nostalgic family ornaments and it made the perfectly cozy family-centered Christmas tree. Don’t forget to wrap gifts in matching papers!
Gold berry picks and blueberry picks finished off the look! Oh, and I added a wooden star tree topper for a casual vibe. I love it!
2. Add DIY Accent Pieces
For this flocked Christmas tree I added to our primary bedroom, I opted to keep it simple. Using white lights to add charm and character, I was able to create the perfect casual, yet elegant look.
I also made this DIY tree basket with some basic supplies for my mini tree in the bedroom. It was super easy! I didn’t have to spend a lot of time, energy, or money on this project, and the result is fantastic and festive.
3. Feminine Flair with Shades of Brass and Blush
In my office, I love adding a flocked tree with pretty cream and gray plaid ribbon and pink, brass and gold ornaments (a few gray ones, too!). It works with my feminine blush and brass office decor and makes me happy every time I walk into the room!
4. Fill Your Tree with Vibrant Colors
Color lovers, this Christmas tree by Michael at Inspired by Charm is for you! This tree is breathtaking with all the ombre vibrancy—it’s definitely one that made me stop mid scroll!
Michael created a delightful look that will go with most decorating styles. Placing the tree in front of the two large windows puts lots of natural light on the Christmas tree too.
You can recreate this look with just one color glass ornaments as well, rather than a rainbow. If you love blue, for example, put your dark blue ornaments on the bottom of the tree and the lightest ones on top for that ombre effect. Just choose your favorite colors and get to work.
5. Add Natural Elements
You can even skip the ornaments all together like Eden at Sugar and Charm did. Instead of opting for decorations, she chooses vibrant and colorful berries to decorate her tree.
While I am not always a fan of red, I love how subtle and beautiful it is, and am inspired to add red berries to my own decor this year. The greenery, white lights, and berries are a perfect complement to each other. Take a look at her whole home Christmas tour for even more inspiration.
6. Holiday Cheer with Whimsical Winter Wonderland Ornaments
Since I decorate more than one tree for myself, my daughters now want me to decorate trees in their rooms. So, it’s been fun to create a pretty, winter wonderland tree for them! I used this inexpensive pre-lit 6.5 flocked tree and it’s perfect!
Decorating the tree was so easy because you can buy pre-made sets of ornaments that you can use on the whole tree. Just add some ribbon a tree topper and a tree skirt and it’s done! It’s a great way to finish a kids tree in no time.
7. Simple Bows instead of Ornaments
In my dining room, I added this gorgeous slim Aspen Fir Tree to my dining room last year. And all it needed was some pretty gold ribbon bows added to finish the look!
8. Blue and Green Plaid Color Scheme
For this beautiful blue and green plaid Christmas tree, I also accentuated natural elements, to coordinate with our Hale Navy living room.
I added lots of copper, brass and mercury glass glam ornaments to bring out the browns and wood colors. I added larger 4 inch rustic orbs and white painted ornaments to give the holiday decor even more depth!
9. Flocked Christmas Tree with Navy Accents
You can see that same green and navy plaid from above, but this time on my small flocked white tree. The navy really pops against the lighter background and the white and gray walls. This was also the first time I combined a woven tree collar with a tree skirt and loved it!
This was one of my very favorite Christmas living room decor moments! I also had various blue plastic ball ornaments on the tree, but they are hard to see from this far back.
I made them by filling clear plastic ball ornaments with my favorite blue paints. Voila! Custom ornaments! So if you have leftover paint sitting around that would look great with your color scheme, try making your own!
10. Christmas Tree Decorated with Candle Lights
Ashley from Modern Glam chose to decorate Scandinavian Christmas tree with candles! She says it’s actually an Old World meets modern meets Scandinavian tree with a mix of elements that just work! And that includes the simple, but beautiful wrapped gifts under the tree!
Use a combination of paper snowflake ornaments , wood beaded garland, ribbon bow and strings of candle lights with melted wax to get the same look! It has a beautiful old world, vintage vibe!
11. Use Timeless Metallics
Metallic ornaments are a long-time favorite when it comes to Christmas tree ideas because they are timeless. Decorating with metallic ornaments has been around forever, and I hope it stays that way. Lia Griffith at Craft Your Life used a lot of homemade Christmas ornaments, and it couldn’t have turned out any more gorgeous!
12. Layer in Buffalo Check
I never get tired of finding all sorts of Christmas tree decorating ideas. One of my favorites from the past is this buffalo check tree!
However, I didn’t want to opt for traditional red and black; I wanted something different. When I saw the navy colored buffalo check, I knew right away that I needed it!
Combining the checkered ribbon, with the rustic burlap ribbons, turquoise ornaments, pom-pom garland and large white snowflakes created a look that I absolutely loved.
13. Add Charming Farmhouse Style with Cotton Bolls and Lamb’s Ear Picks & Matching Gifts
This tranquil and inviting farmhouse tree is perfect for the holiday season. Cotton, lamb’s ear, a variety of white ornaments, and rustic ribbon create a beautiful, serene tree.
You’ll also notice that all of the wrapped gifts are made to match each other, too. That’s a small detail that adds to the charm of this cute Christmas tree idea. I also opted to add a large galvanized tree collar to the base of the tree, which you know I love
14. Country Plaid Tree
Here’s another one of my favorite Christmas trees from years past. Country plaid adds just the right touch of red for that festive pop. There’s a reason it is always a popular choice for decorating with country style—it looks amazing.
As you can see, I added some berries to give the tree some depth, as well as various styles and shapes of ornaments. Add some variety to the style of ornaments because they don’t all need to be balls. You’ll love the different texture your tree has when you use lots of different sizes and shapes.
I also chose to add some chalkboard ornaments with Christmas themed sayings on them. The entire look just invites you to pull up a chair, sip on a warm drink, and get cozy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Start with a tree skirt or collar, then add lights. Next up is the ornaments and you’ll want to go biggest to smallest. Finally, finish the tree with embellishments like sprigs and sprays. And don’t forget the tree topper!
Add layers of ornaments, ribbons and embellishments to make your Christmas tree look luxurious. Layer in larger ornaments with smaller ornaments, cascading ribbons in a variety of widths and colors and lots and lots of lights!
Wrap each tree branch in lights from trunk to tip! I have a How to Put Lights on a Christmas Tree tutorial!
Final Thoughts
I hope these beautiful Christmas trees inspired you to create a beautiful theme for your tree this year! Or maybe take a few ideas from each one and incorporate them into your holiday decor. Whatever you do, I hope you love your home decor this holiday season!
Are you inspired to start decorating? Grab your Christmas PJs, put on a cheesy Hallmark movie, and get to work! ☺️
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I’m definitely a classic red, green and gold kind of girl, and I fall into the camp of using collected and kid’s handmade ornaments. I would describe my style as a combination of classic and rustic Christmas. But I have to say, that rainbow tree is amazing! We are building a new home, so next year I will have room for two trees if I desire, and I am definitely pinning this one for inspiration! My late aunt, who was quite the decorator and antique lover, used to do two trees, one more classic green one, and one fancy white one!
So fun! Congrats on the move! When move into our new house, I plan on having three trees next year! 🤪