Simple, Inexpensive Christmas Decorations

With all the Christmas chaos, many of us have little time left to actually enjoy the holidays. And with the current economic situation, there's not as much "green" this Christmas season for many families. Perhaps it's time to simplify, and one of the best places to start is with your Christmas decorating. Little touches of creativity here and there can transform the plainest house into a holiday winter wonderland. It's all about setting the mood for Christmas.

If you don't have lots of money for holiday decorations, don't forget that you can use inexpensive items such as candy canes, and candy garlands to add Christmas cheer to a room. It's always fun to have an extra supply of candy canes on hand, so that you can give the little ones a treat right off the Christmas tree. And making a candy garland is as easy as buying colorful wrapped candies, and stapling the wrappers together to create a festive holiday swag. These can be used on the Christmas tree, or taped to a mantle or window sill. You can use candy wrappers of one color, or you can mix and match candies for a magical Sugar Plum Fairy effect.

Another inexpensive way to decorate for the Christmas holiday is with candles. Purchase plain pillar candles on sale, and adorn them with pushpins. Look for the thumbtack packages that resemble beads in assorted colors, and make patterns around the bottom of the candles, using one or two colors, or a rainbow assortment, for a beautiful holiday theme.

To add a more dramatic Christmas holiday look to gathered pine cones, mix cranberry spray painted cones, in an assortment of silver or gold painted cones, and display in a beautiful crystal bowl. For an extra touch, add a little holiday glitter.

Another simple and inexpensive idea for holiday decorating, is to take some of your extra Christmas bulbs, particularly the shiny ones, and attach them to ribbons. Than hang the ribbons at various lengths in front of a window. The light reflecting off the ornaments provides an elegant glow.

For a mantle or side table, create a Christmas flower or greenery display. You will need 2 glass vases, one larger than the other. Set the smaller one inside the larger one, and fill the space in between with brightly colored peppermints or other colorful holiday candies, such as red and green Hershey's kisses, or brightly wrapped caramel candies. In the smaller vase, add some Christmas greenery, or some silk poinsettias, or red and white carnations.

And don't forget how amazing one of your plain crystal or glass bowls looks, with brightly colored holiday ornaments inside. It's a simple touch, but a classy one.

Another fun decorative touch for the holiday season, is to tie Christmas bows on the back of your dining room chairs. Simply wrap the Christmas ribbon around the chair back, leaving enough room to make a bow, and have some long streamers hanging down. You can save the ribbon from year to year, and it will look just as pretty as the first holiday season, particularly if you use wired ribbon, which holds up better, and makes fuller looking Christmas bows. Be on the lookout after Christmas, or Valentine's Day, for craft ribbon on sale. This can even be done on card table chairs, and if you have several eating areas at your Christmas dinner, for a large family, this decorative touch will tie the holiday look together.

It's always fun to make holiday place cards. They can be cut from white or colored construction type, or heavier paper. You can hot glue a peppermint candy, or a small Christmas ornament to the place card, and write the names in a gold, red, or green gel pen.

For place settings, a fun Christmas touch is to put a salad plate inside your main plate. Then place a green, white or red napkin vertically across the plates. Place the silverware on top of the napkin, and then tie the whole place setting with a gold satin ribbon. The guests can then "unwrap" their Christmas place setting. You could also use metallic ribbon, or other type Christmas ribbons for a festive, elegant look. Save the ribbons for another holiday party, or for wrapping a Christmas present.

Don't forget to embellish the chandelier, as you "deck the halls" for your Christmas celebration. You can drape colorful beads in a garland, or make a holiday ribbon swag, or add artificial pine boughs and Christmas bows. Attach holiday ribbons to the mirrors throughout the house for a Victorian Christmas feel.

If you have red, green, or gold afghans or throws, now's the time to get them out for the holidays, and display them on chairs or sofas, for a warm, cozy Christmas feel. Combine these with any red, green or gold throw pillows you might have from another room in the house.

If you don't have a live Christmas tree, buy a couple of pine boughs for that wonderful evergreen smell, or splurge on a Yankee Candle in delightful Christmas fragrances like Mistletoe, Christmas Wreath, Peppermint Cocoa, or Home Sweet Home. Every year they come out with different holiday candles, and they also have room sprays that are in the same holiday scents. (Some of the vintage Christmas holiday scents can still be purchased on Ebay.)

Something I like to do for my guests, is to give them a memento of the evening. I purchase enough extra Christmas ornaments (on sale), so that each guest can reach in a basket on their way out the door, and pick the holiday decoration of their choice. Then they will have a memory of our happy holiday gathering, to place on their Christmas tree in years to come.

If you don't have money for an expensive holiday table runner, just a take a roll of your prettiest Christmas wrapping paper, and run it down the center of your dining table. You can use place mats (that you already have in any of the Christmas colors), and then place folded cloth napkins (with a glittered red rose or poinsettia in the center) on top of white dishes. This gives a very dressy, holiday feel to the table.

Sometimes I like to buy lace from the bolt, when it's on sale, in a deep red color, to decorate my counter, where the holiday food will be displayed. This can also be used year after year, and gives a very pretty Christmas look to countertops. Bring out every red, green, gold, or white candle that you have throughout the house, and light them to achieve a Christmas holiday glow. Grouping several candles on top of a mirror provides a lot of sparkle and shine. (Of course, never have candles where little ones can reach them, and never leave lighted candles unattended. When you leave a room, blow them out.)

You can even wrap a few of your hanging pictures so that they look like Christmas packages, complete with holiday ribbons. This is an inexpensive way to add to your Christmas decorations. And decorating with Christmas cards (from the present and the past) never goes out of style. Bowls of colorful fruit are beautiful and fragrant. Take some of those empty boxes, and wrap them in holiday paper, and place them in the foyer, or on the hearth.

Remember, it's not how much you've spent that makes the Christmas holiday so special. It's the warmth and love coming from your home during the holidays, that welcomes your friends and family. It's the wonderful smells of the Christmas season--the cookies baking in the oven--the apple cider simmering on the stove, or the hot chocolate with melting marshmallows, as you gather around the fireplace. It's the look of excitement on the faces of children, and the joy of listening to grandpa or grandma tell stories of Christmases past. It's laughter and hugs, and saying, "Merry Christmas" from the heart. With a little creative thinking, you can fill your home with the joy of the Christmas season.