When the holiday season rolls around, do you often find yourself wondering: 'How can I make my house look Christmassy yet elegant?'
If you're left scratching your head, it's time to brush up on some expert tips on stylish Christmas decorating that will see you through the season every year.
Top interior designer Marie Flanigan has let us in on six of her festive styling secrets so you can recreate the look in your own home for a chic holiday decor display that also channels the magic of Christmas.
Houston, Texas-based principal designer Marie Flanigan is a regular contributor to Livingetc. As a classically trained and practiced architect, Marie's work has also featured in Architectural Digest, Elle Décor, Vogue, Southern Living, Domino, Traditional Home, Elegant Homes, Southern Home, and Luxe Magazine. She regularly shares her design and lifestyle advice with TV audiences, including appearances on HGTV’s internationally broadcast series, Property Brothers: Brother vs. Brother.
How can I make my house look Christmassy? 6 tips to a design-led display
It's not as hard as you might think to create a high-end Christmas look that will impress your guests.
Marie Flanigan, of Marie Flanigan Interiors, reveals her six top tips for making your house look Christmassy below. The bonus? They're all ways you can decorate for Christmas cheaply, too - so you don't have to blow the budget for a designer-worthy aesthetic.
1. Don’t forget to look up
Use fixtures and fittings that are already in place in your home to dress up and hang oversized Christmas decorations on. This has a simple, Scandinavian Christmas decor vibe to it, especially when done with a neutral palette.
'One of the sweetest ways to decorate for the holidays is by adding holiday details to light fixtures,' says Marie. 'Whether adding a beautiful bow to pendant lights or dangling snowflakes from a chandelier. This is an easy way to add a festive feel to your space.'
2. Decorate the unexpected
Bring a beautiful Christmassy feel to the whole house by placing simple decorations throughout. Yes, Christmas bedroom decorations are a thing, and why not include the bathroom?
Marie comments: 'Even bathrooms should include holiday touches. I love adding a festive arrangement to countertops or hanging a wreath on the window or door.'
You could also bring a festive touch to your sleep sanctuary with by hanging paper garlands, stringing lights around the bed, or placing a homemade Christmas stocking on your nightstand.
3. Keep your holiday decor simple
'When in doubt, keep décor simple,' says Marie. 'I love including pared-back, beautiful greenery with a touch of natural elements, like orange slices, pinecones or berries. This method is foolproof and an easy way to usher in the season.'
4. Create a tablescape before Christmas Day
One way to foster the Christmas spirit in your home every day? 'Keep your Christmas tablescape on display all season,' suggests Marie.
'Sometimes there’s nothing more beautiful than Christmas table décor, so choose items that will last all season, like faux garland, flowers and fruit, along with pottery, and other delicate touches.'
5. Fill vases with foraged foliage
'Do you have shelves and surfaces with ceramics? If so, fill them with holiday foliage,' advises Marie.
'There are so many beautiful options for holiday foliage, like ferns, holly berries and snowberries - and don’t forget to check your yard for beautiful branches, stems and berries first.'
If you want to go one step further, you can hang baubles, pine cones sprayed with metallic paint, or paper decorations to give festive twigs and stems a bigger dose of Christmas spirit.
6. Use a color palette that complements your home
'It’s so much fun to shop for holiday décor, but often it can look a bit disjointed if it’s a large departure from your home’s aesthetic,' warns Marie.
Instead, create a holiday color palette that complements your home. If your home is full of modern farmhouse design ideas and you favor minimalist Christmas decor, continue the rustic appeal with authentic foraged foliage displayed in garlands on mantelpieces and stair bannisters, pine cones placed in decorative bowls, and cinnamon sticks scenting the space.
If you're a fan of maximalism in interior design, allow your Christmas decorating to follow suit with joyful, colorful displays that could include bright paper garlands and honeycombs, pretty 'presents' created by wrapping empty boxes with printed paper and ribbons, or brightly painted baubles.
The Livingetc edit of the best Christmas decorations in the sales now
Pistachio is going to be one of the biggest design trends for next year - trust us - so get in early with this ice cream sundae of a tree decoration.
Nothing ever beats the pure festive palette of red and gold and this garland is so full and warmly lit that it feels like pure Christmas. Wrap around staircases or over mantles.
A literal wall of twinkliness, these golden stars warm up cold windows or can even be hung in entryways or across the center of living rooms. 'Like walking under a cascade of Christmas,' said our editor Pip Rich.
How do you decorate your house for Christmas?
Don't forget that Christmas decorating ideas do not have to be complicated. Create a basic scheme and build from there.
Try hanging a wreath indoors for an easy first step, and fill vases with festive foliage for a simple look that will pack visual impact.
One of the easiest ways to bring a festive ambiance to your home is by peppering it with fairy lights and candles.
'Set your home aglow and use candlelight and fairy lights to create ambiance and warmth in the home,' advsises Becca Casey, of Connecticut-based Becca Interiors 'From wrapping greenery to clustering lights in a glass hurricane centerpiece, light can create such a beautiful festive mood within a space.'
And don't forget to fill the home with enticing festive aromas. Becca says: 'Utilize scent to set the scene; source a festive holiday candle to excite the senses.
'Then, bake dried oranges with cloves to bring a gorgeous holiday scent into your home as well as a beautiful ray of color.
'Cut slices and hang them from your tree, or bake them whole and style in a bowl atop your coffee table.'
When it comes to your tree, learning how to put lights on a Christmas tree is the first step. You can then build your look with a few pretty baubles and keep it there for a minimalist effect, or keep building with more decorations for a flamboyant aesthetic.
How can I make my house look Christmassy on a budget?
The best way to bring a festive ambiance to your home for free is by foraging for foliage. You can create anything from a mantelpiece garland to a showstopping Christmas table centerpiece with ivy, berries, and herbs.
You can also use foliage to decorate sideboards and consoles, whether it's by placing pine cones in bowls, stems and branches in vases (trying hanging baubles from styled twigs), or greenery around window frames and mirrors.
For affordable but cool Christmas decorations, choose paper honeycombs and stars to hang from the ceiling or leave loose on benches or on the floor.
And don't forget to be creative; you can give old baubles a new lease of life with some paint and glitter, and why not try making Christmas stockings to hang from the mantelpiece instead of splashing out on store-bought versions this year?
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