Simplify & Celebrate: Time-Saving Tips for Stress- Free and Simple Christmas Decor

Turn your living and dining spaces into a festive & cozy spaces without spending lots of time or stress – and bonus!- you just might save some money, too. Below are a few tips & tricks to help you both simplify and add a little celebration for the Christmas season. So, fix your favorite hot drink, snuggle up on your sofa, and come on into our home to see some simple Christmas decor.

Do you need some easy Christmas decorating ideas?

I got an email response to the post I wrote on our Christmas bedroom decor. I haven’t been able to get it out of my mind. It said,

“I love this Rita. I am struggling with Christmas spirit this year. This is a very long and difficult life season we are passing through and the fact is – now it’s Christmas and I just don’t have a lot of energy or spirit for it. Thanks for these easy ideas.”

Easy and simple is the way I love to approach decorating any time of the year, so here are my top tips to simplify the entire process of Christmas decorating.

1. Limit the Amount of Christmas Decor You’re Willing to Store

I understand that simplifying your Christmas decor is easier said than done! There are SO many beautiful, eye catching options that it’s hard to choose between them all. Considering you may have been adding few new things each year, after decades of yearly Christmas decorating-you just might find yourself with a ginormous selection of decor to wade through.

One of my biggest tips is to set a limit for how much Christmas decor you are willing to store and pack away each year. The fact is, the more you have, the more work decorating each year will be.

My personal limit (for 33 years) has always been only 2 totes. I honestly don’t know why I set that limit as a newlywed, but I did – and I’ve never regretted it!

Here are some ways to keep your Christmas decor stash the size you choose it to be:

• When unpacking Christmas decor from the previous year, look for things that haven’t been used for a few years. Those are the items that maybe should be donated for someone else to enjoy.
• Before you purchase any new Christmas decor (even if it’s on a great sale) ask yourself if you have room in your storage space for it. If not, what are you going to get rid of to make room for the new thing?
• Mark & label boxes carefully so that you know where to find things quickly the following year. (Here are some great tips for Christmas decoration storage.)

2. Use Christmas decorating as a chance to declutter & clean up the space!

I find that Christmas decorating is the perfect opportunity to declutter and clean spaces to create a blank canvas for a fresh new decor look. Now, don’t let that statement scare you! It doesn’t have to take a tremendous amount of time.

If you think strategically and do a little speed cleaning, you can have it done quicker than you expect.

3. Start with a foundation of neutral Winter decor and add “Christmas” to it.

Since we’ve moved into a smaller space, I’ve started to look at Christmas decorating totally different. Yes, I love Christmas decor, but I first start with a “base” of cozy Winter decor.

Winter decor, unlike Christmas specific decor – is neutral enough to be left up all Winter long. I’ve started to get SUPER picky about what decorations come into my home, and I now look for things that will coordinate well with a few Christmas specific decor pieces.

Here are some Winter decorations that work well with Christmas decorations:

• Soft & fluffy blankets in neutral colors
• Pillow Covers in soft textures (like flannel and sherpa)
• Winter art prints
• Candles and lanterns
• Trees – wooden, velvet, and brush trees
• Stacks of books (work in every season!)
• Brass bells
• Pine cones and winter greenery

If you start with a foundation of Winter decor, you can add in Christmas things and it will feel perfectly ready for the holiday.

4. Choose key, specific areas to decorate for Christmas.

Instead of stressing yourself out thinking you need to fill every available surface with decorations, focus on a few key areas that will have the greatest impact. For example, a beautifully decorated Christmas tree can become the focal point of your space. Choose a theme or color scheme that reflects your personal style, and carefully select ornaments and garlands to create a cohesive look. By keeping the rest of the room relatively simple, your tree will shine even brighter.

Empty, blanks spaces are an important part of decorating for 2 reasons:

1. It makes the space feel less cluttered.
2. It provides room to host guests.

For example, rather than filling up the end tables by the couch with beautiful arrangements that take up the entire space, I like to leave generous room for guests to be able to put down their cup of coffee and appetizer plate.

5. Decorate with Meaningful Touches

When it comes to decorating your living and dining room for Christmas, it’s important to remember that the most meaningful decorations are the ones that hold sentimental value for you. Instead of falling for the pressure of creating a picture-perfect setting with the “viral Christmas tree”, consider adding meaningful touches that reflect the spirit of the holiday season and bring joy to you and your family.

Here are some ideas of things that might be meaningful for you to add to your decor:

• Cherished family heirlooms that have been passed down through generations.
• Homemade ornaments from the kids over the years.
• Items that reflect your interests & passions – like a collection of books, musical instruments, or holiday movies you’ve watched in the past.
• A photo book on the coffee table with family pictures over the years.

6. Craft up some decor (if you love crafting!)

If crafting is part of the decorating process that you love, it’s often a wonderful way to save some money on Christmas decor.

This year, the only Christmas craft I did was sew new pillow covers (that I can use all winter long!). The one pictured above was inspired by a Pottery Barn pillow cover that sold for $65. I made a similar version of it for less than $4… (Here is how I sew diy pillow covers with a zipper.)

7. Free printable art can help fill up an empty wall

I absolutely love using printable vintage art, and last year I printed the vintage print that hangs above our couch.

Other Simple Christmas Decorating Ideas:

• This easy Christmas tablescape idea can be used all Winter long.
• Hygge Christmas (meaning peaceful, serene, and simple) decor that is so beautiful and uncomplicated.
• Our Christmas decorated home tour from last year.

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