How to decorate for the holiday season on a budget

'Tis the season to be jolly and make merry! The whole world is gearing up for a shopping and partying frenzy. While this may be wonderful for the soul, it's not easy on the pocket. One place you can save more than a few pennies is on your home decor. Whether you're entertaining family and friends or simply want to invite some holiday cheer into your abode, it's worth putting in the effort so you don't have to put in the cash.

 

 

Trawl your house for any leftover decorations that you may repurpose. Old tinsel can be transformed into colourful wreaths or wrapped at the base of your tree and pot plants. Christmas baubles that have lost their lustre can be spray painted with a base colour and personalised with glitter to spell out the names of family members and close friends who will be joining the celebrations. 

 

While Pinterest is filled with thousands of images of homemade Christmas decorations, you want yours to be as practical as possible, while still being as enchanting as ever. Use wooden chopping boards as trays for cheap scented candles and collect pinecones to decorate between. Intersperse the two for an interesting centrepiece for your tables. 

 

You can make pinecone collecting a fun game for the kids and get them to help with festive silver and gold paints. Paint branches and leaves for a rustic feel and get the most out of your buck. These can be used as decor all over the house and gives the impression that you spent a lot of time, money and effort decorating. 

 

 

Lanterns are very on-brand for the festive season and can be cheaply sourced from most second-hand stores or multi-purpose shopping centres. They can be used around the garden and filled with old baubles and pinecones. For an ethereal glow, you can paint the panes red and green and place candles inside at night time. This is an especially good idea for Christmas eve celebrations. 

 

Any outdoor furniture can be included in the festivities with pre-made bows stuck to the back of chairs, fairy lights wrapped around table legs and streamers and tinsel draped along the walls. 

 

 

Online retailers such as Shein and Wish have every holiday item under the sun. From miniature trees to life-size Santa Claus and reindeer, you can purchase this inexpensive decor for use inside and outside your home. Create an entire nativity scene, Santa's workshop display or larger-than-life fake snowmen for your garden. 

 

These readymade items also come in handy as props for your holiday season photos. Stage your family Christmas card to look as festive as can be with matching Christmas sweaters, a fully loaded tree and Christmas-themed books, gift socks and boxes. Ordering from an online retailer is best done in advance. You can store your goodies safely until it's time to bust out the carols and mince pies. 

 

 

With simple brown paper, you can transform your gifts into custom-made treats. Make your own stencil of candy canes, trees and bows out of cardboard and transfer them onto your wrapping paper. Alternatively, you can buy Christmas stickers and quickly create colourful paper that is instantly recognisable among the pile of presents under the tree. If you want to leave the brown or white paper as is, you can tie cheap ribbons into extravagant bows for a sophisticated, understated charm. 

 

 

The festive season is a time for relaxing. Spend as little time as possible worrying about the details and more time enjoying the bigger picture. In this case, appreciating how inexpensive and easy it is to decorate your home on a budget. With RealGlen Properties, you can shop for your next home and learn how to make little changes with a big impact. Contact one of our trusted property practitioners today. 

Author REALGLEN Properties