Have you ever stared at a beautiful Christmas tree in a store and thought to yourself: why doesn’t my tree look like that? If you have, the first thing to remember is that you’re not alone. Millions of people struggle to create the tree of their dreams in their own home — but the feat isn’t an impossible one.
A Christmas tree is often the centre of family celebrations during the Christmas period. It lights up the room, sets the tone for the rest of the festive decorations and provides cover for gifts. If you can get your tree right, you can get your celebrations off to the best possible start. These eight simple tips should help you to create something that befits the occasion.
1. Find the best place for your Christmas tree
Spend some time thinking about where to place your tree before starting. Where will it get the most attention, and where will it deliver the maximum effect? Once you’ve decided on a location, spend some time preparing the room by cleaning, decluttering and moving furniture and possessions if necessary. If the space is tight, decorate the tree in an area that provides more access, as this will make the creative process a great deal easier.
2. Put the lights on first
The lights on your tree are crucial to its final look. You need to be sure that the lights are evenly spread around — and this is very difficult to do when you’re negotiating tinsel, baubles and other decorations. Get the lights just right before you start to add any further decorations.
3. Keep the lights towards the centre
Most people position their tree lights on the outer edge of the branches. However, doing this leaves a huge part of your Christmas tree in darkness. To make sure all of your baubles and tinsel sparkle, run your lights through the centre.
4. Blend with your room
Ensure your tree delivers maximum impact by decorating it in line with the theme of the room. A traditional room often calls for a traditional tree. However, if you have a modern, minimalist room, take a similar approach with the tree. Also, pay attention to the colour schemes you use, as you don’t want your tree to clash with the room’s decor.
5. Be careful with colour choices
The best trees usually feature only two or three colours. Adding too many colours simply creates a confused, busy look that gets ignored. If they don’t clash with your room’s colour scheme, choose red, green and gold for a classic Christmas tree — but make sure you’re not grouping colours together.
6. Choose an impactful tree topper
The tree topper you choose needs to stand out and complete your tree. If it’s too small, it will be lost, and your tree won’t look finished. If your tree topper is too large, however, it will detract from the rest of your decorations. Experiment with angels and stars, and see which works best. There are some great lit tree toppers on the market that work with batteries.
7. Mix and match shapes and textures
The best trees often feature decorations with different shapes, sizes and textures. Don’t be afraid to add triangles and squares to complement your baubles. However, it’s important to evenly distribute different shapes, otherwise you’ll create an unbalanced tree. You’re likely to have lots of shiny baubles and tinsel, so add a few non-shiny items such as cartoon characters, candy canes, ribbons, bows and gingerbread men to give your tree more depth.
8. Don’t balance everything on the edge of your tree
Most people will place their Christmas tree decorations on the outer edges of the tree. However, this can leave huge, gaping spaces — making the tree look relatively empty. Place baubles and tinsel deeper into the tree to create an impression of “fullness”.
Putting up your Christmas tree should be a happy event that brings a family together. Make enough time to enjoy the experience, and you should be able to create something very special for the festive period.
