As someone who is “high key” VERY into Christmas, even I don’t like to buy new things annually (our kids love the nostalgia of what we have already), but every couple of years, I get excited to do something a little fresh through styling. But it can feel like an overwhelming task, a totally non-fun hobby to most people to even think about doing something new (and y’all, there is ZERO pressure to do anything new). So today I’ll show you some styling hacks that I’ve been pretty into that cost very little, but make things feel fresh (and opening up our toolkit for those who want to execute these).
Layering Ribbons Onto Wreaths
This year, we stumbled upon a happy accident – The huge wreath over the fireplace at The Carly highlighted the bright white outlet box in the middle of the hole. This was quite the surprise (yes, AI can take it out for photos, but less so for video/social). So we decided to take all the bows we had (most bought on Amazon) and layer and layer and layer. I have to say that this ended up looking so much better than the one big bow (which, in retrospect, was too small). I LOVED this look.
A few years ago, I layered two ribbons on my wreaths – one larger red burlap (wired) and one thinner ticking stripe (grograin). And now I’m inspired to keep the same wreaths every year, but when I feel like I want a refresh, change out the ribbon (so easy, fun, and not expensive).
Tearing Fabric To Use As Bows/Ribbon
My best hack is to take yardage of fabric and rip or cut it into strips to look like wide, beautiful ribbon. I can’t believe how much more affordable it is, and you get to choose from a million fabrics. If you want them to be long like ours in the window, you’ll need to buy 2 yards, which might be $30, but that should get you enough ribbon for like 5-7 wreaths (wide ribbon that in pretty colors is just so expensive).
Ripped Fabric As Bows On Trees (and wrapping cloths)
I also like taking thin cotton (think seersucker, like the green on the tree above) and tying it onto branches. That was three years ago, and of course, now bows have dominated all of the world for the last year or two, but this was before you could buy bows for your tree.
Also…Wrapping Cloths
I also love buying fabric yardage to turn into wrapping cloths because I’m on a one-man mission to take down “big wrapping paper” (lol – it’s not a huge deal, I just hate how expensive it is and the clean up on Christmas morning). Wrapping cloths are reusable, so cute, and you just fold them up on Christmas morning for the next year. I bought a ton on Etsy.
Your Best Friend: Command Strips
The Command Strips we used to hang this garland, these blend into the white trim | These are good too
Y’all, if I had a flux capacitor, I would go back in time to the day that 3m went public and buy up all the stock. My goodness, these things are so effective, expensive, and yet many are a one-time use (that’s the trifecta of a billion-dollar product right there). If you aren’t familiar with them, know that there is a side that has to stick to the wall (labeled “wall side”) and you HAVE to pull down to release without taking off your paint. I use them for every garland, every wreath on every window or mirror, every cord to keep them in place. And a great lazy hack is to keep them up year-round (if you have the clear ones or white on white walls), which makes the annual garland hanging QUITE easy. Oh, and yes, there are some that can hold up to 5lbs (or you can combine multiple).
Clear Variety Pack (great for hanging on windows)
I have a whole bin of them for different scenarios – like big clear ones for wreaths on windows 🙂
Easy On/Off Switch For Lights
Sounds dumb, but buying extension cords that get lost against your walls is helpful (i.e., white if light walls, black if dark walls). You can barely see the cord hanging off the fireplace there on the right 🙂
Fishing Line – Or What Stylists Call “Monofilament”
OMG. The garland at the Carly was so hard to hang because, unlike my house, I didn’t want to put a bunch of random holes. Most of you likely also don’t want extra holes in your walls. So we used fishing line to hold up the garland and triangulate up and over the beams to hold it in place. Now this was Harvard-level work here; it took me, Marlee, and Gretchen like 2-3 hours to figure out.
Hot Tip: You’ll never see a nail hole on top of your window molding. So what we often do is put a nail there, vertically, then tie fishing line to hang from that nail. You don’t want to ever put a nail in your molding (drywall is easier to patch, trimwork isn’t). But this is a hack we do all the time if something is too heavy for a command strip.
Folding Paper Decorations (Trees, Ornaments) – So Easy To Put Together And Store
Paper Folding Tree Set | Decorative Paper Tabletop Trees | Printed Paper Accordian Christmas Trees (Set of 3)
Now, to your holiday inventory that might make your life easier. Folding paper tree is hero #1. These open up for high impact, different shapes, and instant decor. And then fold down to fit in a tiny box.
I think the modern-day paper tree was inspired by these party favors that Elliot is playing with (the high-end ones aren’t made out of crepe paper and can last year after year), I have many from years ago that are still in great shape.
Mixing In Real Greenery With Faux
One hack I used to do before I went full “faux” indoor was to mix real greenery with faux. Somehow, the presence of real greenery makes the faux look real – it’s all about context in styling, right? I used to put real in faux garland, faux wreaths, and the different varietals of greenery made it look so real. Now the faux stuff is so good that you don’t need to mix as much real into it.
My Favorite Colored LED String Lights For The Exterior
Colorful String Lights
Last year, we put up colored lights for the first time and loved them. The ONLY thing I might have done differently is bought the strand that had the lights 24″ apart instead of 12″. It was pretty bright (but also so fun???!!!). Just make sure to get shatterproof and LED. I love the classic “glass” look (not the faceted), personally.
Don’t Sleep On Curtain Lights
Curtain Lights
I discovered curtain lights during lockdown and left them up alllll winter. It’s a string of lights that goes across the top with a curtain of glowy, rose gold lights that looks like it’s raining.
It glows even during the day. It’s just so extremely cozy and warm. I bought the expensive ones from Anthropologie/Terrain, but Amazon has these to fill in.
Quick And Dirty Holiday Tips If You Really Want To Know How My Brain Works
Ok, I’m late to go to the movies with my family, so I’m going to bust out some quick and dirty holiday philosophies:
- Don’t buy a faux tree unless it’s pre-lit. Chant “Pre-Lit Only”. Literally 50% of the reason to buy faux is so that you don’t have to deal with the frustration of stringing the lights.
- Definitely buy “warm” light trees (or string lights in general), not cool. Even then, they might be too cool, but it must say warm, or it could look like a 7-11.
- I like doing faux greenery inside and real outside (for the most part – I also at times do faux outside, honestly). This is strictly to avoid the mess of the garland shedding needles all day inside. Outside is fine and pretty, and then you can just throw in the woods!
- BUT… if you don’t start decorating til after Thanksgiving like a “normie” (we really should figure out a name for people who aren’t psychopathic holiday enthusiasts like me), then real inside is GREAT. But the other 50% why I use faux, is so that I can start early and not worry about the mess. As an Oregonian, I do feel massive guilt that we don’t go out and cut a tree down, but we start too early to make it make sense.
- Opt for a plug-in garland where possible. The batteries are annoying to change (it’s fine, I do it every year), but I love that these plug in, so once I figure out the extension cord situation, it’s good for the solid 6 weeks.
- Buy tree collars that fold up – some still don’t fit my tree, but if you are buying a tree collar this year, don’t get a huge ring to store, they now fold up (Both Anthro and Target have wicker versions).
- Faux candles are great, but the waxier the better. I love Anthro’s, Pottery Barn has some great ones, and the Target tapers that I’m obsessed with keep selling out, they are that good.
See ya! xx
Opening Image Credits: Photo by Kaitlin Green | From: Our Fresh And Easy 2025 Holiday Decorating Ideas That Will Get Your Wheels Turning