If you’ve been scrolling Pinterest looking for Christmas tree decorating ideas recently or if you’ve been clicking anywhere on the internet this holiday season…chances are you’ve bumped into this little trend called –
The Ralph Lauren Christmas aesthetic.
Truth is?
The Ralph Lauren Christmas is so much more than a trend.
Personally, I think it’s our heart’s way of calling up what is stored deep in our memory banks for a…
Christmas Remembered.
At least that’s been the creative driving force behind my personal Christmas decorating in our home this year.
It’s not a trend, but a tapping into a remembered Christmas – and all that my own memory holds, of years gone by.
Speaking of memory banks…
Our family has been drawing to fresh mind, fond memories of Shawn’s Mom over the last few weeks, since her recent passing.
I want to take a moment to thank you all for your kind support, as our loss is still fresh. Because of that, I’ve been focused on our family, and soaking in the Thanksgiving season.
I heard somewhere once, a saying that has since stuck with me for a long time, and it’s this –
In order to plan your presence, you must first plan your absence.
And so? I chose to put that saying into action recently, by pausing my weekly writing rhythm, over the last 2 weeks.
However, I am thrilled to be back in my writing chair and connecting with you again.
I’ve missed you!
And if I haven’t said it recenlty?
Thank you so much for being here.
I am so grateful for your readership and companionship as we co-journey through the peaks and valleys, and shades of light, of life together.
And there has been light too!
Well, sun actually. 🙂
Shawn and I were blessed to accompany Eve, our oldest daughter, to the sunshine state of Florida. Her lacrosse team competed in their last President’s Cup tournament.
What a blessing!
And now?
As I sit and write this post, sweet Winnie is witnessing her very first snow fall from our living room window…
Now then!
Are you ready to dive into those Christmas tree decorating ideas?!
After all, Christmas is one of the most anticipated and festive occasions of the year!
And if you know me at all, then you already know how much I love Christmas and how much I love decorating our home for the holiday season.
Simply because, I believe decorating our seasonal home, can make this time of year, feel even more special.
And this year, I have a gorgeous brand new Christmas tree from King of Christmas to share with you. I love this new tree so much I photographed her in two rooms! (You should have seen me pushing her down the hallway! 🙂
So today on the blog, I’ll be sharing a round up of simple Christmas tree decorating ideas you can steal or add, to decorate your Christmas tree this year. Especially if you are loving the Ralph Lauren aesthetic too.
Follow me friend!
Christmas Tree Decorating Ideas
In case I haven’t mentioned it…
I grew up on a Christmas tree farm.
And in extra fun news?
My Dad is 78 years old and still operating as an active Christmas tree grower on his small 7 acre farmette in Darlington, Maryland.
In fact, this Christmas tree season marks my Dad’s 40th tree selling season.
My childhood is filled with memories of sipping hot cider, served in the barn pictured behind us. My Mom would often be found standing inside one of the horse stables, making Christmas wreaths adorned with the most gorgeous handmade bows, while Christmas music floated through the air, as tree shoppers wandered the rows of evergreens, excited to find and cut down their perfect Christmas tree.
So yes.
I am fond of all things Christmas tree and I also love to decorate all the trees…real and artificial!
Why Do We Decorate Christmas Trees
We desire to recognize historical roots
The decorating of Christmas trees can be traced back thousands of years to Winter festivals rooted in ancient customs to symbolize life and the simple joy of the holiday season.
symbolism of decorations
Did you know that it is believed that the lights on the tree are thought to symbolize the light of Christ? How perfect is that? While the ornaments are believed to represent blessings and wishes for the coming year. And according to the History of Christmas the evergreen itself is thought to represent eternal life, as they remain green throughout the Winter, representing hope and resilience during the darkest parts of the year.
Pretty amazing if you ask me…and as they say…
The more you know. 🙂
When To Decorate A Christmas Tree
Well speaking of the darkest parts of the year…it gets dark around our house at 4:30 pm right now.
And so?
I have been known to put up our artificial trees at the end of October or early November…pretty much right around the same time as we Marylander’s are forced to “fall back” with our clocks and it starts to get dark as elementary school buses are making their school dismissal routes!
Who has time for dark and dreary nights starting at 4:30 pm?
I say bring on the twinkle early and often and whenever the feeling strikes you!
Enjoy soak in the glow of those cozy vibes and sipping your cocoa!
You might remember this post from last year when I decorated this gorgeous flocked Christmas tree from King of Christmas, in October!
Just DO what feels right for you when it comes to when to decorating your Christmas tree!
As for the live or cut trees?
Our family always visits my Dad’s tree farm on Black Friday.
I’ve never been a black friday shopper. Because remember, I grew up on a Christas tree farm and the shoppers came to us. 🙂
I recommend decorating your tree after Thanksgiving, if you are decorating a live Christmas tree.
Pro Tip: Always remember to take a first cut off the bottom of your tree trunk, so she will drink water for weeks to come, and keep her pine needles!
How To Decorate A Christmas Tree
always start with a quality tree!
I have been blessed to partner with King of Christmas again this year and I am once again blown completely impressed by not only the quality of the King of Christmas trees, but also how realistic the tree branches appear!
Livvy helped me unbox and decorate our gorgeous new artificial tree from King of Christmas and even Livvy knows a beautiful quality tree when she sees one…
She decided she needed to Vlog and also share about it! 🙂
I love how King of Christmas always provides a durable tree storage bag, a branded remote control to help you remember and designate which remote works for which tree, along with a pair of gloves in case you are concerned about protecting your arms!
set up your tree
Whether you are unboxing your tree or cutting the tree trunk of a live tree, it’s always best to have a helping hand and set up your tree in the tree stand with two people!
PS: Furry helpers don’t really help.
take out your tree ornaments
I love to use these plastic ornament storage containers from Target.
They are perfect for storing and organizing our Christmas ornaments, when not in use!
organize your tree ornaments
I like to start by pulling out a few ornaments that I know I want to use and then set the ornaments I definitely plan to use aside, so that I know what my “base” or foundational ornaments will be.
This year I picked up two new sets of Christmas ornaments to use, especially knowing that I would need a few more to use on our new King of Christmas tree.
Green Flocked Ornaments // Gold Tinsel Ball Ornaments // White Faux Fur Throw //Plush Fur Slippers
Christmas Tree Decorating Ideas
Ralph Lauren Christmas
In order to set the stage for our gorgeous King of Christmas tree to be decorated with a nod to the Ralph Lauren Christmas trend, we decided to use a variety of flocked green, blue, brown and gold ornaments as part of our Christmas tree decorating ideas.
We started to decorate our 7.5 Scarlet Fir Christmas Tree, by placing beautiful burgundy velvet ribbon that I had pre-tied into bows.
Wired Burgundy Velvet Ribbon // 1″ Non-Wired Burgundy Velvet Ribbon
decorate with bows
I didn’t need to tie or attach the bows to the evergreen branches.
I simply set the bow on a branch and pushed the bow a little farther back on the tree branch to stabilize each bow.
decorate your tree with dried hydrangea clippings
I actually came upon these hydrangea clippings while taking Willa and Winnie for a walk one day, a perfect inspiration for Christmas tree decorating ideas. So of course you know I needed to bring them home!
The colors were still so beautiful!
I gently removed the leaves then started to tuck the hydrangeas in between the larger openings of the tree.
Now, I am loving the muted red and green colors and different texture that these dried hydrangea stems have added to the evergreen branches!
decorate with a variety of ornaments
The new gold tinsel ball ornaments add just the right amount of shine to contrast the muted soft texture and colors of the flocked ornaments.
use mini picture frame ornaments
I also love using mini picture frame ornaments to help tell your family story on your tree, a fun twist on Christmas tree decorating ideas. (Spoiler alert – this is not our story in this frame, this is the story of the family’s picture who came with the ornament – swapping out the picture is still on the to do list! 🙂
use glass ornaments
(Sadly, these exact glass ornaments are no longer in stock.)
These hinged glass ornaments were actually my very first Christmas decor purchase at the beginning of this season. I fell in love with them and purchased 3 of them, one for each of our girls and I plan to place something special for each of them inside on Christmas.
coordinate your wrapping paper with your tree
This is not for everyone. And honestly, I won’t stick with this red plaid theme for all of my gift wrapping.
But, you will find that the real design pros always coordinate their wrapping paper with their tree decor.
decorate with a tree topper
I have used a brass bow tree topper for the last 3 years on our tree and it worked perfectly again this year with the Ralph Lauren Christmas trend and the use of adding velvet burgundy bows to our tree.
add a tree skirt
I love the look of a soft faux fur tree skirt as a soft foundation for this new King of Christmas tree.
In some cases, I prefer to use a tree collar which have become widely popular again.
But for this particular Christmas tree, I am loving the softness of the tree skirt as the finishing touch, one of my favorite Christmas tree decorating ideas!
coordinate your mantel decor with your tree decor
I decided to use non wired burgundy velvet ribbon to decorate our mantel to keep continuity with our holiday decorations.
Seeing the tree at night makes me fall even more in love with it!
I hope you enjoyed this post full of Christmas tree decorating ideas for this year and the year’s to come!
Something tells me…that we may have a little issue when putting out cookies for Santa this year…
Good thing she’s cute. 🙂
Living on a prayer,
Heather
*This post is sponsored by King of Christmas.
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*I partner with affiliate platforms where commission may be earned based on qualifying purchases, and I would love it if you decided to use the links above when ordering online! XO
