How To Decorate A Christmas Tree

I may have already missed you with this post but if you’re like me and put your Christmas tree up the first week of December then I’m just in time! I’ve been and bought a fake tree this year. But the thought of not having a real one is making me quite sad. It’s one of my fave things about Christmas. That smell. Aaaaanyway I thought today we could talk about how to decorate a christmas tree. How very festive.

How To Decorate A Christmas Tree

Step 1 – The Perfect Pine
First things first. You have to decide where your tree is going to go. I hear a lot of people buy houses on the basis of where they imagine their Christmas tree going! I’d love to hear if that was a consideration for you when you were house buying. So yes, make sure you measure up so you don’t buy a tree that is too big for the space. Then it’s off to pick the perfect pine. Make sure you choose the right tree for you. You can read our Real Vs Faux post here. Once it’s up and spruced, add the skirt (I bought this one) if you’re having one. You don’t want to be trying to attach it when all your decs are on.

Step 2 – All Of The Lights
Warm, cool, multi coloured, flashy or still? Which lights do you love the most? We have about 500 lights for our tree. Which I realise sounds bonkers but actually once they are all wrapped around its the perfect amount. The recommended average number of lights for a 6 ft tree is between 400 and 700 (or you can work to 100 lights per every foot of tree but if you love the lights just add more!). I have warm white ones that I like to keep static… sometimes I’ll be wild and put it on that setting that dims slowly.

Before you do anything – plug in your lights and make sure they work. Imagine spending the time to put them on to realise they’re broken. All working? Ok, then start at the top of your tree. I add a bit of tape to the top one to hold it in place (this gets covered with a star so is nice and hidden) and then work your way down. If you want maximum effect run your lights down each section of branch – so rather than going round and round go in and out. See our handy pin to show you exactly what I mean.

Remember to always turn your lights off when you leave the house too. Amy swears by these remote control plugs so you don’t have to wedge yourself behind the tree every time you want them to be turned off. Top tip for the lights is always pack them away properly. There is nothing worse than opening your Christmas box to find that you need to spend 3 hours untangling them. You can get a simple cable tidy to help with the task.

Step 3 – To Theme Or Not To Theme
I’ve had the same colour scheme on my tree for the last 4 years. I’m all about the metallics. Coppers and golds. I find it really soothing, especially when all the lights are on. Do you have a theme or is it a free for all and anything goes? Charlotte has some great suggestions for decorations here.

Step 4 – It’s Tinsel Time
Now is the time to add garlands or beads or tinsel if you’re feeling fancy. Charlotte has this super posh tinsel! Dressing up in tinsel as a child was one of my fave things about decorating the christmas tree. But just how much do you need? Believe it or not there is a formula to decorating the perfect Christmas tree. It was created by Sheffield University back in 2012. But I’m not a maths guy so it doesn’t mean too much to me. It’s all numbers and… numbers. Wyvale suggests you need about 9 foot of tinsel for every foot of tree. Don’t forget if you buy too much you can always return any unopened tinsel. You want to do your tinsel first so you don’t knock off any decorations.

Step 5 – Baubles Baby
Now the number of baubles you need for a tree rally comes down to a matter of taste. I think you either love a fully decked tree with loads of baubles or you prefer the less is more approach. Whilst researching this post I read the words ‘for my 7ft 6in tree I use approximately 600 baubles…’!!! 600?? Where on earth would one store 600 baubles? You can use string or hooks to hang your decorations and you’re looking for the branches that have space between them so that the bauble doesn’t sit on the branch below. Think about how some ornaments might work with the lights – you might want to highlight certain ones. You don’t want to hang too many ornaments on the same branch. Also think about putting plain baubles near patterned ones and evenly spread colours.

Step 6 – The Final Touch
Angel, fairy or star? What do you put on the top of your tree? Or perhaps you have something else? We have a star and ever since Leo has been with us, that’s his job. Even when he was 4 months old he put the star atop the tree.

And you’re done! Let me know if there is anything I’ve missed or any amazing tips you have for how to decorate a Christmas tree. I’d love to see your finished pines so tag us in your Instagram photos using #rockmychristmastree and we’ll share some of our faves! Happy decorating x

{PIN FOR LATER}