The holiday season is only a week away. After you clean up from Thanksgiving dinner, you may start to think about decorating your home for the holidays. This can be an intimidating task. The expenses associated with making your home feel festive can add up. Here are a few tips to help you find great deals, try easy do-it-yourself projects and reuse everyday household items for a very frugal holiday.
Decorating:
You don’t need to spend a ton of money to make your home feel festive and inviting this year. One thing that can make a major difference to the look and feel of your home is lighting. Turn down the bright overhead lights and use the soft lighting of lamps.
Strands of holiday lights are another way to instantly make a room look festive. Look for deals on strings of lights. You can often find buy one-get one offers on boxes of holiday lights. Dollar stores also have lights at an inexpensive price. Not only can you decorate your tree with them, but you can also use lights to line the top of a cabinet with garland. Use a leftover strand or two coiled inside a vase or hurricane glass from the dollar store. You can also fill a few vases with leftover ornaments for an inexpensive centerpiece or mantel decoration.
Another way to beautifully light your home at the holidays is with candles. You can buy a bag of 100 tealights for only a few dollars and then light them inside jars or vases. The glassware doesn’t have to match; using a variety will have an eclectic effect. Tie a ribbon around the jar to add a festive touch.
Holiday throw pillows can be expensive. Instead, find a festive slipcover on Etsy, or make your own and cover your existing throw pillows. Or just tie a colorful ribbon around your pillow to get a different look for less.
If you’re looking to bring in a more natural look to your home, you can head out to the backyard and collect a few of nature’s own decorations. Layer pinecones and sprigs of evergreen in a vase or bowl. Spray paint branches white, gold or silver and add them to a mantel or centerpiece for a hint of glitz.
Entertaining:
When you’re entertaining this holiday season, visit the dollar or discount store for party supplies. You can find plenty of disposable plates, napkins and flatware in seasonal colors. To be even more frugal, use your own dishes, even if they’re not holiday-themed. You can easily wrap flatware and napkins together and tie with a festive bow. Just be prepared for a lot of dishes after the party! Store your flatware in jars or baskets, which will instantly upgrade the look of a buffet.
Fill bowls and trays around your home with inexpensive candies like candy canes. Guests will appreciate this small touch, especially kids. You can use coupons to buy candy canes and other holiday candies at a discount.
Take a tip from weddings and create a signature drink for your holiday party, served in a punch bowl. Then provide the other basic beverages like wine, soda and beer. This simplifies your menu and the need for multiple pricy spirits.
You can use brown packaging paper for many different things at the holidays. Wrap your gifts in it, and draw on the outside or decorate with ribbon or sprigs of evergreen. Use it as a placemat at your holiday table, and write right on the paper instead of using place cards.
If you want to save more money on your table setting, use a holiday runner instead of a tablecloth. It’s less expensive, and you can layer it over a plain tablecloth and use brightly colored napkins.
Plan ahead for next year:
One last step you can take now that you’ll thank yourself for later is to make a note of any holiday supplies you might need to replace next year. Then, head out to the sales right after Christmas for dramatic discounts and price reductions. Put it away when you store your decorations, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised next year at your frugal decision.
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Frugal Holiday Decorating and Entertaining Tips originally appeared on usnews.com
