It’s Decorating Day – Where Do I start?

It’s time to decorate for Christmas and you’re probably wondering what to do first. Hopefully you were able to read some posts I wrote last year.  If you missed them you can check them out here, here, and here.  They were designed to help you get organized for the holidays early so you can enjoy the season without being too stressed.  Now it’s time to decorate and I’m going to show you how I like to organize “decorating day.”

Hopefully you’ve already thought about a theme and had some help bringing your bins out of storage.  Now let’s get into the steps you will follow for the actual decorating.

1.  I like to clean the area I’m about to decorate really well.  This area probably won’t be messed with too much for the next month so I like to get it cleaned as good as possible now before I decorate the space.
2. If you are decorating multiple rooms I would move all the boxes to the correct rooms that you will be using them in.  That way it is less distracting and gives you more space to work.
3. Get a visual of the way you want the room to look when decorated and move the furniture so it works with your decor.
4. Set up your tree, garlands, and wreath.  Make sure all are straight.  You don’t want to start decorating and find out the tree is leaning.
5. Fluff all the branches on everything.  DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!!!  I have found gloves and a long sleeve shirt work best during this step.
6. String lights and make sure they all work.  On wreaths and garlands, start in the middle and work your way on both sides so each side is equal.  If you want to add more lights on pre-lit items do that now.
7. Add picks, fillers, and do a tree topper if you want one. Save enough to use throughout the room so everything looks the same.  Don’t just use on the tree.
8. Put up ornaments and other decor.
9. Add small details like, stockings, pillows, and tree skirts.
10. Take pictures of your items and zoom in to see if you missed any holes.  Then adjust your decor appropriately to make it look perfect.

Hopefully these steps will send you in the right direction when decorating.  I would love to see your homes all dressed up.  Send me pics!!!