7 Tips for Decorating Your Family Christmas Tree

This post is sponsored by BIG W.

I am so excited to be have been chosen as a member of the Christmas Hint Squad for BIG W this year. The squad members’ mission is to share hints and tips regarding everything Christmassy between now and the big day – you’ll see us in BIG W catalogues, on the BIG W Facebook page and on each of our own blogs.

To kick start the campaign, today I am sharing 7 tips for decorating your Christmas tree but first I had a little friend help me make a video to share the story of our family Christmas tree…how well did she do!

7 Tips for Decorating Your Family’s Christmas Tree

1. Colour: I love having an overall colour theme for our tree (in our case, it’s a base of silver with lots of bright pink, purple and blue highlights) but I try not to get overly precious about it. The odd gold or green bauble that Immy discovers in the box is not going to make too much of an impact in the overall sea of colour. When choosing a colour theme, start by thinking about what decorations you already have and the colour of both the furniture and accessories within the room where your Christmas tree will be displayed.

7 Tips for Decorating Your Christmas Tree

2. Begin building a collection of memories for your child: Each year we have bought Immy, and now AJ, a special decoration that will eventually be their own to keep. One day (hopefully far, far away) when they leave home they will already have a collection of decorations (and the memories to go with them) to kick start their own Christmas decorating traditions. On the video you can see Immy placing a dancing lady on our Christmas tree. She is one of the ‘nine ladies dancing’ from the song, The Twelve Days of Christmas, and we bought her in 2009, when Immy was one year old. As our girls get bigger, they each get to choose their own special decoration for their collection.

Tips for Decorating Your Family Christmas Tree

3. Tree decorations don’t just have to be decorations: This year my girls’ favourite things on the tree are a set of pink and silver star wands that I found in the party section of BIG W. They ‘hang’ near the bottom of the tree and Immy and AJ take them off and dance around having a fabulous time. I also have a bag of brightly coloured, dress up jewelry rings (also from the party section) that I will add as a surprise sometime between now and Christmas. Keepsakes from family vacations and special events (we have a tiny Statue of Liberty and a bright blue M&M from a pre-child holiday in the US to name just two) are unique to your family and as they are placed on the tree year after year they will inspire stories of these memories to be shared. I also love the decorations that you can have made from a photo for the very same reason.

4. Have fun making decorations together: There are heaps of lovely, simple ideas for making Christmas decorations with kids – you might like to check out my Christmas Pinterest board for inspiration. Making your own wreath, decorating baubles, icing gingerbread shapes – these are the moments that become joyful, everlasting, holiday memories for children.

5. Put away special, breakable decorations: While your children are little it can be a good idea to keep special, breakable heirloom decorations packed away so that they don’t get broken. Save them for when your kids are a little older and gentler!

Tips for Decorating Your Christmas Tree

6. Lights: Plug in and test your lights before placing them on the tree, it will make finding and replacing any broken bulbs a lot easier. Placing them onto the tree first allows you to arrange them so that the lights are evenly distributed without knocking off any of your precious decorations.

7. A tree of their own: Purchasing a small, tabletop tree (I picked up the hot pink one shown above for just $6 from BIG W) and some plastic decorations for your child will help to discourage them from taking the decorations off of the larger Christmas tree.

In all honesty, I used to be a total Christmas tree decorating snob with carefully positioned decorations in our chosen colour theme placed uniformly around the tree. But now, even given it’s big bunches of decorations positioned almost on top of each other, the odd bare patch and the bottom third rearranged by a certain five year old on a daily basis, I think our family is something truly beautiful. It is most imperfectly ours and I love it.

giveaway

One lucky Australian reader has the opportunity to win a $100 gift card to spend at BIG W this Christmas.

Entry is simple. This is a game of skill and entries will be judged based on creativity and originality. To enter, leave a comment on this post in response to this question:

What is your #1 Christmas tree decoration tip or hint?

Open to Australian residents only. Entries close 6pm AEDST, Wednesday, 27th November, 2013.

The fine print:
1. The competition begins at 9am AEDST, 13th November, 2013 and ends at 6pm AEDST, Wednesday, 27th November, 2013.
2. Entry is open to Australian residents only.
3. Entries will be judged based on creativity and originality.
4. There one prize to be won, with a total prize pool of $100.00
5. Entry is limited to one comment per household/IP address. Please register a routinely checked email address in the email field of your entry.
6. The winner will be notified via email within 14 days of the competition closing.
7. Should the winner fail to make contact via return email within 72 hours of notification a new winner may be selected.
8. The winner’s contact details will be passed onto BIG W and the prize organised directly by them.
9. All tips and hints shared may be republished anonymously by BIG W.

Competitions

85 Comments

  1. What beautiful memories you are making for your children Christie. And I must say I looked a lot closer at my Big W catalogue last week….love all the tips! I used to be very precious about how the tree was arranged too but i have learnt to let go a bit now and just let my girls enjoy decorating in their own way. We do need so new baubles and Christmas decorations though so would love to win a voucher.
    In answer to your question…my best tree decorating tip would be NOT to leave the bra you took off gratefully at the end of the day lying near the tree decorating box as your twin toddlers may just decide it looks awfully special hanging on the tree AND you may not notice until visitors pop in and comment on your unique tree decorations. Unfortunately a true story!

  2. We love to spend the week before Christmas (trying to be patient and wait) adding drawn/painted pictures, foil, tins, toilet rolls, wool, and generally anything my kids find interesting to our tree. Then we take a photo in front of it. It makes for a funny photo every year and one im sure my kids will just hate when they’re older!

  3. Love the fairy wand decorations! Having decorations that your kids are allowed to play with and can easily access is a brilliant idea!

    In years past we have always decorated our tree with child friendly, non-breakable, not precious ornaments on the bottom and all the others up the top, out of reach of the toddler. We’ve tried a play pen around the tree, and even putting the tree up high, but somehow that never worked for our Houdini children so we just accept that they want to play with the tree and ornaments and make it safe for them. We usually have a basket somewhere near by and I just dump all the ornaments I find around the house in there and put them back on the tree when I have time.

  4. Pixelhazard says:

    Oh this is our first Christmas with our very own bub in the house so I’ll have to remember these tips. My tips is a bit boring but very handy to know with enthusiastic kids around

    Tinsel and lights go on first:
    Handy for when you are putting up and packing away the tree. This way you avoid baubles flying everywhere and avoid getting tangled in a big heap as you contend with kids trying to pack up with you. Extra tip…if they are little and can’t remember any better, don’t bring the decorations out until the tinsel is done. Once they see the rest, there’s no hope

    X. Pixelhazard |

  5. Oh Christmas how I adore it. From the smiles of happy children to seeing people get along (unless they are shopping, then stay away) . But a Christmas tree is something families cherish. I follow a smile rule with my trees; 2 main colours then the kids decorate and add whatever they want. That way it all fits it ( and i can fix it when they are asleep) as well as placing candy canes around the bottom for the kiddies to eat. And I find an old skirt places around the bottom is great to hide the legs, at decorations and catch anything that falls off the tree. As you can probably tell… I love christmas!

  6. We like to talk about the tree before we start assembling and decorating. We outline some rules and boundaries (i.e. about touching the tree) in advance so we can enjoy the tree without accidents or upset parents etc.

    So that the discussion isn’t negative, it has also become a bit of a tradition to read Slinky Malinki’s Christmas Crackers when we’re having this special talk.

    My other tip, which you’ve already alluded to, is to let go of any OCD tendencies and let the children be creative with the decorating.

  7. Mary Preston says:

    We go with the ‘more is more’ option. All those precious decorations made by the children find a welcome home on our tree. Another reason why we go for a rainbow colour effect.

  8. I like to make our tree as kid friendly as possible too. My daughter likes her handmade ornaments (there are a lot!!) placed all on one side which makes the tree look uneven, it doesn’t have to look perfect – it’s all about making fun memories for them :).
    Louise x

  9. Love the table top idea (and that pink tree rocks)! My best tip is about packing up the Christmas Tree once all the fun is done. Use a piece of cardboard and wrap the lights around and tape the end to the cardboard to finish. This make it easier to use the lights (untangled) for the next year.

  10. One decoration each
    is a tradition we keep
    In only a few years
    A festive home we will reap

    One quality item
    For the Hubby, Kids and you.
    Fun will be had
    Searching Big W!

  11. Wow!! Very nice I like all these tips. I am so excited and I love this time from my childhood.

  12. We kept our Christmas tree on a table last year which was great for keeping toddler hands away (most of the time!). It was also next to a window which meant that the sunshine helped to keep the tree healthy. Also, I agree that keeping it simple and using toddler-friendly decorations is important in the early years. Lots of fun!

  13. I love all the decorations at Big W, but they must be put on the tree along with an equal amount of home made decorations, husbands with OCD are kicked out of the loungeroom when the bought decorations have been placed on the tree, the kids are then invited in to go to town decorating with all the wonderful, colourful decorations they have made. This keeps everyone happy except Mum who has to spend hours vaccumming up rouge tinsel and glitter!

  14. How festive!!Love seeing beautiful Christmas tree and thanks for inspiring ideas.. I remember last year, I decorated my Christmas tree with cotton that appears like snow flakes over the tree.This year..I’m in the midst of planning and I’m REALLY excited about it all coming together! There are a lot of fun projects that I’ve been working on for it, so I will definitely share when done with it.

  15. Melissa Kagie says:

    Let the children decorate, have fun helping out. As creating cherished memories is what Christmas is all about.

  16. Oh, I love the idea of decorating with items like wands and rings etc! Things that I actually don’t mind that they take on and off the tree. We’ve been choosing a new special ornament each year and this year we got some awesome ones!
    My #1 decoration tip is to wait until after Christmas each year and then stock up with stuff at half the price, all ready to be pulled out fresh and new the next year. haha 😉

  17. Jess Townsend says:

    I love all of these tips, and the video is really cute, thanks!
    Growing up, we used to use our kindy paintings and drawings to make paper chains for our tree (rather than lights), linking our creations together to form one big creation!

    We used to recycle our old cards , cutting out pictures and merging them with photos and special things, to create our own homemade decorations for our tree, and for our special friends and close relatives.
    It’s always special to decorate as a family.

    It’d be great to win the voucher, as this year my husband and I will begin our own christmas traditions, and we are hosting christmas this year. We’d love to make our tree, and our christmas extra special with some help from Big W!

  18. Using hairspray on real pinecone-trees stops the pine needles from falling out by keeping it greener, and delaying the process. Using glitter hairspray also adds nice effects, making them shimmery.

    Lint rollers are also great for cleaning up loose tinsel!

  19. Amanda Eastment says:

    Put a playpen around the bottom of the tree so the littlest of littlies can look in awe but not touch. Love Christmas time.

  20. Tamina goodchild says:

    We like to go out as a family and choose one new ornament every year. We have done this since our daughter was born 6 years ago. The memories that go along with the new decoration always makes putting the Christmas tree up a fun time of reminiscing and laughter as we remember the older ornaments as we put them on the tree. It’s a wonderful tradition we hold dear.

  21. Briony Macmillan says:

    Our tree is half decorated with bought ornamnets but the rest are handmade things the kids have made (drawings, ornaments and their hand/feet) and I have just laminated them and tied with ribbon. We love this cause our kids have made our tree special as a family tree 🙂 So my number 1 tip is be creative with your family and have fun doing it.

  22. Simonne k says:

    Let the kids make cute decorations at home by threading colourful buttons/beads on to fishing line. Then let them decorate the tree however they want – they will love it and mum will get to relax!

  23. I used to be a christmas tree perfectionist pre-children. But now my number one tip would be to let the kids go to town! Handmade decorations are encouraged and I now see a lopsided tree with all the decorations bunch in one spot as a thing of love and fun.

  24. We love having lots of home made in there and don’t get too caught up on having a perfect designer tree.

  25. I LOVE your idea # 3. Going to to do that one from now on for sure. My number 1 tip for decorating our tree is to have a set of unbreakable ornaments especially for the littles – it’s their special job to look after those ornaments and place them wherever they like. That way, they can have fun decorating but you can take care of the more fragile glass ornaments.

  26. I let my daughter decorate our tree. That way she takes ownership for looking after the ornaments and tree while it is up.
    She can also have pride in her accomplishment and creativity.
    She is 4.5 now and every previous year I have been so consumed in what my tree looked like and have found that it took the beauty of it away.
    Yet seeing how proud my daughter was of herself last year and the anticipated excitement she has for the 1st December this yr makes it all worth it.
    Would love to let her loose in the store to choose her own decorations again this year.

  27. Tracy Ardron says:

    Let the kids decorate it ! Their creations each year will be so creative and beautiful

  28. My biggest tip for successful tree decorating begins with last Christmas. .. take the time to pack decorations away neatly and you’ll have a much less stressful experience. I must say I learned this the hard way LOL

  29. sari bate says:

    My best tip is to give the kids there own little tree to decorate. They can play with the decorations as much as they like leaving the special ones on the main tree alone

  30. Decorations that are made hey those you love.
    Making bunting out of previous years Christmas cards

  31. Tara Borg says:

    Definitely have to have Christmas music when decorating the Christmas tree. It’s been my family tradition since I was little.

  32. Margaret Elvis says:

    Always involve the children but only when they are not tired. Keep it simple when they are very young and involve them more with their own ideas as they grow older and Christmas music in the background makes it really nice. Watch our for mischievous kitten, cats or puppies who love climbing Christmas trees and jumping up to remove the decorations. I’m not sure about lights on the tree when children are very young nor if you have animals. Perhaps lights strung up on the wall above the tree instead?

  33. Vicki Mettam says:

    Yes it’s all about the twinkle lights! Every year I make sure they’re working & tape any bulbs that need replacing before I pack them away. Then the following year I replace the bulbs & the lights go up so easy. No wrangling cords & checking every globe for hours.

  34. Love this post! I can’t wait until it’s tree time again, my favourite time of the year 🙂 We have the same little hot pink tree for our girls and every year I create a treasure hunt with the decorations for it by hiding them throughout the toy room. The girls love hunting for them all and then decorating their ‘little tree’ together. When it comes time to do the big tree we have a special system so there are no fights or breakages; the girls get a basket each with their special decorations in them and I also have a basket with all the more fragile and breakable things. The girls happily decorate the branches they can reach with the safe decorations from their baskets while I hang the fragile ones up higher.

  35. Jenni Browne says:

    My tip is to make sure you have all your Christmas boxes before you start so you are never disappointed when you pack everything up lol

  36. Great tips Christie! I love the idea of getting a mini tree just for the kids. When JJ was about 1.5 years old, we told her she could “look with her eyes, smell with her nose, but not touch with her hands”. She would go up to every single Christmas tree, hold her hands behind her back and take a big whiff. Then she would lean in and get as close as possible to look at the decorations from up super close, with her hands still behind her back. It was adorable!

  37. I use chained beads instead of tinsel. This year because we have a 10 month old we have bought a table top tree that we will decorate, as well as the house. I would love to do window and yard Christmas decorating as well. Big W has some great ideas. This year I’m going to start a tradition of having a Christmas Eve present box. Things to do like a game, Santa and Reindeer food, and as our child gets bigger things in the box will change add a Christmas DVD

  38. Sarah Faulks says:

    We have little visitors who pretty much knock everyone and everything over to get to the tree when it’s up and decorated and lights all are twinkling… Of course it’s not to stand there and look from a distance it’s to start taking things off and start redecorating it! My tip is to put your precious baubles (of which I have one for every year of my daughters age to give to her when she’s 21, she is now 8) at the top of the tree and have the ones the bounce at the bottom, so that they can be a part of decorating too! I also love filling a vase with baubles as a dining table centre piece… Wishing one and all a fun filled Christmas this year (even though a little early!).

  39. Sensational post, loved watching the video.
    It’s funny how tips can be passed down through generations but it was always a known thing to start a Christmas tree with the lights first. I’m not sure if it is the best tip in the world but every time I decorate a tree I’m adding my lights first. It would feel strange any other way. LOL

  40. Each year I buy my twins (now 2 and a half) a Christmas mouse each – we hang these on the tree and over time I hope there will be quite a collection! Aside from that we are spending the time leading up to Christmas making decorations from all the toilet rolls (daddy made a special toilet roll mouse with sparkly pipe cleaners this year!!) we have the usual colours of sparkly blue greens reds. We are not precious and basically whatever the kids make will go on the tree because it fosters creativity, fine motor skills, confidence and imagination 🙂 Happy Days!

  41. Katherine Ryan says:

    I love the idea of our family making a new decoration each year to add to the tree, eventually it will be covered in happy memories 🙂

  42. My hints for decorating the outside of your house make sure you test the lights before covering your house in them 🙂 my husband puts up Christmas lights every year last year he forgot to check them and spent hours working out what wasn’t working. The end result was worth it the look on the kiddies face was priceless.

  43. naomi angell says:

    My tip to get the perfect christmas tree is to start with tinsel and work from the top to bottom swirling around tree evenly with 2 different colours then repeat with lights. put the special family tree ornaments on the front of the tree and the rest allover but placing the heavy decorations on the bottom so they dont pull middle branches down making it look sad and finally top with you favorite topper and then you have the perfect tree.

  44. Choose wrapping paper that appeals to the family. Might be a colour theme. multi colours, sparkly. Buy many boxes of raisins or sultanas and wrap them, tie around with ribbon. Hang all these boxes on the tree. As friends visit with little children, in lead up to christmas they can choose a tree parcel, unwrap and eat!

  45. Sing these words to the chorus of Jingle Bells….

    Always place the lights on first,
    Then turn them onto check.
    Once they sparkle how you want then add the tinsel next, hey!
    Ornaments and Angel too then add the candy canes.
    There’s nothing like trimming the tree ready for Christmas day.

  46. Antonietta says:

    I love this time of year and my family can’t wait to start decorating our home and the tree. A tip from my family to yours, just go for it, make everything colourful, it’s what the kids will remember for years to come. Put on Christmas carols and dance around the house placing decorations where you think they should be, there’s no right or wrong at this time of year 🙂

  47. So many fantastic ideas, thank you.
    Each year we make our own christmas tree using a unique material. Over the years we have used decorated boxes, twisted wire, bottles, even milk cartons. In September this year, we welcomed our first daughter so needed to think of a child friendly design. We have decided to drawn a large tree on very large craft paper. We are decorating the tree with paint, glitter, our daughters hand and foot prints and some decorations made from aluminium foil. Our creation will be stuck to our wall. As she grows, we will add to our collage until she is old enough to create a three dimensional tree without any risk to her safety. It’s also a very pet friendly design.

  48. Our families number 1 Christmas tree decorating tip is to allow the whole family to put ornaments where ever they festively feel like on the tree. It may take some deep breathing by parents who want a tree to look just so, but it’s worth it to have a tree decorated with love and excitement that the whole family can enjoy and take pride in.

  49. Renee Lumley says:

    As a child we always had a fresh(pine) xmas tree from the bush and I think great decorations would be to hang pine cones and other interesting leaves and bushes collected by my daughter !

  50. catherine says:

    Best Christmas idea is adding candy canes to the tree!! That way when you have to pack it away you can enjoy the candy and get extra energy from the sugar!! I always like to add dog friendly treats to the tree as well, because they are family and Christmas is about being close to family and that includes pets too! Xxx

  51. Felicia-kia Hartley says:

    my decoration tip is to use big w christmas decorations they will make your home look amazing!

  52. Felicia-kia Hartley says:

    my decoration tip is to use big w christmas decorations they will make your tree look amazing!

  53. Val Helen says:

    Allowing children to see themselves grow up each Christmas is my number one tip for a heart warming family union around the Christmas tree. Decorative hand made ornaments with tiny pictures or photos of small remembrances like their favourite shirt or best preschool friend for each child make for awestruck memories. My kids marvel each Christmas at how much they’ve grown or how goofy they once were. Keep ornaments safe for another year by packing carefully in an airtight container.

  54. Steph Homewood says:

    If you’re running low on baubles, only decorate what people will see! Our tree backs into a corner, and one side will never be see. We use all the lights and decorations to make the visible side beautiful, and nobody ever knows!

  55. jan wilson says:

    last year my dauther added some ribbon to art and craft work she had made through the year, we used these as hanging decorations, very personal and very colourful, also we then used some clear contact to stick together with cut out pictures from left over wrapping paper, ours included some of Disney cars which is a fave of little brother, great personal decoration ideas which we will re use this year

  56. Keep all the boxes and containers that the decorations come in. That way you can pack them away and store them for next year without them getting broken or tangled.

  57. Ripeka Kittelty says:

    To get great looking even coverage of xmas lights on your tree, I put on the bottom layer of branches on my artificial tree then individually wrap each tree branch going up and down each branch with the lights. The I repeat for every layer till get to the top. You need extra long string of lights but its worth it.

  58. Sharleen pereira says:

    Make sure your tree is facing the entrance way as that is where most people will notice.
    Also give your tree a gorgeous perfume spray to jus it up

  59. Sonia El-Sheikh says:

    In our family we put names on our ornaments and decorate them individually to bring out our own personality from our Christmas tree! It’s great fun and gets the whole family involved 🙂

  60. Matthew Keane says:

    No matter how hard we have tried to get the tree perfect, even or un cluttered it never works. So I set up the tree on the front lawn and take the boxes of decorations up onto the roof and throw them at the tree. Usually have to do this a couple of times until everything is hanging. Even spread, job sorted. Then inside it goes.

  61. Melissa Davis says:

    My best tips may be to ‘decorate with love’, but my most important; don’t decorate with fake gift boxed tree decorations unless you love cleaning up Styrofoam! Two words; Inquisitive toddler! :O

  62. Take a photo of each of your children placing the star or angel on top of the tree every year (with help from Mum or Dad until they can reach)… it makes a great tradition and looking back you can see how much they have grown each year.

  63. Rachel Tilbury says:

    Hint: we always put the lights on the tree first to enhance the colours of the Christmas bulbs at night.

  64. Sheryl McAuley says:

    I love the memories behind every decoration on our tree – everyone has a story and I carefully label which child and year each relates to.

  65. My hot tip for decorating the tree: ensure everyone in the family has a unique role as this helps to form tradition and happy memories. I always placed the china decorations on the tree, mum placed the handmade ones from her grandmother on the tree, my brother hung santa and Mrs Claus on the tree, and dad always put the star on top at the end.

  66. Lisa McNeil says:

    Great tip! When you have animals or kiddies… always put the expensive ones at the top, and the really big ones at the bottom that are too big to go in the mouth! Not only will you save on replacement, it makes the tree look more balanced too 🙂

  67. It’s always hard to reach around the back of the tree, decorate one side then turn it around. No more empty spots. For smaller trees, place it on a turntable.

  68. jodi cartwright says:

    Every year I let my children decorate the christmas tree, and every year it looks different. Never the same and we love it. Also they take turns putting the star on, we keep a list so we know who is next.

  69. My best tip for decorating the tree is start with a theme, then work from the bottom up.
    This year our tree is traditional green,gold,red,silver and I started at the bottom with green and silver and then merged into red and gold, finished with our Angel on top.
    Our 4 children have a smaller tree that they decorate with their own decorations, and however they want and love it!
    Happy Festive Season

  70. Alex Fentoullis says:

    Hang a mix of store bought and home made Christmas decorations. Not only will your tree look good but it will also hold special meaning for the whole family.

  71. I love Christmas!! I used to love having a colour coordinated tree with themed decorations and everything balanced.
    Now with a two year old Christmas just got 10 times more exciting 🙂
    ** My tip would be simple – have fun. **.
    The kids (my nephews & niece, as well as my little one) decorate the tree and place on items that are special to them. We unwrap the nativity and place all the figures and animals around it. We also display the Santa photos from each year since they were babies – the kids love looking at the tree and the photos. I love to put on some Christmas CDs while we decorate, and we all sing and laugh. Xo

  72. Cindy Brown says:

    Make the Christmas tree decorating a family tradition on December 1. Make up a platter of cheese, crackers and antipasto and a mug of homemade hot chocolate for everyone to sip and snack on throughout the hour. Then give each member of the family a different style of decorations and tell them to make sure they are evenly spread over the three, with a hoist up for the littlest members. While you are doing this, get everyone to talk about the biggest memories over the past year. Talk about what you learned, what made you laugh and what you are looking forward to in the coming year.

  73. My Big W Decorating Tip is keep the bigger, heavier decorations lower in the tree, and the smaller lighter decorations higher up. So the tree isn’t weighed down at the top, and the smaller decorations are eye level and can be enjoyed more, instead of missed, if placed lower down. Merry Christmas Everyone!

  74. Sasha Dion says:

    Personalise your tree with family photos , baubles with family members and items that make you smile

  75. Tawhi Kirk says:

    Christmas is approaching,
    This year it’s such a treat!
    With two daughters under two,
    We’re kept up on our feet!

    To celebrate a first,
    And a second Christmas Day.
    The deco has to be perfect!
    And I always get my way!

    With a Real Housewife budget,
    I’d go OTT on the glam!
    But my budget is conservative,
    So it’s not caviar, it’s ham!

    My tree will be central.
    The festive focus of the day.
    And this years theme is DIY.
    A charmingly rustic tree display.

    My top tip for this theme,
    Is to Keep It Stylishly Simple!
    Don’t go overboard or under,
    Meet me somewhere in the middle!

    I’ll be making homemade Bonbons,
    Made of brown paper, ribbon and card.
    Filled with dime store sweets,
    And one line jokes, it’s not that hard!

    As a lover of all things bunting,
    I’ll string it up around the tree!
    Add rainbow christmas baubles.
    It’ll set it off so perfectly!

    Candy canes and tinsel,
    Found so cheap at Big W.
    Dotted round the branches,
    It really looks so cute!

    My star, a lovely statue.
    Sent overseas from my Mother.
    Rounds it off, looking sweet!
    Straight from a magazine cover!

    So my tip is Keep it simple,
    Add you own DIY flair!
    And all your festive touches,
    Stocked at Big W…

    They have everything Xmas there!

    Thank you and Merry Christmas
    Tawhi Kirk
    tuffdeck@hotmail.com

  76. cheryl ellis says:

    Share the joy of decorating your tree with the children and grandchildren it is such a pleasure. The only thing I do is lights first and the rest is up to them.

  77. Our tradition is to make a bauble with your childs name on it and the year, and each year you have more and more baubles to add to the tree it becomes wonderful when each one looks different to the next.

  78. Karren Sandercock says:

    I put my Christmas tree up while my son is at school as I learned the hard way the first time we did it with him home and it is much easier to do it with out him. We do decorate it when he is home, but I put any breakable or treasured decorations on while he is at school and then he does the rest.

  79. When I break or loose a ear ring I like to keep all my odd dangly ones and use them to decorate the tree, it gives it a shabby chic miss match feel. I even have my friends donating their odd ear rings too me now.

  80. Have a theme for your Christmas tree, so all the ornaments match and coordinate with each other. My favourite Christmas theme is red and gold!

  81. Christmas is my fav!

  82. The kids have more fun if they can make all the decorations, from paper mache to cardboard coloured stars.
    They enjoy “upcycling” old wooden ornaments from the op shop too, with paint and glitter.
    This makes your tree unique, carbon neutral and a family work of art!

  83. Susan Moody says:

    Section the tree off so that my 19 month old can’t yank off all the decorations I so carefully placed! 🙂

  84. Children always make cute Christmas decorations at school, add these to your tree, in a visible place. It’ll light their eyes up every time they see their beautiful creation on display for all to see.

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