Christmas Decorating on a Budget

We all know that money is already flying here and there around the holidays with presents, plane flights, and parties. So when it's time to decorate your house, and especially if you are newly married or just starting out and you don't have much to start with, you quickly realize that decorations are expensive!

My first Christmas with Chris, I went to Crate & Barrel, armed with the last giftcard from the wedding, thinking, "This is great! I'll get all of our Christmas decorations in one fell swoop!" Needless to say, I walked out of there with only a few ornaments, a little tree, and an ornament hanger. Bust.

But I soon found a way to decorate my entire apartment with just the few family decorations we had received, and $15. What could you possibly buy with $15 that could cover your whole place?

Ribbon: $5


And the jackpot...

Shatter-proof ornaments, pack of 70: $10


That's right, a pack of seventy ornaments for ten bucks! I found this pack at Home Depot, and they have had it for the past three years, including this year. It's the greatest holiday find I have stumbled upon!

So now on to your next question: how do I decorate my whole place with ornaments and ribbon?

Get creative! Put them EVERYWHERE!

Here are some pictures of the many creative ways we used them!


Set alongside the wine bottles I made last year (tutorial over at Mod Podge Rocks!)



Sitting in bowls and vases all over!





We used the ribbon to make a ornament banner to hang across the top of the TV/fireplace and secured it with two thumbtacks.


We even used fishing line (you could use clear/white thread too!) to string the ornaments to hang in the holes of a wine rack!


Finally, we had lots of fun with my empty frame collage. The ribbon and ornaments were great, and we even got to incorporate a cute little garland that was too short to hang on the tree, so needed to be used in a creative new way!




So now our place is decorated with Christmas cheer from floor to ceiling, and it only cost $15!