Tips for a Fabulous Tree

Thank you guys so much for all the love on my Christmas Home Tour post! I thought I would write a tutorial going into more detail on how I do my trees. I have read so many blog posts, watched tons of Youtube tutorials, and compiled my best tips. Hopefully you can use some of these to make this year's tree the best one yet! 

1. The tree itself.

I have not paid over $50 for any of my trees. I wanted a flocked one so bad, but most of the trees I see on Instagram are over $500! I'd rather spend my money on gifts, so here's what I did to get a flocked tree for cheap.

My main tree was actually a Facebook yard sale tree I snagged up, and completely transformed. 

This stuff is amazing. My mom and I bought some a couple years ago and flocked our own trees. The flocking is thick and has glitter flecks in it. So gorgeous. We shared a five pound bag, and still had leftovers. The link to it is the photo below!

For my other trees, I bought a few cans of this. You can find it at Walmart too, but it usually sells out quickly. I also used this on my outdoor wreaths and staircase garland. It took 2 cans for 1 full-sized tree. This is not thick like the actual flocking I linked above. It's perfect if you want a lightly frosted look, or to touch up the flocking on other trees. 

Ideally, you want to have a tree that fits your space. Taller trees just look more grand and extravagant. But I'm cheap, and don't want to buy all new trees. If your tree is just a little too short, put a box underneath it! I do this with all of my trees. Make sure it's a sturdy box though. Haha. Then, I just put the tree skirt on top of everything, and my trees all get an extra boost. 

2. Lights.

The rule of thumb is 100 lights for each foot of tree. 8 foot tree = 800 lights. Do not just wrap them around the entire tree. Take the time to individually wrap each branch. It gives your tree so much more dimension and glow. If you want to be super extra, use two different sizes of lights as well. 

3. Design

Before I start putting everything on, I lay it all out and determine how my overall theme is looking. It's easy to see if you have enough variety in sizes, colors, and textures this way. 

4. Ribbon

This changes the whole aesthetic of your tree. Choose 2-5 different ribbons. Different colors, sizes, and patterns look the best. I cut my ribbon in 6-8 foot pieces. I start at the top of the tree, and shove it in towards the middle of the tree about every foot or so. It's not supposed to look perfect. Take the ribbon different directions, and have different sized pieces popping out. Something new I did this year was overlap two different ribbons. I had a burlap ribbon, and went right over it with a sheer glitter ribbon.

*** If you have awkward spots where you don't like how the ribbon is laying, this is where the "clips", or floral pieces go. ***

5. Picks.

You need so many more picks than you think. What I typically do is go to Hobby Lobby and pick out 10 of each style I like. Picks need to be different sizes, colors, and textures. (Example: Large birch branches, greenery with berries, and gold glittery feathers.) I start my picks at the top of the tree. All of my "toppers" are made with picks. I use the biggest picks for the top, and just add a ton until it looks the way I want it to. When putting in the other picks around the tree, do all the same style at once, and make sure they are spread out.

6. Ornaments

Contrary to popular belief, this is really the least important part of the whole tree. You don't need a thousand ornaments. You just need a few that make a big statement. The bigger the better guys. All the ornaments on my main tree are XL sized. They looked massive in store, but once I got them on the tree they were perfect. Different textures, shapes, and styles will add visual interest. 

Well that's about it! I think one of the main points to take away from this is to not get too hung up on everything looking orderly and perfect. Just have fun with it!