Its beginning to look A LOT like Christmas… in the Gibby house hold! YAY!!!! CHRISTMAS!! : )

I decided to “take my time” this year. I have been putting my trees one by one, day by day, and re- assessing them to see how I can spruce them up this year. I know… I am crazy when it comes to Christmas. : ) But also, with working at my new job, which i am LOVING, I just don’t have the time to throw up all the trees in one day.

SO after lots of questions from my fb and twitter friends, I decided I would give some tips when it comes to decorating Christmas trees and of course share some pictures of mine : ) I am not finished yet, but I will share one tree of mine that I just LOVE! I am definitely no professional, but I feel like I have learned from the best, My mom and Sister : )

So here we go….

Theme-

I think every tree should have a theme. You should have a pretty good idea of what you want the “theme” is before you go shopping. Christmas decorations can easily distract you, so know what you want when you go shopping.

*Tip* some theme ideas- Partridge in a Pear Tree, Glamour, Vineyard, Whimsical, Old School Christmas, Gone with the Wind, Fancy Fruit, Peacock.. etc.

Colors-

After your theme pick your color scheme. Try to think outside the box..
– blue, green silver
– apple green, silver, gold
– brown, red, gold
– blue, purple, green, black
– hot pink, red, black, silver
– red and black

but traditional themes are just as gorgeous!

Trees-

Now also we have the luxury in this age to have colored trees! The tree I am sharing today is a black Christmas tree, very non-traditional. White trees look AMAZING with red, black and silver. I mean gorgeous. I love all sizes of trees. Fat, Skinny, Tall, Short etc. I just go by what my “theme” is.

*Tip* Wal-Mart has great trees. Don’t settle for the trees you have to put together piece by piece, you can get great trees that take 5 minutes to put together and fluff at wal-mart!

*Tip* there are lots of wild colored trees available. These are fun for kids rooms and are usually inexpensive.

Ornaments

It can be very over whelming when it comes to buying ornaments. What Size? What color? Solid balls? Design Balls? Do I want glitter? Do these colors match? haha well I say when it comes to ornaments there are no rules. If you choose green for example, you may want to do two or three shades of green. Reason why is because you will have problems finding sparkly green ornaments that match the flat green ornaments, so make it easy and buy both! I also like lots of color, it makes a tree have more depth. You want a variety of ornaments. I always get “balls” in the main colors in all sizes, because they are great fillers. All in all, anything goes, all shapes, all sizes.

You ALWAYS want some big and medium ornaments when it comes to large trees. Something that makes a statement. Big ornaments can be pricey, but the great thing is you dont have to buy lots of them. I like to buy bigger ornaments in odd numbers, usually 3. A fun way to add some personalization. If you have a hobby lobby, or something similar, buy a BIG letter, usually found by the wood products, and paint it a color to match your tree. You can even add glitter! You can use these for the middle of your tree or in the topper. I plan on doing this on my big tree this year.

*Tip* Get some medium size ornaments, buy a letter stencil for your last name, then paint your initial on the ball and then add a Jewel to the letter! These look like you bought them at a fancy store and add great personalization to your tree.

*Tip* if you want to spruce up plain balls. Get a small boa (they usually look like marabou fur) Cut small strips and hot glue at the top of the ornament where the hook connects.

*Tip* take cube boxes, wrap them in fancy wrapping paper and put bows on them and put in your tree.

Ribbon/Mesh

Now this is where it can get tricky. I have yet to master ribbon on trees, but I am definitely trying. I think a gorgeous ribbon MAKES a tree. Gorgeous ribbon can be pricey, but you can also find deals at hobby lobby. On two of my trees(including the one I have pictures on this post) I made a double loop “bow” . Basically, make a smaller loop, then behind it make a bigger loop and use wire to hold together the too loops and make sure the tails are decently long. I dont make each one the same size. Usually I put the ribbon on before the ornaments, but you can manipulate it in the tree if you need too. You can also make a traditional bow or just weave in and out the ribbon. If you do ribbon first, it may just look odd, but wait till you put the ornaments on to make your final judgement. Also when buying ribbon, it looks quite different on the roll then off. More Transparent ribbon is great for trees that already have a lot going on. BUT more heavy ribbon makes a tree look very rich and has more depth. It depends on the look you are going for. : )

Mesh usually comes in BIG, LONG rolls, but you can find it in smaller rolls. Mesh is fairly easy to manipulate. it makes a big impact on a tree and you can weave in and around a tree. There is even mesh that has sparkles! OH how I love me some sparkles haha. : ) If you are unfamiliar with mesh and have more questions email me : )

*Tip* if you like fur, you can use fur boas instead of ribbon. You can cut it and put it in spots on the tree or use it like garland. Brown boas look AMAZING in a red, gold and brown tree. : )

*Tip* if you have a little girl, a glamour tree is SO much fun. I used pearls and diamond strand in mine, and the best thing is I just used pearl necklaces!

Toppers-

My toppers are pretty wild! But I think more is more when it comes to Christmas. : ) I use sparkly picks/springs to decorate my trees. I also add things like Metal crowns, letters, LARGE ornaments, bows etc. This year I added a candelabra to my glamour tree, haha pics to come later. Sparkly sprigs are pretty easy to put on a tree but you NEED TO DO THEM FIRST. You shake, wiggle, sometimes even knock over the tree when putting springs in. : ) It is just because you have to weave the ends of the springs in to make sure they stay put. You really can just brainstorm and get creative with toppers. Again if you have a theme and want to know a cool, creative topper, email me : )

So there you have it, some Christmas Tree Decorating 411 from Mrs Gibby : ) Again, I am by no means a professional. Lets get to the pictures of my tree. This is a black tree with apple green, gold and silver ornaments. I find that black trees are so bright and pop! This tree was just gold and silver, but I love apple green and wanted to incorporate it in a tree this year. LOVE it. : ) PS. It is sad that Christmas Trees don’t photograph very well, but I tried. Maybe I should have my favorite photographer duo, the soon to be benfields, come take pictures haha : ) ) First pic, an iphone one that seemed to take the best “christmas light” picture