Designers’ Year-Round Holiday Decorating Tips for Stellar Festive Seasons
Few traditions are as cherished as decorating for the holidays. From the Rockefeller Christmas Tree to Easter lillies to the jack-o’-lanterns that dot stoops across America for a month every autumn, seasonal decor acts as a marker of the coming and going of a year.
The festive season is quickly approaching, if the ghosts, turkeys, reindeer and menorahs now lining retail shelves have anything to say about it.
In anticipation, we’ve chatted with local design experts to procure tips and tricks for holiday decorating across budget, time of year and individual taste, to ensure you’re well-prepared for the busy days ahead.
What’s Behind Our Obsession With Decorating?
For Stephanie Meadows, founder and principal interior designer at Meadows Interior, the love that so many have for holiday decorating comes from tradition.
“It’s the repetition each year, even if you’re freshening and changing it, [that] creates that overall sense of tone.” Growing up, her family wasn’t big on decorating, and she thinks this is why she now takes great joy in adorning her own home as an adult.
Liz Potarazu, CEO and principal designer at LP & CO, adds that there’s also a scientific reason for why people return to decorating year after year.
“I believe in the power of neuroaesthetics, which is the study of how our environment affects our brains; what we curate inside our homes has the potential to bring joy, peace and productivity to our lives every day,” she says. “For those homeowners that love holidays, seasonal decorating does just that, plus it has the added bonus of making your home feel fresh again. On a deeper level, if decorating is tied to tradition and time with family, you’re adding sight and sound cues that trigger happy memories, which is essentially doubling down on how your home and environment enhances your well-being.”
Thoughtful + Thrifty Design
Those wary of kitschy adornments or extreme budgets need not fear. “A decoration doesn’t have to be a literal holiday symbol,” explains Potarazu. “Instead of a Santa or jack-o’-lantern, choose less expensive materials like oversize red bows, holly trimmed from your yard, or corn stalks from a local farm. Mixing in natural elements that you can source inexpensively not only saves money but it also adds texture and depth to your decor.”
Meadows recommends a color-based approach to these more discerning decorators, even if this just means swapping out pillows on the sofa.
“You don’t have to decorate with a pumpkin just because it’s pumpkin season. But if you go with the colors you would see if you went to a pumpkin patch and start to layer that type of aesthetic in, it really creates the dimension, the feel and the warmth,” she notes.
This means that there’s no need to spend a fortune on new decor.
“If you’re decorating for the fall and you’re leaning into green tones, you can sprinkle in the yellow, the golds and oranges … and then you can also use that same green tone and sprinkle in reds, creams and whites for a Christmas or holiday feel,” later in the year, she explains.
And, when in doubt, she recommends using candles (whether real or LED) to set a festive tone in any space.
For decor purchases, Meadows loves discount stores like HomeGoods or Homesense, which sell great items across a spectrum of design preferences at reasonable prices. Potarazu suggests hitting the craft store for discounts post-holiday to stock up with great bargains.
At the end of the day, the most budget-friendly (and eco-friendly) option is to reuse. “Find a good little storage space to make sure that you, year after year, have the same [decor], so that you’re not spending over and over again,” Meadows suggests.
Inspiration Is Everywhere — But Focus on the Joy of It All
Unsure of where to start? “Driving around well-decorated neighborhoods is some of the best inspiration, but I also find that store displays are often beautiful and spark great ideas,” suggests Potarazu.
Meadows agrees that getting out and about is the best way to gather new ideas for decor.
For example, “If you go to local farms in the fall [i.e. for apple picking or pumpkin patches], take some pictures around you. Go outside in your backyard once the leaves start to change. And that’s inspiration in and of itself, just for a color palette!”
Social media can certainly be a source of inspiration as well, as “so many people put out so much wonderful information, both for high-end spending and ways of saving,” notes Meadows.
“If anything, I think that social media has made it more acceptable to lean into the fun of each season and to spruce up your home accordingly,” adds Potarazu.
At the end of the day, however, all should be encouraged to “go with what you love. It’s your home, you’ve got to feel happy there,” Meadows emphasizes. “It’s not about finding the perfect magazine picture (unless that’s what you want to emulate!). It’s more about finding what makes you feel good, and then putting that in a way in your home that every time you walk in the door, you take a deep breath, or sigh, and [say], ‘Oh, I love this!’”
And, of course, a good sense of humor is encouraged. Meadows recounts one incident in which her children, young at the time, brought home seeds from school in the autumn and, unbeknownst to her, placed them in her outdoor decor.
By the next year, corn stalks were growing out of her flower pot.
“Having everything beautiful and picture-perfect is one thing, and creating memories and going with what your budget is and what feels good to you is equally as important.”
