Most of what makes a room feel like Christmas costs very little: greenery, warm light, something that smells good. The decorations that look cheap are usually the shiny plastic ones, and those aren’t cheap anyway.
Here are twenty ideas that each come in under $25. A lot of them are close to free.
Things you can pick up outside or at the grocery store
1. A bowl of pinecones. Collect them on a walk, let them dry out for a day, and pile them in a big wooden or ceramic bowl. If you like, touch the tips with white craft paint so they look a little frosted. Cost: nothing.
2. Eucalyptus in a tall vase. A grocery store bunch is around $4 to $6. It smells good, looks elegant, and dries well, so it lasts the whole season. Cut the stems at an angle and change the water once.
3. Pine branches from a tree lot. Lots trim the bottom branches off trees before they sell them, and many will give those away if you ask. Use them along a mantel, down a table, or in a vase. Fresh cuttings last two or three weeks indoors away from the heater. Ask in early December, before they’ve cleared the leftovers.
4. Dried orange slices. Slice oranges about a quarter inch thick and bake them at 200°F for around three hours, turning once. They come out translucent and amber. String them into a garland or pile them in a bowl. Kept dry, they last for years.
5. Cinnamon stick bundles. Tie three sticks (on Amazon) together with twine. They work as napkin rings, tree ornaments or vase filler, and one grocery store jar makes twenty or so bundles.
Paper
6. Big paper stars. The large folded stars that cost $30 in shops can be made from a brown paper grocery bag, some glue and a bit of patience. Make them big; small paper crafts look like crafts, large ones look like decorations. Hang three at different heights in a window.
7. Free printable art. Plenty of good free Christmas printables exist: botanical wreaths, old carol sheets, simple line drawings. Print two or three on cream paper and put them in frames you already have.
8. Coffee filter snowflakes. Coffee filters are already round and thin enough to cut detailed patterns. Fold into sixths rather than quarters for a proper six-pointed snowflake, then hang a string of them across a window.
9. A tree made from an old paperback. Fold every page of a thick paperback corner to spine and it fans out into a small tree. Thrift stores sell old paperbacks for a dollar. Add a star on top and a few battery lights.
Light and scent
10. Inexpensive jar candles, grouped. Five plain white candles in glass jars, at different heights, on one tray. In candlelight, cheap and expensive candles look the same. Unscented, or all the same scent.
11. A simmer pot. Water, orange slices, cinnamon sticks, a few cloves and a splash of vanilla on low heat. The whole apartment smells like the holidays for about a dollar. Keep the water topped up, and use a slow cooker on warm if you’ll be out of the room.
Things you already own
12. A sweater around a vase. Cut the sleeve off an old cable-knit sweater, slide it over a plain vase and fold the cuff. Fill it with eucalyptus or pine.
13. The other side of your tablecloth. Many tablecloths have a plain reverse side. Flip it over and put the pinecone bowl down the middle.
14. Old string lights in a new spot. Stuff a strand into a big glass jar, or drape it along a bookshelf. Test every strand before you plan around it.
15. Socks as gift bags. A clean holiday sock with a ribbon tied around the top. Kids especially like it.
16. A popcorn garland. Let the popcorn cool completely first, then thread it with a needle and strong thread. Mix in a few dried orange slices. Keep it out of reach of dogs.
17. Gingerbread ornaments. Poke a hole with a straw before baking, then hang them with twine. They last a season or two, and the house smells great while they bake.
When you do buy something
18. Thrifted brass and glass. December thrift stores have brass candlesticks, cut-glass bowls and silver-plated trays. A $3 brass candlestick with a plain white taper looks far more expensive than it is.
19. Reusable gift bags (on Amazon). A set runs $10 to $15 and replaces wrapping paper from then on.
20. Kraft paper (on Amazon) and twine. Under $10 for both, and enough to wrap gifts for several years. Tuck a sprig of eucalyptus or a cinnamon stick under the twine.
Putting it away
Dried oranges and cinnamon go in a sealed jar or bag. Paper stars fold flat. Pinecones can go back outside, or into a bag for next year. Almost all of this fits in one box.