Red and green will always work. But if your decorations feel a bit random, choosing a color scheme usually helps more than buying more decorations. Three things in the right colors pull a room together better than a dozen ornaments that don’t match.

For each palette below I’ve suggested three pieces to start with, and they’re spread across three places in the room: something up high (a garland, the tree), something at table height (candles, a tray), and something soft (a throw, a tree skirt). Three is enough to make the colors feel deliberate without redoing everything.

If you only buy one thing for any of these, make it wired ribbon (on Amazon) in the accent color. It ties bows on the tree, wraps a garland, dresses up candle holders and finishes gifts.

Blush and gold

Soft and a little romantic. Keep it mostly blush with gold as the accent, roughly 70/30. Too much gold gets flashy; too much pink starts to look like a baby shower.

Start with: 2.5-inch blush velvet ribbon through your garland, gold taper candles (on Amazon) in a few heights, blush glass ornaments grouped in threes.

A good choice if red and green feel too loud for you. Navy is dark and wintry, and silver keeps it from feeling heavy. Navy soaks up light, so plan on plenty of candles and fairy lights.

Start with: a navy velvet tree skirt (or a navy throw wrapped around the base), silver mercury glass ornaments, silver candlesticks or a silver tray on the coffee table.

Forest green and brass

A deeper, quieter take on the traditional colors. Brass is warmer than gold, and old brass candlesticks are easy to find at thrift stores. The tarnished ones are cheaper and look better; polish the high spots and leave the rest.

Start with: a forest green garland on the mantel, a few thrifted brass candlesticks (on Amazon), green velvet bows on the tree.

All white with warm light

People assume it’ll be boring. It isn’t, as long as you vary the textures: knit, glass, wood, paper, ceramic. Plain white on plain white just disappears. The lights have to be warm white; cool white makes the whole thing look clinical.

Start with: white bottle-brush trees in three heights, a white knit throw, warm-white fairy lights.

Terracotta and cream

Warm without being as strong as red, and it feels handmade. It’s also easy for renters because it lives in fabric and candles, and most of it can stay out after Christmas.

Start with: terracotta taper candles, a chunky cream throw (on Amazon), dried orange slices or terracotta ornaments on the tree.

Black and gold

It sounds odd until you see black ornaments on a green tree. It has an Art Deco feel. Keep black under about 40 percent of the mix and pair it with lots of warm light, or it starts to look like Halloween.

Start with: matte black shatterproof ornaments (on Amazon), gold ribbon, black taper candles in brass holders.

Pastels

Pink, mint and lavender. Cheerful, and it suits a small apartment where a strong palette would be overwhelming. Pastels need a light background; on a dark green tree they vanish, so this works best with a white or flocked tree. Go all in or skip it. One pastel ornament on a traditional tree looks like a mistake.

Start with: pastel glass ornaments in mixed finishes, a white or flocked tree, pastel ribbon garland.