Fabric covers more of a room than any decoration does. Change the pillow covers, a throw and the bedding, and the whole place feels different without a single ornament. It takes about half an hour, nothing goes on the walls, and in January it all swaps back into one tote.

The half hour

Pillow covers (10 minutes). Take the everyday covers off the sofa and bed pillows and put holiday ones (on Amazon) on. Buy covers rather than whole pillows: $8 to $15 each instead of $25 or more, and they store flat. Most sofa pillows take 18 by 18 inches, but measure yours first.

Throws (10 minutes). One over the arm of the sofa, one across the foot of the bed. Fold it in thirds lengthwise and lay it at a slight angle so it looks casual.

Bedding (10 minutes). Change the duvet cover, or just the shams if you’re short on time. People skip this step, and it’s the one that makes the bedroom feel seasonal.

All new, it’s roughly $60 to $75. Less if you find the throw secondhand.

Living room

Two pillow covers, one throw, one basket. Mix one patterned cover (plaid, Fair Isle, a simple Christmas print) with one solid in a matching color. Two patterns compete; two solids look unfinished.

Put the throw on the sofa arm, where it’s seen, not along the back, where it gets sat on. The basket you probably already own holds the everyday throw you just took off. If there’s an armchair, one matching holiday cover there ties it to the sofa.

Bedroom

You see your bedroom every day of December, usually when you’re tired, so it’s worth the ten minutes. A deep green, a warm plaid or a cream and red stripe duvet cover changes the room more than anything else. Add the throw across the foot of the bed and two holiday shams in front of your sleeping pillows.

Christmas-print sheets are a matter of taste. A solid duvet cover and shams feel festive but grown-up; Santa sheets feel like a guest room at your grandmother’s. Either is fine if it’s what you want.

What’s worth buying

  • Covers, not pillows. A third of the price, and you keep inserts you already like.
  • One good throw rather than three cheap ones. A $30 chunky knit (on Amazon) beats three $10 fleeces, and you’ll use it long after January.
  • Velvet and flannel. If you buy one new thing, make it something with texture. It catches winter light in a way plain cotton doesn’t.

What to skip

  • Holiday curtains. Expensive, a pain to hang, and they take over the room. A garland on the curtain rod does the job for much less.
  • Matching everything. Tree skirt, stockings, runner and napkins all in one print looks like a catalog. Choose one pattern and keep the rest solid.

Buying secondhand

Holiday textiles are one of the best things to buy used, because people donate them in January after one season.

Look for knit throws, velvet pillow covers, flannel duvet covers and table runners. Skip anything white (stains), anything that smells musty, and pillow inserts, which you should always buy new. Wash on hot with an extra rinse and dry on high; velvet and wool go to the dry cleaner or get steamed. If it still smells like someone’s attic, give it back.

The first two weeks of January are when thrift stores fill up with this stuff, so that’s the time to shop for next year.