Searches for office Christmas decorations jump every November. If you spend most of your day at a desk, a little decoration there does more for your mood than another thing at home you see for an hour each evening.
The trick at work is to stay small, tidy and easy to take down.
Check first
Before buying anything, find out:
- Whether your office allows plug-in lights. Many don’t, because of fire rules. Battery lights are almost always fine.
- Whether you can attach things to walls or cubicle panels.
- Whether there are rules about candles, real greenery or scents. Assume no.
A small tree
A 2 ft tabletop tree (on Amazon) fits on most desks without getting in the way. Pre-lit and battery powered is the easiest. If your desk is tiny, a set of bottle-brush trees (on Amazon) grouped in one corner gives the same feeling in less space.
Lights on a timer
Battery fairy lights with a timer (on Amazon) wound along the top of the monitor, the edge of a shelf or through a small garland. Set them to come on when you arrive and turn off six hours later, so you never leave them on over the weekend.
Garland along a shelf or panel
A short pre-lit garland (on Amazon) along the top of a cubicle wall or the front of a shelf. Use removable hooks (on Amazon) or small binder clips, depending on the surface.
A mini wreath
A small wreath (on Amazon) on the cubicle entry, the outside of your office door, or the side of a filing cabinet with a magnetic hook.
Little things
- A holiday mug for your coffee.
- Christmas cards from colleagues clipped to a string.
- A small bowl of wrapped candy for people stopping by.
- A desk calendar or advent calendar.
Sharing space
If you share a desk or sit in an open-plan office, keep it to your area and keep it quiet: no music, nothing that smells, nothing that blinks fast. Take everything down before you leave for the holidays, or by early January at the latest.
If your office has a door decorating contest, see Christmas door decorating contest ideas.