How to Decorate Your Christmas Tree on a Budget

Step-by-Step Guide

1. 1

   Step 1: Craft some felt ornaments for your tree.

   Trace a holiday themed pattern on a piece of white paper.
   
   Transfer this pattern twice onto felt with a fabric pen or other writing utensil.
   
   Cut out the two patterns with scissors and sew them together.
   
   Add a loop of thread to the top for hanging your felt ornament.
   
   You can add personal designs to your felt ornaments to make them more appealing.
   
   Add things like sequins, beads, and so on to the felt with glue.
   
   Using markers, you can draw designs on your felt ornaments, like snowmen, reindeer, elves and so on.
   
   If you have trouble drawing freehand, try using a stencil.
   
   If you're not much of a sewer, you can simplify the ornament so it is made of a single piece of felt, instead of two pieces sewn together.
   
   You can give your ornament more contour and shape by sewing most of the two felt pieces together, and inserting stuffing into the space between the felt pieces.
   
   Then finish sewing the felt pieces together.
2. 2

   Step 2: Upcycle CDs into Christmas decorations.

   Old Christmas CDs that you don't use anymore only need a piece of string through the hole in their middle.
   
   Hang this on your tree as a nostalgic ornament.You can add things to your CDs to make them ever more festive.
   
   For example, you might cut out letters from magazines and glue these to your CD decorations to express Christmas messages, like, "Merry Christmas" or "Let it Snow".
   
   On some CDs, you may be able to use a felt tipped permanent marker to draw designs, like Santa, snowflakes, or candy canes on it.
   
   Use different colored markers to make your ornament more festive. , This inexpensive decoration is great for young kids who like drawing.
   
   Gather together three to six crayons that are the same length.
   
   Align them so their ends are even.
   
   Then:
   Use a piece of decorative ribbon or string to fasten all the crayons together in a bundle.
   
   Create an end loop in your ribbon for hanging the ornament.
   
   If the crayons don't fasten well, use glue to help hold them together.
   
   You may need to hold the crayons together firmly for a few minutes while the glue sets.
   
   Apply a thin layer of glue to the outside of the crayons.
   
   Sprinkle glitter, sequins, and similar accents onto the glue to add some glamour to your ornament. , Spray paint pine cones with metallic gold or silver spray paint and then tie a string around them for hanging.
   
   Hang the pine cones on your tree and enjoy the refined, yet natural, look.
   
   By adding a light dusting of glitter to your pine cones, you can make it appear as though they are covered in ice or a thin layer of snow. , Take a needle and a piece of durable thread, like nylon or waxed cotton, and thread the needle.
   
   Make a simple, thick knot at the end of the string opposite your needle.
   
   Then:
   Use the needle to thread air-popped popcorn and cranberries on the thread.
   
   When you are finished stringing the popcorn and cranberries, tie off the needle end of the string and hang your popcorn/cranberry garland on your tree., Ribbons and lace can be relatively inexpensive, but these will add a refined atmosphere to your tree.
   
   What's more, you might have lace or ribbon leftover from prior crafts, decorations, or projects that you can use.
   
   Take your ribbon or lace and cut it into strips about the length of your arm.
   
   Then tie the fabric in an elegant bow.
   
   You can make the decorative bows smaller, which will allow you to fit more of them on the branches of your tree, by decreasing the length of the strips of ribbon/lace.
   
   Use hot glue to add decorations to your bow.
   
   You might add a small pine cone, a small evergreen branch, cranberries, mistletoe, and so on., You can use any kind of paper for making this kind of garland, though colored paper might look the most festive.
   
   Draw circular shapes on your paper in assorted sizes.
   
   Cut the circles free with scissors.
   
   Then use tape to fasten a piece of string for hanging to the paper ornament.
   
   You could also punch a small hole in your paper ornament and feed your string through the hole for hanging the paper decoration.
   
   These paper circles will give the appearance of ornaments, though they're much less expensive.
   
   To make your paper ornaments look the most authentic, you might want to add holiday designs to your ornaments with markers.
3. 3

   Step 3: Create crayon ornaments.

4. 4

   Step 4: Make decorations from pine cones.Store bought decorations often use pine cones and cranberries.

5. 5

   Step 5: String popcorn and cranberries to make a natural garland.

6. 6

   Step 6: Create an elegant look with ribbons and lace.

7. 7

   Step 7: Add paper ornaments to cord to make a paper garland.

Detailed Guide

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