Customer support portrait
How Can We Help?

Our team of Online Home Consultants is eager to answer your questions about our unique process.

Posted by Melissa Lynn Galland on Nov 20, 2019 9:07:00 AM
Find me on:

Even the smallest festive touch can make your home feel more inviting, and the good news is it doesn’t have to be expensive. Holiday decorating on a budget can be a fun challenge that brings out your creative side and shows off your home decor skills. Whether you spruce up your home for the different seasons or for specific holidays, cheerful accents will bring a smile to both family members and visiting friends.

We’ve compiled some low-cost holiday and seasonal decorating ideas to help spark your creativity.

Thanksgiving

At a time to give thanks for the bounty of the season, Thanksgiving decorating can use multiple themes. Get the whole family involved by creating a gratitude board that you can buy or make using fabric-covered foam and a secondhand frame. Cut leaf shapes from paper for writing messages to one another. You can use the same concept with a thankful tree created from bare branches in a vase.

Create a centerpiece using a cake stand with an artfully arranged combination of gourds and dried ears of corn on a base of cornhusks to evoke the image of a cornucopia. Simple white pillar candles can be dressed up with twine and herbs like sage and thyme. Spruce up the mantel with colorful leaves clothespinned to twine to make a natural garland.

If you’re hosting the big meal, add unique touches such as an ice bucket made from a pumpkin that has been hollowed out and painted. Make a customized table runner or tablecloth with stenciled patterns on fabric. You can also create a practical padded runner from pieces of felt cut into leaf shapes and stitched or glued together in a whimsical pattern. For function and style, write the dinner menu using paint pens on a pumpkin or large gourd.

Winter/Christmas

Winter decorating is all about making your home feel cozy and inviting. Whether you bring in fresh evergreen garland or add a few extra festive pillows and throws, you want to feel warm and festive. Check local thrift shops for affordable winter-themed items such as old wooden snowshoes and skis reminiscent of popular cold-weather activities. Decorate them with a wreath or ribbon, or leave them with a simple, rustic look.

Snowflakes add unique elements to a room when hung by the mantel, on a light fixture, or on a tree made of branches. Use wood or paper for a country vibe, add some glitter to make them twinkle, or make oversized snowflakes to light up a wall. Plaid with a pop of vibrant red can be used in multiple ways to evoke a festive feeling. Ribbon on a wreath, an artfully hung scarf, or a plaid table runner can turn an otherwise plain room into a cheerful one.

If you celebrate Christmas, save your money for gifts and decorate with low-cost items that you can reuse. Make a wreath from gift bows and use them later for wrapping. Gather candy canes around the inside edges of a vase to make it instantly festive. Use some ribbon and a few bows to temporarily turn your throw pillows into pretty presents. If you don’t have one, make your own fireplace with affordable materials and have a place to hang the stockings.

New Year’s Eve

Whether you’re hosting a party or just want to get inspired for the next year to come, decorating for New Year’s Eve can bring a touch of sparkle to your home. The traditional colors for the holiday are black and gold, ideally with a little glitter to bring the glamor. Use glitter paint on mason jars or thrift store vases to make a floral centerpiece and accents throughout the house. You can do the same with small jars or dishes for candleholders.

Champagne is also a classic symbol of the season. Collect four empty bubbly bottles, use your trusty glitter paint to make them shine, and decorate them with the numbers for the new year. Put this on a sideboard or on the mantel for inspiration every time you walk by. Another great mantel idea is a collection of quirky clocks. You can find these at secondhand stores to keep costs down and have fun building your collection over time.

Another way to get the whole family involved in your decorating plan is to create a resolution wall. Get the crew together for an evening of crafty fun and write your resolutions on nice stationery to post on your wall. You can also use a chalkboard wall, a pinboard, or any other surface that works for you.

Spring/Easter

As the colder months start to fade away, you want to be surrounded by the signs of spring. The pastel colors, vibrant greens, and flowers that mark the new season make excellent inspiration for a decor refresh. Make paper or fabric flowers that will last the entire season and place them in pastel-painted vases or delicate floral teacups. Create a light and airy floral display with an assortment of clear glasses and jars filled with elegant greenery from the garden. Make it even more interesting by adding food coloring to the water to create a rainbow effect.

If your family celebrates Easter, eggs are an obvious and versatile decorating idea. Wood, plastic, or foam eggs can be decorated and used in a variety of ways. Integrate them into a wreath, place them in glass bowls that you already own, or add them to floral arrangements. If you’re looking for an activity to do with the kids, make string Easter eggs with small balloons, glue, and thread. Hang them on an indoor plant or create a festive mobile.

You can also use actual eggshells to create all sorts of holiday decorations. Plant small succulents or fast-growing wheatgrass in them, cluster them together in an egg tray with small flowers for a centerpiece, or put small candles in them for a votive display.

Summer/Independence Day

Summer is the time to be outdoors. Even when you’re inside, you can feel connected to the outside with a few smart and affordable decorating tricks. Add a pop of color or patterns by changing the pillow covers on your sofa. Lighten up the room by removing heavy drapes and leaving just the sheers. When the kids find treasures at the beach, put them in clear or colored mason jars to use as accent pieces throughout the house. If you’ve got a garden full of flowers, clip them to bring the outdoors inside. You can even use greenery from trees and shrubs to liven up your spaces without having to purchase plants.

When the Fourth of July rolls around, you can add some red, white, and blue to the mix without breaking the bank. Get a few red and blue bandanas and sew or knot them together to make a festive table runner. Make your own reusable flag garland with fabric scraps and wire or string and hang it around the house. You can also make wreaths from fabric scraps or bandanas. If you’re hosting an outdoor gathering or just want to wow the neighbors, stencil stars on the lawn using nontoxic paint.

Fall/Halloween

Just because the temperatures start to drop doesn’t mean your house can’t be warm and cheerful. Shift your color palette from vibrant tones to warmer oranges, reds, and browns as the leaves start to change. In fact, you can gather and press dried leaves and create centerpiece arrangements and seasonal wreaths. Decorative gourds add another natural touch that is also affordable. You can also carve these out and add tea lights for a warm glow. Bundled cinnamon sticks placed artfully around the home add a pleasing fragrance and can also be used later, leaving no waste. You can also fill clear jars and vases with seasonal items such as dried corn, acorns, and pinecones.

For a spookier touch, make witches’ brooms from dried twigs, hang shimmering spiderwebs from the dining room light fixture, and place a group of handmade paper bats traveling from one room to the next. With a few shades of spray paint and some glass jars, you can make candy corn vases. Fill them with sticks from the garden and artfully placed plastic spiders to give visitors a scare. For a less spooky Halloween accent, make yarn pumpkins that will brighten up any area they are in.

Holiday decorating is always fun, but it’s even more rewarding when you’re doing it in a home that you built. If you’re not sure you can afford it, the unique process that Adair Homes uses allows you to build a new custom home on a budget. Contact us today to learn more about choosing the floor plan that’s right for you, getting financing that works for your budget, and building the dream home that you can decorate for a lifetime.

New Call-to-action