Christmas Decorations On A Budget

Kristin Sullivan
by Kristin Sullivan

Do you look at magazines, pictures from Pinterest or simply social media from your circle of friends and drool over their homes decorated for Christmas? What if I told you I have a few tips and tricks to help you achieve those drool worthy Christmas decorations on a budget?


After losing a lot (read most) of our Christmas decorations in the Harvey flood in 2017 I needed to find Christmas decorations on a budget. Then I needed to budget shop again when Amory and I moved into our our little cottage in the city and found a pink tinsel tree. The red, white and black color scheme from our previous budget shopping trip did not work! So I want to share the how, the where and when to get your Christmas decorations on a budget.


Make A Plan To Purchase Your Christmas Decorations

Make a list and check it twice!


  • Are you staying with the same color scheme this year and did you notice anywhere you were lacking decorations in that color last year? For instance your color scheme is red, turquoise and white. But you noticed you were lacking in turquoise ornaments and white glitter picks on your tree. Write that down (trust me you won’t remember) so you can be on the hunt!
  • Are changing color schemes entirely? Write down what the new color scheme is and what you’d like to look for in those colors. As you find it mark it off!
  • Write down themes too – are you doing gingerbread in the kitchen and farmhouse in the living room, for example? Write down what you could use to complete your theme.

Where To Find Christmas Decorations On A Budget
  • Thrift stores of course! I like to follow my favorite thrift stores’ Facebook pages to find out about special sales days and discounted colored price tags. We found this entire basket of red, white and black ornaments at a favorite thrift store for thirty dollars! I also picked up three small lighted Christmas trees (you can see those next to the basket!) Definitely a great way to get Christmas decorations on a budget year round!
  • Are you switching color schemes and a friend is too? Well what if a bunch of friends wanted to swap out their color and themed Christmas ornaments? It would be a budget Christmas decoration swap shop made in heaven! Invite friends over and swap decoration for decoration, wreath for wreath, box of ornaments for box of ornaments. Cannot get more budget friendly than that!
  • Another great place for budget Christmas decorations is from your local Buy Nothing group. A Buy Nothing group is a Facebook group local to your town (or if you live in a big city, your neighborhood), where locals can post items they want to give away or are in need of — for free. The founders of the Buy Nothing Project call their Facebook groups a “gift economy.” The perfect place for a person to “Fifth Sparrow No More” their possessions. Hanging out in your Buy Nothing Facebook group is like being in a thrift store where everything is free! Christmas Decorations are hit or miss but you can always do an ask in your specific color or theme!
  • Speaking of Facebook – check out Facebook Marketplace for Christmas decorations on a budget.
  • And lastly Varagesale, although there are probably more budget friendly resale online selling spots I didn’t mention! Varagesale is great because you can sign up in a group(s) local to your community and it’s organized in categories so it is easy to find Christmas decorations on a budget.


When to Grab Your Christmas Decorations on A Budget


The answer is all year! After Christmas sales are great if you wait until it’s deeply discounted (I’m looking at you Hobby Lobby). But throughout the year at the above mentioned places are going to be the best way to find budget friendly decorations and create a beautifully decorated Christmas season.


What I Found Off Season and Budget Friendly


A dainty tea cup was found in an antiques store on a trip to Waco during the summer but I knew it would be perfect with my pink Christmas theme with a bit of fake snow, a tiny tree and an even tinier reindeer. Learn how I repurposed an old frame into this coffee table tray here.

These tiny bird Christmas lights were an after Christmas purchase in an antique store in Tennessee. They were so pretty and inexpensive I wish there had been more boxes!

Think Outside The Box for Christmas Decorations


Raid your craft closet, your dress up closet and your china cabinet! The “snowballs” are just styrofoam balls piled into a basket, the snowman hat is an old hat from my daughter’s costume box and I pulled another tea cup out to make a Christmas scene. Now that’s budget friendly when you shop from home!

Another budget friendly idea is to create your own garland from cast off necklaces. These can be snipped apart and hot glued end to end for an easy DIY garland. I did this with inexpensive pearl necklaces I gathered in thrift stores everywhere! Try this with Mardi Gras beads, pearl, bead or wooden necklaces. Just be careful if the beads aren’t attached to the string when snipping open that they don’t all roll off!

For this I raided the china cabinet again and used the book that my girls and I always read together on Christmas Eve. Children’s books are great budget friendly Christmas decorations because they are bright and colorful and can spark happy memories of Christmas past.

Speaking of children’s things – using a toy pick up to haul small Christmas trees is just plain cute! In this cloche I used more craft closet supplies – quilt batting for “snow” under the trees!

Save these budget friendly Christmas decorating ideas so you can use the tips and tricks all year round!

Kristin Sullivan
Want more details about this and other budgeting & minimalist living ideas? Check out more here!
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