Maximize Holiday Cheer: 7 Holiday Decorating Ideas While Living in a Small Space

No matter what holidays you do or don’t celebrate come December and January, you may like to get in the festive spirit. If you're considering decorating your home, know that you can still ring in the holidays in a small space. Here are seven unique ideas to decorate this holiday season.

1. Space-Saving Christmas Tree

The holidays won't feel complete without a pop of green or white from your tree, but you also don't need one that’s 10 feet tall to enjoy the festivities. Thankfully, you can get slim, tabletop Christmas trees to solve the space problem.

📸 Boxwood Avenue

A flat Christmas tree with branches sticks to the wall, so it frees any ground area. If you want to save both space and money on your holiday decor, use sticks or twigs from the trees in your backyard. Cut them into varying lengths, then use a thin rope to tie them together, forming a triangle. Add colorful lights and shapes and hang it on your wall or front door.

2. Creative Wall Decorations

If space is the only thing stopping you from creatively accessorizing your home, wall decorations are a helpful trick to make a naked wall look fabulous. You don't need space, and you can get as creative as you like.

📸 Toni Roberts

Some ideas are hanging a snowy landscape canvas art or draping a Norfolk pine branch on the mirror. To add a personal flair, make handmade paper snowflakes or candy canes and dangle Christmas stockings to make your wall come to life.

3. Mantel Decor

📸 The Kwendy Home

Another excellent space-saving solution is decorating the mantel. Like with the wall, you can combine several Christmas-themed trimmings, from natural greenery and branches to faux flowers and pine cones. Add a family photo above to make it look sentimental. Embellish it with gold or silver bells, ribbons or beads, and finish it with Christmas stockings to complete the look perfectly aligned with the joyous theme.

4. Tabletop Displays

Try the tabletop next if you can't decorate the wall or mantel. It may look crowded for a small space, but you can furnish minimal items to cheer up your tabletop.

📸 Kerry Kellett

Some examples are store-bought mini-Christmas trees that crown the scene with handmade snowflakes or glass icicles on the side. If you're into baking, you can also create a cupcake Christmas tree using blue and white cupcake liners to have that charming wintry look on your dining or coffee table. If you have a particular theme in mind, like a classic Christmas style featuring bright red and white vintage frills or a Disney-related motif, feel free to do it.

5. DIY Wreaths and Garlands

Wreaths are rarely absent in holiday decorations. They represent good fortune, friendship and life, so people want to embody these positive aspects through accenting their spaces.

📸 Wreath Charms

You can create one using various materials, like yarn, twigs and faux flowers. First, bend any wire and shape it into a circle. Then, add objects like pine cones, ribbons, bells and anything that strikes your fancy. Hang it casually on your kitchen backsplash, on a window or above a mirror for that sparkly interior and merry feel to your dwelling.

Garlands are also a popular holiday decor choice. Loop and drape your stairs with silver and green garlands punctuated with balls to add more punch to the classic holiday style.

6. Colorful String Lights

String lights create a vignette to light up your space and inject a festive flair into your tiny abode. With several designs, color and brightness options, and dazzling effects, they're versatile enough to work on any holiday theme you've planned.

📸 Chronos Lights 

For a small space, you can light up the staircase, make a wall tre, or create a waterfall of lights on a sheer curtain. String lights are flexible decor items, so you can install them anywhere.

7. Upcycled Decorations

If you want to go green with your holiday accents, upcycling used materials is the best way to go. For example, burnt-out bulbs can be turned into charming holiday ornaments by painting them and draping the base cap with patterned ribbons.

📸 The Quilted Grain

If you can paint, you can channel your skills into creating carolers out of cardboard and complete the heads with festive hats. You can stack old buttons from the largest to the smallest size to create cute button trees. With upcycled materials, you can leverage your creative skills to form brilliant holiday decorations that elevate the look and feel of your home.

Advantages of Holiday Decorating in a Small Space

Since many people reuse their festive decorations, they pile up over the years. If you go all out with accessories, you may find it challenging to dress up a small square-foot home. However, there are advantages to it.

📸 Taylor Weimar

1. Makes the Space More Cozy and Intimate

The effect of decorating a small space is similar to wearing your exact size in clothing — they fit snuggly, creating a familiar and inviting living atmosphere. Achieving this in a larger home can be challenging unless you decorate other areas in addition to the living room, so the ambiance matches anywhere you go around the house.

2. Allows You to Personalize the Space

It's quality over quantity when adorning a tiny apartment or condo. With a limited space, you'll put more effort and consideration into decorating and customizing the space. You'll curate your ornaments, take your time to mix and match colors, and think of a perfect theme that captures the meaning of the holiday for you.

3. Inspires Creativity

If you have little to no budget for beautifying your home, it's not an issue since a small apartment doesn't demand much. Compared to decorating a large house, which takes a lot of energy and time, it doesn’t take much effort to decorate a tiny space.

Liven up Your Small Space for the Holidays

The holidays are a special time for everyone. People celebrate the joyous season by adorning their homes with beautiful, sparkly, and colorful frills. Contrary to the general notion you need to spend thousands of dollars for festive trinkets, you can upcycle materials and try do-it-yourself projects.

📸 Paige Kontrafouris

A quick search online will give you ideas on how to turn cardboard into a charming snowflake or Christmas tree. You have to be creative in thinking of a theme and following the instructions in the online materials on making incredible decorations from scratch. You can embrace the season with a festive spirit by channeling your creativity into holiday decorations.

Ready to embark on a virtual decorating adventure this holiday season? Dive into the world of DecorMatters, where your festive interior design fantasies come to life! Experiment with our virtual decorating features to bring the seven holiday ideas from our blog into your home, no matter its size. Play with different layouts, try out new decor, and have fun with our interior design games. Download DecorMatters now and enjoy the thrill of turning your home into a festive haven, all with a few taps and swipes!