Christmas Greenery: Easy Ways to Make Your Home Look More Festive

Get into the holiday spirit with these simple and affordable ideas that will help you transform your home into a winter wonderland.

The holiday season is a time of year filled with warmth, joy, and the spirit of giving. One of the most cherished traditions during this time is decorating your home with Christmas greenery.

Whether you choose to use fresh or artificial greenery, the addition of these festive elements can transform your space into a winter wonderland.

In today’s post, we’ll chat about the benefits and drawbacks of using both fresh and artificial Christmas greenery. I’ll also share some creative ideas on how to decorate your home for the holidays that will make it feel more festive and cozy for the season.

Wait until you see all of the beautiful inspiration you may not have thought of!

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Fresh vs. Artificial Christmas Greenery

With an array of ideas for using Christmas boughs, there is no shortage of options for decorating. How much or how little you do largely depends on what you are decorating and the Christmas aesthetic you are striving for this year.

But the best part?

You can go with fresh winter evergreens or faux Christmas greenery depending on what you have on hand and how budget-conscious you are if you need more supplies.

Each choice carries its own set of characteristics, and the decision between the two can greatly influence the ambiance, the amount of work you want to do, the budget, and the sustainability of your holiday decor.

If you have access to Christmas greenery in your landscape, it’s both budget-friendly and sustainable to make cuts and create beautiful holiday decor with fresh supplies.

That said, you’ll need to be mindful of how early you decorate as the greens don’t last as long as faux. So consider all that before decorating this year.

From the Christmas tree and centerpieces to the wreath and garland, should you go with fresh or artificial Christmas greens?

Fresh Christmas Greenery

Pros

• Natural Aroma: Fresh Christmas boughs, like pine, fir, and cedar, releases a delightful, natural scent that can instantly make your home feel like a winter forest. The aroma of fresh greenery is synonymous with the holiday season.
• Authentic Appearance: Nothing quite replicates the lush and vibrant appearance of real greenery. The texture, color, and detail of fresh boughs and branches add a touch of authenticity to your holiday decor.
• Eco-friendly: Using fresh greenery is a sustainable choice that can be composted after the holidays, reducing waste, and benefiting the environment.
• Budget-friendly: If you have access to lots of fresh Christmas greenery in your landscape, there are minimal costs, if any.

Cons

• Limited Lifespan: Fresh Christmas greens have a limited lifespan and may start to wilt or shed needles after a few weeks, requiring replacement.
• Maintenance: Keeping fresh looking its best involves regular misting and care to prevent it from drying out.

If you want to learn my best tips for keeping Christmas greenery fresh, click here.

Artificial Christmas Greenery

Pros

• Durability: Artificial greenery is designed to last for many holiday seasons. You can invest in quality pieces that will maintain their appearance year after year.
• Low Maintenance: Artificial greenery requires minimal maintenance. No need for watering or worrying about shedding needles.
• Customization: Artificial greenery comes in a wide variety of styles, shapes, and sizes, allowing you to select the perfect fit for your holiday decor theme.

Cons

• Lack of Scent: Artificial greenery lacks the natural aroma of fresh greenery. However, you can use scented candles or essential oils to recreate the fragrance.
• Initial Cost: High-quality artificial greenery can be more expensive upfront, but it can be a cost-effective choice in the long run.
• Can Look Cheap: If using faux winter greenery, not all artificial Christmas stems are alike. Some look fake, cheap, and inauthentic.

How to Make Your Home More Festive For the Holidays with Christmas Greenery

Since my jam is plants and flowers, it should come as no surprise that I love playing around with fresh Christmas greenery for the holidays too.

While it’s true it can be tough with needle drop indoors, I’ve got some tips and tricks to getting those live evergreen branches to stay fresher for longer if you want to use fresh greens.

There are LOTS of beautiful evergreen trees and shrubs here on the property to cut from, so I can’t wait to dive in and start creating beautiful Christmas decor like these.

• Like these gorgeous winter planters, I made last year.
• Or this budget-friendly winter outdoor planter I made using cuts from our Christmas tree and dried sedum autumn joy flowers.
• Or these kissing balls for the front porch.
• And this beautiful advent wreath DIY.
• Or this incredible Christmas dining table centerpiece idea using a vintage toolbox as the planter.
• You can even make your own scented gift tags for Christmas using small cuts from the landscape too!

But those are just a few of the things I like to do with Christmas greenery. Here are lots more holiday decorating ideas to try!

More About Decorating With Christmas Greenery

I hope you found some amazing holiday inspiration today. How do you like to decorate your home with Christmas greenery for the holidays? Do you prefer faux or fresh Christmas greenery? I would love to know more in the comments below.

And don’t miss joining my Gardening DIY and Decorating Community on Facebook for more chatter. And follow along there and on Instagram as well. There are behind-the-scenes daily things that I share on Instagram that don’t make it to the blog. Would love to see you there too!

If you prefer to binge-watch Bricks ’n Blooms on TV, we go more in-depth with tours and posts on my YouTube channel. Would love to hang out with you there!

And… If you’re catching up on blog posts you may have missed, be sure to sign-up to get my newest posts via email to stay up to date with everything that’s happening here on the blog and more.

Want to Learn How to Decorate With Fresh Greens for the Holidays?

Sign up here for my email and get a discount on my ebook, 15 Easy Ways to Decorate With Fresh Greens for the Holidays that offers beautiful, budget-friendly, and sustainable holiday decorating inspiration using fresh greens from the landscape.

This 40-page guide is full of simple DIY holiday decorating ideas that includes how to cut, care for, and design with fresh greens, as well as tips to purchase and incorporate faux greens with your holiday decorating style to create a cozy, beautiful, and organic vibe.

From porch styling to cozy centerpiece and tablescape inspiration, wait until you try these budget-friendly holiday decorating ideas using fresh greens for every room in your home.

Looking For More Christmas Decorating Ideas?

Wait until you see these holiday decorating, entertaining, and food ideas to create a cozy home for Christmas.

• 23 Inspiring Christmas Aesthetics for 2022
• How to Make a Christmas Kissing Ball
• The Cutest Scented Christmas Gift Tags DIY
• First Christmas in Our New Home Tour
• Last Christmas in Our Home Tour
• 6 Delicious Dinner Ideas for Christmas
• Christmas Tree Ornament Storage Hack (Tiktok Made Me Do It)
• 6 Clever Christmas Dinner Easy Table Decorating Ideas
• Christmas Decorating Trends for 2021
• 13 Simple Christmas Decorating Ideas for Your Home
• How to Make an Advent Wreath
• Winter Gardening With Outdoor Planters
• 5 Clever Ideas for the Prettiest Christmas Table Settings
• 17 Christmas Tree Decorating Ideas
• Easy Christmas Cookies
• Rustic Farmhouse Christmas Decorating Ideas
• Budget-Friendly Winter Outdoor Planters

Thank you so much for following along.

Enjoy a beautiful day! xo

It’s the final day of the 10 days of Christmas where my friends and I are bringing you daily inspiration to get psyched up and ready for the holidays.

Can you believe we’ve spent 10 days together sharing different types of holiday inspiration to try this year?

From Christmas decorating ideas to gift-wrapping ideas, these posts have you covered with lots of creative and budget-friendly ideas.

The 10 Days of Christmas lineup includes:

• Day 1 – Christmas DIY Ideas
• Day 2 – Front Porch Decorating Ideas
• Day 3 – Christmas Tree Ideas
• Day 4 – Christmas Table Decor Ideas
• Day 5 – Christmas Cookies and Sweet Treats
• Day 6 – Christmas Decorating Ideas
• Day 7 – Bloggers’ Favorite Christmas Idea
• Day 8 – Gift Wrapping Ideas
• Day 9 – Wreaths & Front Door Decor
• Day 10 – Winter Greenery

The 10 Days of Christmas

I’m super excited to share each day with some of my favorite holiday ideas as part of the 10 Days of Christmas.

The talented bloggers I’m sharing with are some of the best in the home decor niche and I feel very blessed to be a part of something so fun for the holidays.

If you are new here, I’m Stacy, a self-taught master gardener who lives and gardens in northern New Jersey, zone 6a.

We recently moved to a beautiful 1850 Farmhouse with 10 acres of gardens, sculptures and statues.

I’ve been gardening for greater than 20 years and enjoy helping beginner gardeners find their inner green thumb, as well as discover a love for all things plants and flowers. I love to bring the outdoors inside my home too.

I hope you enjoy visiting my home today and hope you come back so we can grow stuff and create beautiful spaces together.

Since we just moved to our vintage farmhouse less than a year ago, I’m still learning about the property and trying to figure out how to decorate for the holidays.

Decorating With Fresh or Artificial Winter Greenery

We used to decorate with a live Christmas tree since we got married but recently switched to this faux Christmas tree and have not looked back.

Because it was faux we could decorate much earlier and there was no needle drop!

And because I loved that tree so much, I added a flocked version that I’ll be sharing here soon that’s also by King of Christmas.