How to Decorate for Fall and Christmas Before Thanksgiving

Have you ever wanted to start decorating for Christmas before Thanksgiving but don’t want to give up fall? Now you can! Wait until you see how to blend fall with Christmas so you can get the best of both worlds.

When it comes to holiday decorating there are those that decorate before Thanksgiving and those that wait until after.

I typically wait until after because I host Thanksgiving and want to maintain that cozy fall vibe for my guests. But lately, I’ve been wanting to get a jump on Christmas decorating before Thanksgiving because there’s so much to do!

And I also like to follow nature and what’s happening outside when decorating inside so I’m not always ready to give up my fall foliage to add winter holiday decor.

Since I want to start decorating sooner, how can I balance the two so I don’t leave ALL of my decorating until the day after Thanksgiving?

If you want to decorate your home for the holidays a little sooner than Thanksgiving like me, here’s how to do it.

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Decorating for Christmas Before Thanksgiving: Create a Transitional Theme

My solution is to infuse the two and decorate with a transitional theme I’m calling “Fristmas.” 

Fristmas is that time of the year when you want to decorate for the holidays but want to keep fall around for a little bit longer.

So it is perfect for those years when Thanksgiving arrives in late November but you want to hit the ground running with your holiday decor.

Blending both means we can decorate earlier while still keeping the fall vibe going through Thanksgiving.

And the best way to achieve this is to tone down the autumn color palette and fall colors while adding winter greens and other natural, textured neutral elements to your decor.

Then after Thanksgiving, the neutral fall items get swapped out for som Christmas glam.

Decorating for the holidays will go much quicker this way and we can have the best of both worlds through Thanksgiving. It’s a win-win!

So here’s what I’ve been doing to decorate my home for both Thanksgiving and Christmas at the same time.

I gathered all of my fall bins and started putting away any pumpkins or faux florals that are orange or rust-colored.

Anything that is green, white, or neutral, I am keeping out.

I started pulling out my winter green bins – not my holiday stuff – just the greens and natural elements.

This includes pinecones, evergreen twigs, small trees, white berry sprigs, and anything else that would work with a transitional theme.

Oh and you can add some white twinkle lights too.

Cozy battery operated candles and twinkle lights are a must to create a warm, festive glow.

How to Decorate for Thanksgiving and Christmas with a Transitional Theme

If you are hosting Thanksgiving like me, for me it all comes down to the table decor. Set a beautiful table with a gorgeous centerpiece and you’ve got a theme.

For this transitional theme table, I designed a beautiful centerpiece that turned out amazing!

Here’s how I did it.

Thanksgiving and Christmas Transitional Theme Centerpiece Idea for the Dining Table

While in Vermont a few weekends ago, I found this cool vintage toolbox in Vermont when I was out thrifting with Shana.

The moment I saw this toolbox, I knew it would be perfect to house a centerpiece on my dining room table for Thanksgiving.

I immediately envisioned small evergreen trees, greens, gold pumpkins, pinecones, and fairy lights stuffed inside.

Won’t that look so pretty?

Because I don’t want autumnal colors in this arrangement, I painted some pumpkins gold.

Gold is glitzy enough for winter decor, yet still looks like a neutral fall.

I saved myself a trip to the craft store because I had two faux pumpkins laying around that I did not mind painting.

I had gold chalk paint on hand so I applied two coats of paint on each. After they were dry, I added a coat of clear wax to protect the color.

While painting these, I remembered having some real pumpkins that I didn’t need anymore from another area in my home.

So instead of throwing them out, I painted them to use at each place setting.

Don’t they look so cute? I kind of like them all gold and may need to do this moving forward!

Once the pumpkins were dry, I started designing my Thanksgiving toolbox centerpiece.

I started with three small evergreen trees then tucked in the two larger gold pumpkins.

As filler, I then added faux evergreen sprigs, pinecones, and a few small gold pumpkins.

When finished, I wrapped battery operated fairy lights around the toolbox handle and winter greens.

Setting the Table for a Thanksgiving and Christmas Transitional Theme

For each table setting, I started with my favorite cedar branch placemat. I originally bought these from Pier 1 but they don’t sell them anymore. So if you can’t find them, you can also try using a small boxwood wreath.

On top, I added this gorgeous antique melamine charger, then topped it off with a Lenox dinner plate, gold napkin, Lenox salad plate, and small gold pumpkins.

I pretty much used what I had in terms of dinnerware, but you can use whatever you want. If you have fine china, use that. If you have casual dinnerware, that’s fine to use too. Use whatever you have that is budget-friendly and easy to use.

Oh and I will add place cards that will be attached to the small gold pumpkins. I didn’t get a chance to do that yet.

But doesn’t it look so pretty?

I love the centerpiece, don’t you?

Sneak Peak of My Fireplace Mantel

So I just started decorating my mantel and incorporated some gold pumpkins with my winter greens.

I’m giving you a little sneak peek because my fireplace decor is not completely done yet.

But I wanted to show you where it is going in case you want to try a transitional theme too.

For the greens, I bought a gorgeous faux garland, tucked in a few extra branches, added two small trees, five oversized pine cones, white berry sprigs, gold pumpkins, and fairy lights.

What do you think so far?

I love how cozy and natural it feels!

When we are done hosting Thanksgiving, I’ll swap out all of the gold pumpkin decor for holiday glitz.

The change will be quick and simple. I am also starting to work on my stair garland but will keep it to simple greens and lights until after Thanksgiving.

What Do You Think?

While I was playing around with different tablescapes, I wasn’t sure how I wanted to decorate my Thanksgiving table this year. I am really glad that thrifty vintage find inspired me because I love my Fristmas theme!

While I’ve been using that vintage metal planter centerpiece you’ve seen in my blogs lately, I wanted to change it up this Thanksgiving and do something different.

That vintage toolbox looks so cool with the small trees and gold pumpkins – I may need to replicate this one next year!

More Thanksgiving Ideas

If you are looking for more Thanksgiving Day ideas and inspiration, check out these posts.

From hosting gifts to table decor, food, and menu ideas, I’ve got you covered.

• 101 Ideas for Thanksgiving
• The Best Thanksgiving Food and Fall Table Decor Ideas
• How to Set a Cozy Harvest Table
• The Best Recipe for Easy Apple Crisp
• The Best Fall Pumpkin Spice Cocktail
• Thanksgiving Tablescape Idea
• How to Decorate for Fall and Christmas Before Thanksgiving
• How to Set a Thanksgiving Table
• Simple Centerpiece Idea For Your Thanksgiving Aesthetic

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

Sign up here to get 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?

I love looking through festive holiday inspiration to get ideas for this year’s decorating aesthetic, don’t you?

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

• 23 Inspiring Christmas Aesthetics for 2022
• Vintage Farmhouse Christmas 2022 Home Tour
• Flocked Christmas Tree Decorating Ideas and More
• How to Make a Christmas Kissing Ball
• How to Make Scented Gift Tags
• First Christmas in Our New Home Tour
• Last Christmas in Our Home Tour
• Christmas Tree Ornament Storage Hack (Tiktok Made Me Do It)
• 6 Clever Christmas Dinner Easy Table Decorating Ideas
• 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
• Rustic Farmhouse Christmas Decorating Ideas
• Easy Outdoor Planters for Winter
• Budget-Friendly Winter Outdoor Planters

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