Inside: If all the Christmas excess stresses you out, and you’re longing for a “less is more”, minimalist Christmas this year, get some help decluttering your Christmas decorations – or building a minimalist Christmas decoration collection from scratch – with these five simple steps.
Several years ago, we moved long-distance via shipping containers – well, one shipping container to be exact.
Turns out I severely underestimated how much stuff we had (despite decluttering so.much.stuff). One shipping container was definitely not enough space.
Long story short, we were forced to get rid of a TON of stuff in about thirty minutes.
Half of our Christmas decorations didn’t make the cut.
While it hurt to let go of those decorations at the time, guess what? The following Christmas, I didn’t miss them.
Fewer Christmas decorations meant less time spent decorating (and putting away in January), which meant less stress as parents of four kids eight and under.
Going minimalist with our Christmas decor was accidental, but in the end, it was a huge win for our family.
Related: How to Transition to a Minimalist Christmas with Kids (& not feel like the Grinch)
5 Simple Steps to Decorate for a Minimalist Christmas – How Declutter & Simplify Your Christmas Decor
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Despite my mixed feelings about the Christmas season itself (Christmas and I have a bit of a love/hate relationship), the one thing I DO truly love about Christmas is the decor.
We put it up every year on December 1st, and for us, it signifies the start of the season.
But just because you love Christmas decor doesn’t mean you need to have tons of it.
It takes just an hour or two to put up two bins of decorations. Less stuff equals less stress 95% of the time in my book, and Christmas decor is no exception.
(In case you’re wondering, that other 5% is for the few and far between, “oh crap, I gave something away that I really wish I had right now” moments. They happen to the best of us.)
If that sounds good to you, here are my best tips for decluttering your Christmas decor or choosing minimalist Christmas decor for the first time.
1. Before getting pulling your Christmas decorations out of storage, make a list of you and your family’s favorite decorations.
Grab a piece of paper and write down your favorite Christmas decorations.
Don’t dig too deep into the recesses of your brain for this one. Just write down whatever comes to mind as your favorites.
The only point of this exercise is to reveal which Christmas decorations truly matter to you before you start pulling out the decorations.
If you couldn’t recall a decoration, it probably doesn’t matter that much to you. Even if you feel nostalgic when you DO pull it out of storage.
Strongly consider letting go of anything that isn’t on the list.
2. Choose 1-3 key areas to decorate – every inch of your house doesn’t need to scream Christmas.
In our home, I mostly decorate around the fireplace in our living room.
We put up our tree there next to the mantel and fireplace, and on the mantel, I have one piece of Christmas art and our basic Willow Tree nativity set.
THIS advent calendar replaces wall art in the kitchen.
We have THESE star twinkle lights hanging around our front windows year round. We also hang a couple strands of colored Christmas lights on our front deck railing as well.
I have THIS simple ceramic Christmas tree to replace a lamp in our sunroom temporarily during the season.
If you are craving simplicity and want to go extreme minimalist, choosing one area to decorate could work for you.
But if in your pre-minimalist-Christmas-decor life it looked like Christmas threw up all over your house and that made you truly happy…you might be better off choosing three areas.
Remember: decluttering your Christmas decor is NOT about having less joy at Christmas.
It’s about deciding which Christmas decorations bring you the MOST joy and eliminating the overwhelm caused by having too much stuff.
3. Skip trendy decor or completely redecorating the tree (and your home) in a new theme every year.
I’m not sure exactly who decides what’s trending with Christmas decor. At this point, it’s probably bloggers and influencers.
I’m not immune! Personally, I love following Nesting With Grace and seeing all of her new decorating projects, new including holiday decorations.
But just because that blogger you love decided to put fake candles in all the windows in her home doesn’t mean you need to run out and buy fake candles for your home.
Just because all the blogging decorators come up with a new Christmas tree decor theme every year and buy new ornaments and decorations to fit that theme doesn’t mean you need to do the same.
One key minimalist teaching I love is that you can admire and appreciate something without buying it.
Just like you can see something in a store and appreciate its beauty without needing to bring it home with you, you can admire a decorating blogger’s new Christmas decor without needing to update your own.
Let the decorating bloggers who decorate for a living do their thing.
Only add new Christmas decor if you think you’ll appreciate it for the next 5+ years in YOUR home.
Related: 7 Items Your Forgot to Include in Your Christmas Budget
4. Consider using natural elements, scents, foods, music, and decor that doesn’t take up much space.
Obviously if you have an artificial Christmas tree like we do, that’s gonna take up some storage space.
But beyond the tree, when you’re trying to decide what decor to keep – or what to add if you’re still building your Christmas decor – try to stick to the following categories as much as possible:
- Natural & Recyclable Elements (e.g. Pine Boughs)
- Scents (Essential Oils, Candles, Soaps)
- Foods (Candy or Cookies)
- Space-Saving Decor (Pillow Covers or Art Prints)
- Christmas Music
All of these options are either consumable, can be put outdoors after the holiday OR take up little to no storage space.
Maybe a Christmas tradition could become making a recyclable paper chain and/or popcorn and cranberry garland every year to put on the mantle.
Maybe you have a few art prints hiding behind your everyday art, and you switch them out at Christmastime (I love Christmas art prints from THIS shop).
Or a few Christmas pillow covers go on your usual throw pillows during the Christmas season.
Maybe you buy Christmas scented dish soaps and diffuse essential oils like Young Living’s Christmas Spirit or blends like peppermint and vanilla every day during the Christmas season.
Maybe you buy Christmas colored M&Ms to display in a bowl you already have or you keep Christmas cookies on a cake stand under a glass dome.
5. Establish a container boundary for your decor, and don’t exceed it.
A couple years ago, we were given Christmas decor that pushed us over our Christmas stuff storage limit.
I knew when I received it that we likely wouldn’t use the decor, but I said, “Yes,” anyway. Lesson learned.
We have a two large bin limit for our Christmas decor. That’s as much as we can comfortably fit in our laundry/storage room.
Assess your storage space and decide how much space you want to dedicate to Christmas decor.
Maybe you want to have three storage bins. Maybe four. Maybe one.
Whatever you decide is fine. Just make a limit and stick to that container limit (setting container limits is one of the minimalist habits I swear by)!
After you reach your limit, any other decor you add needs to be things like art prints that can be tucked behind existing art or consumables like soaps and candies that are purchased annually.
Related: How to Slow Down & Have a Simple Christmas with Kids
Minimalist Christmas Decor Doesn’t Mean No Decor. It Means Being Intentional With Your Christmas Decor.
If you walk away from this article with any message, let it be this: just because you’re a minimalist doesn’t mean you can’t decorate for the holidays.
“Minimalism is the intentional promotion of the things we most value by removing everything that distracts us from it.”
-Joshua Becker
Keep the Christmas decorations that matter the most to you. Remove what matters less or not at all.
Spend less time unpacking and setting up decor and less time cleaning up at the end of the season.
Spend more time enjoying the activities of the season.
For me, that’s what minimalism is all about: less stuff, less stress, less overwhelm, which equals more time and more joy.
I hope this helps you enjoy a simpler, less stressful Christmas!
Read Next: Timeless Christmas Gifts for Kids Under 8 Years Old
Great post and even better advice! We all could stand to focus less on the material portion of the holidays and more on what makes it special to each us. Whether that is family, friends,etc we should remember that you don’t need tons of expensive decorations to be happy.
Thanks, Joe!