Simple holiday decor for less

Guests arriving in two hours? Want your home to shine for the holidays without having to exhaust yourself or break the bank? Look no further – these seven tips will help make your place festive in a flash.

Gussy up your mantel with a grouping of glass vases brimming with candy canes and humbugs. Keep it stylish by displaying an odd number of vases of different heights, nestling pillar candles in-between for extra drama.

For a seasonal centrepiece, coat pears or apples with metallic spray paint; use gold for a traditional feel or silver for a more modern look. Go for glamour and pile them all in a bowl, or try something subtler and single space the fruit along the length of the table with candles in between.

Keep pint-size guests busy with a gingerbread house project. Pick up a ready-made kit complete with icing to glue everything together (try IKEA), and provide candy to decorate. You’re sure to end up with something unique.

Trim your tree with a twist by decorating it with cookies, such as ginger thins or cinnamon cookies from the grocery store. Or make our Classic gingerbread cookies from scratch. Using a low-heat glue gun, attach loops of kitchen twine or ribbon on the back of each cookie and hang from the branches. You’ll save on decorations, plus your home will smell fabulous!

No room for a tree? Instead, fill a couple of vases with evergreen branches decorated with a few Christmas balls and curls of ribbon – they’ll look fabulous gathered on a coffee table. For a final touch, fool your nose by lighting seasonally scented candles.

Twist chunky red yarn around a foam wreath form, making sure to cover the entire surface. Finish with a ribbon bow in a contrasting colour and deck your door. For stunning impact, learn to make our holiday berry wreath with these simple steps.

Tired of crowding cards onto your mantel? Consider making a decorative garland to display all your Christmas greetings. String swags of twine around the room and suspend the cards from clothespins jazzed up with glitter.