Holiday Decorating Habits That Make Your Life Harder And More Expensive

It's the week before that holiday that delays my Christmas decorating.

It's OK if you're team wait-til-the-turkey-is-carved, and I respect your beliefs. However, I have spent the last 5 or so years slowly building my own stash of winter decorations, and what better time to share with you the time (and money)-saving tips I have also collected along the way? So without further ado, I have learned:

1. Garlands and wreaths are not necessarily finished products.

Fresh-out-of-the-store garland is like barbecue sauce; it's just the base, and we need to supply a few more ingredients. I like to think of my garland as more of an extension of my Christmas tree-I fill it out with inserts, lights, and ornaments. In addition, having a bare wreath with removable adornments frees you up to switch out your color scheme with just a new cheap ornament or two should you want to freshen things up a bit the following year.

2. You don't have to buy your ornaments at the store.

Do you know what an ornament is? It's an object with a hook. Literally anything could be called an

ornament provided it is light enough so as not to knock the tree over. Cast a careful eye over the adornments you see on Christmas trees popping up in craft stores, department stores, and the like. I noticed everything from stuffed animals to life-size boots finding a place among the branches.

My husband and I began collecting objects from our travels to use as Christmas ornaments a couple years ago. We've found that key chains work particularly well, and are ubiquitous enough to be found at most any travel destination, should you be interested in starting a collection.

3. Don't wait to put your tree-topper on last.

Trying to climb an object that is a foot taller than you without knocking off any of the breakable baubles dangling from it is an annual exercise in futility for many American families. By plunking that sucker on first, you're free to twist and adjust your tree to get the perfect arrangement for it's star.

4. Don't go too heavy on holiday-specific decor right away.

There's no such thing as too much Christmas decor, but there is such a thing as the post-holiday blues, which is worsened by having to destroy my home (and inner child) by dismantling all those decorations at once.

The good news is that often the difference between a Christmas adornment and a piece of winter decor is a few red berries or a green ribbon. By starting with a simple pine-cone-festooned winter wreath and adding a couple sprigs of holly, you need only remove the holiday-themed addition to extend the seasonal life of the wreath from those precious 4 weeks between Thanksgiving and December 25th all the way to the end of winter (approximately May 15th for us Northern folks). Choose snowmen over Santas and keep your seasonal cheer all winter. Bonus: It's a lot easier packing everything back into the garage when temperatures aren't at their annual lowest.

Happy decorating!

*Written by Sharae Richmond