Christmas Tree Decorating Basics
Cover the Floor
It is always a good idea to cover the floor (no matter if hardwood, natural stone or carpet) with a large piece of
plastic in order to protect it from scratches and stains. If you don't use a tree skirt, cover the plastic with a subtle
colored piece of fabric.
Keep your tree Fresh.
Keep the water reservoir in your tree stand full, especially during the tree's first days and week indoors. Most trees
with a fresh cut (which will induce water absorption) will drink many quarts of water in the first few hours, so
check the water level in your tree stand several times a day for about a week, and less frequently thereafter.
Decorating
Start Decorating in the following order: Lights, Garlands, Ornaments. Assemble all boxes together before starting
the decorating process.
Ornaments
Mix some special ornaments along with the generic ones. Special ornaments like birdhouses, angels, special
handcrafted ornaments should be mixed with the regular baubles.
Perfect Time
The perfect time to decorate a tree is in the Evening. It will bring out the entire magic of the twinkling lights and
sparkling ornaments.
Start With the Lights
When decorating, start with the lights first. Starting at the base of the
trunk and working up, wrap the lights around every major branch,
moving from the trunk to the tip and back.
Do not just wrap the cables around the outside of the tree branches. It
gives the tree more sparkle when it is lit from the inside as well.
String the lights around the trunk as well as the branches to light the tree from inside as well as from outside.
Use different types of lights. Faceted glass bulbs appear brighter. Small twinkle lights and colored lights also bring
a lot of sparkle and shine.
LED lights are also useful as they can be kept illuminated for a longer time without the fear of lights getting too
hot.
You can use single colored lights if working on a themed tree or mix and match a variety of different