There’s something especially meaningful about decorating a home for your first holiday season there. It feels a bit like spotting spring bulbs for the first time—unexpected and joyful. Our new house is feeling cozy and festive, and it’s been a fun challenge to figure out how everything fits in a smaller space.
This move included a lot of downsizing and simplifying, so deciding where things would go in our smaller footprint made decorating more deliberate. We even donated our previous, very full tree after transporting it here and realizing it was too wide for any one room without blocking traffic patterns. Letting it go was easier than I expected—partly because we’d already pared back so many other items.
At first we considered a real tree. The idea of not storing a tree appealed to the minimalist in me, but we quickly realized there’s still storage involved—for the stand, lights, and ornaments—and local fresh trees were often wider at the base than was practical for our home. The narrow ones tended to be short, so instead we bought a small potted tree for the upstairs console. It cost about $20 at the garden center and can be planted outside when the season ends, which feels like a smart, low-waste solution.
We still wanted a fuller tree, so we looked for a faux tree that would look realistic while fitting our new layout. It was a true Goldilocks search: some were the right height but too wide, others narrow but too short, and some looked fake. Eventually we found a realistic-looking six-and-a-half-foot artificial tree that felt just right for the space.
We placed the larger tree downstairs next to the fireplace near our bedroom, and the little potted tree sits upstairs. We originally tried the large tree in the family room, but the spot by the fireplace felt warmer and more familiar—years of tradition make a tree by the hearth feel right for evenings spent together. The large tree also shows nicely from the street through a window, which gives our house a welcoming glow at night.
The faux tree we bought has very lifelike branches—close-up it almost fools people into thinking it’s real. It arrived in a faux cement planter that didn’t match our decor, so we set the tree into a woven storage basket we already owned to add warmth and texture. The tree breaks down into three sections that fit under our bed for compact winter storage, which makes it a practical choice for smaller homes.
One of the most pleasant surprises was discovering that every ornament from our larger tree fit onto this narrower one. I had expected we’d need to pare down treasured decorations, many of which are handmade or sentimental, and I dreaded deciding which to keep. Bringing the tree in and decorating as a family, and realizing everything fit, felt genuinely magical.
We only moved one large plastic bin of holiday items into the house, which fits in our kitchen utility closet along with paint cans and the HVAC access. Many of our decorations were already on hand: a white planter for the small tree, a wooden dough bowl filled with shiny ornaments, felt ornaments collected by the kids, and several bottlebrush trees. In short, the season felt festive without buying much new.
I’ve placed small trees and festive accents throughout the house so every room has a whisper of holiday cheer—even the bathroom. A window ledge holds a free evergreen branch in a gold cup, a candle, and a pair of ceramic trees. In the kitchen, I added several small trees to the white shelves so the room feels layered and seasonal without being crowded.
On the entry table, a couple of lighted glass trees add sparkle visible from the sidewalk in the evenings. We also hung the kids’ stockings temporarily on the laundry nook door handles until we can install a mantel over the fireplace. I’m hoping to put up a makeshift mantel before the holiday rush, so there may be an update soon.
Outside, our signature “boots with the fir” continue to decorate the front porch, now near a lemon tree where curious lizards sometimes visit. We wrapped a small tree by the house in leftover outdoor string lights, which gives the front yard an evergreen glow that we might even keep year-round. Battery candles in every window complete the warm, inviting curb appeal.
I’m also planning to make a magnolia wreath from local leaves this year. I missed my annual wreath-making event with friends, so I ordered a form to try a DIY version at home. I’m oddly excited about it—hoping it turns out beautiful, but prepared for it to be imperfect and charming in its own way.
Decorating our new home this year was an exercise in thoughtful choices and joyful nostalgia. We kept most of our favorite items, added just two new trees, and found places for small touches throughout the house so it feels festive without excess. The result is cozy, manageable, and full of the little things that make the season special for our family.
P.S. For reference, we’ve shared past holiday tours that show earlier decorating ideas and how traditions like the upstairs tree have followed us from house to house.