As the holidays near, I thought I’d share some ideas for decorating your Christmas tree.

Most likely, many of you already have your trees set up in front of the window — adorned with lights and ornaments. So, today’s suggestions/ideas are for those of you “overcome by events” or otherwise delayed in decorating for the holidays.

First, let’s address the lights. I don’t care if you’re a clear lights purist or a colored lights advocate — please, please make sure you have enough lights on your tree. The basic rule of thumb is a minimum of 100 lights per foot of tree. A 4-foot tree deserves at least 400 lights; a 7-foot tree gets 700 lights, and so on. Be sure to follow the basic rules of safety listed on your lights; for instance, mine suggest only three strings hooked end-to-end. You might start by winding an extension cord up the trunk of the tree. I love the cord I found — it’s green with three outlet extensions along nine feet of cord and an on-off switch. It provides three locations to hook-up the light strings.

There are several different methods of placing the lights on the tree. My husband and I have finally decided the best method is to start at the top of the tree and wrapping each branch as we work our way down. It takes longer, but oh-so worth it!

Next, you’ll add the garland, which a lot of folks skip, but I consider an essential part of the process. What can you use for garland? Well, you have the traditional, now “retro,” tinsel garland. There are beaded garlands, homemade garlands of popcorn and/or cranberries and ribbon garlands. Another idea is to use faux floral garlands. What an impact a garland of magnolia leaves will make on a traditional tree! I’ve used garlands of faux gilded grape leaves and I’ve used real grapevine garland. If you’re a Victorian-style decorator, you might try a garland of hydrangea blooms or roses.

OK, you’ve decided what you want to use — now you have to figure out how much to buy. Again, this is dependent on the size of your tree, but a good rule of thumb is to plan for 9 feet of garland for every foot of the tree. So, your 7 foot tree will require about 63 feet of garland. If you like to swag/drape your garland, it may require more. With garland, more is better — you can always use leftovers on the mantle or banister.

Whatever you use, try to have the garland flow down the tree in a diagonal route—not horizontal. You can achieve the “flowing” effect by gently pushing the garland in among the branches. If you’re using a ribbon garland, you may want to pinch it every 2 feet or so, wrap the end of an ornament hook around the ribbon and use the hook to attach it to the branch. This technique will keep the ribbon from looking flat and your tree from looking like a candy cane.

One last tip is regarding the topper. Many of us have something we consider an absolute must for the topper — usually, the thing we saw on our family tree as we grew up — but if you’re open to something new, you might try something different. A top hat, a la Frosty, or a knit hat is cute — continue the theme with scarves for garland. We sold out of one of our toppers the other day, so Patty added some of the beaded spires that we usually stick in among the branches, to the top. I fixed them in place with a zip-tie. If you’re decorating for the kids, you can use a teddy bear, baby doll or even a vintage fire truck.

I hope you find some of these tips useful — if not for this year, perhaps for next.

[Thanks: http://www.theleafchronicle.com/]