No matter what your holiday theme or style – country, rustic, classic, simple, winter wonderland – a little shimmer is fantastic. A few very simple, inexpensive finds can catch the twinkle of the lights just right and make your decorations come to life. My top picks?
Pictures on trees are great, but I found these fantastic tiny frames made of pretty glass and reflective metals and decided to pop the backs out and use them as ornaments sans pictures. Great light reflection and since they’re not your typical ornament they add interest as well. Cost: on sale at Aaron Brothers for less than $3. You only need 3 or 4.
A little mercury glass never hurt either. #InstaBling for every type of decor. For you doubters, mercury glass looks phenomenal mixed with rustic decor – burlap ribbon, wooden ornaments, snowflakes, etc. Try it. You can choose larger more expensive ornaments of course to give you maximum shine, but again, 4 to 6 of them well placed will be enough. I really love mercury glass so I also bought 2 boxes of the small pine cones to spread around at about $6 a box. I’ve seen these as snowflakes, teardrops and more – all fantastic.
Crystals and icicles. This is probably my best kept secret on trees each year. These are very inexpensive clear or jewel toned acrylic pieces (glass is fine too, just more expensive) quickly added after all of the ornaments are on. These are small, so I can use these as filler to make the tree seem less empty AND place them next to a twinkle light to give great bang for the buck. These are the things people pass up because they don’t look like anything great in the package – but they’re luxurious on the tree next to a light. Cost: The icicles are about $6.99 for a pack of 12. The red jewels are in a box of 24 for $5.99. I use one package of each for the entire tree.
The goal is to add a little shimmer and light reflection. These are simple ways to do it. Start small – you don’t have to load up the tree or change your style. That reflection can be that missing piece of the puzzle to really get the most out of all those lights you painstakingly strung.
edit. your. life. 