Last year’s Christmas decorations were already quite special, and people passing by seemed to enjoy them too. So when the owner and I started thinking about this year’s decorations, we both felt that we had to do something even more eye-catching and special.
There were plenty of ideas, but one thing was clear from the beginning: the effect had to be visible from a distance.
I wanted to bring in a lot of greenery. Our winters can be long and harsh, and in the middle of winter, one of the few signs of life still visible in nature is evergreen trees. So this year, we decided to use lots of fir trees in different sizes.
We also liked the spruce garlands around the windows that we had made the year before, so we decided to repeat that idea.
But there had to be a WOW factor too.
Instead of decorating the trees with lots of small ornaments, we came up with the idea of decorating one of them with presents. Then another idea followed: why not hang matching presents in the café windows as well? That would make the whole display feel even bigger and more connected.
Because the trees themselves were kept very simple, with only lights, the presents also became the element that brought colour into the whole concept.
The Plan
- 6 fir trees in different sizes
- About 69 feet of spruce garland
- Around 50 wrapped presents
- 13 sets of warm LED lights
- 1 wreath for the door
Turning the Idea Into a Plan
Once the concept was decided, the real planning began.
I had to work out what materials we needed, how much of everything was required, what we could reuse from previous years, and how long everything would take to make.
I already knew that making 3 feet of spruce garland, including preparing the branches, takes me about 20 minutes. This year I needed about 69 feet, around the windows and door. That alone meant roughly seven hours of work. (You can read: How to Make a Real Greenery Garland for Christmas)
I know that this kind of planning can seem excessive to some people, but for me it makes the whole process much easier. If I know approximately how long each part will take, I can avoid unpleasant surprises and organise the installation days properly.
And the seven hours were only the beginning. I also had to account for collecting the spruce branches from the forest and the time needed to put everything up.
Then there were the trees.
In our part of the world, spruce is the tree you naturally find everywhere, so the garlands and wreath were made from spruce branches. Fir, on the other hand, is something we mainly get from nurseries and garden centres. This year we bought six fir trees because they hold onto their needles much better and stay looking fresh for longer.
I needed good-looking nursery-grown trees in several sizes, so I visited several garden centres and hardware stores beforehand to see what was available and compare prices.
For the composition, I knew I needed at least six trees: one larger tree to decorate with presents, three grouped together on one side of the café entrance, and two on the other side.
I also had to figure out how to keep the trees standing outside. Last year we had used the bases from patio umbrellas, but this year I found some old Christmas tree stands that worked perfectly.
When a tree is standing outside, there is no real need to keep it in water. In freezing temperatures, the water would simply freeze anyway, while the cold itself helps the tree stay fresh.
The lights were another thing we could reuse from previous years, so there was no need to buy new ones.
One thing I have learned over the years is that when you are using Christmas lights on trees or garlands, more is usually better than less. It is also important to make sure all the lights have the same color temperature. (Read: How to Decorate a Christmas Tree (and Mistakes to Avoid))
We used warm LED lights, and altogether there were around 13 sets of lights across the front of the building.
That also meant thinking about where the weatherproof extension cords and plugs would go. These are small practical details that are easy to forget when you are concentrating on how everything will look, but they become very important once you actually start putting everything together.
I also needed a wreath for the door, and luckily we could reuse a bow from the previous year. You can find the tutorial for making it here: How to Make a Weather-Proof Large Bow for outdoor Decor
Planning for Four Months of Winter
Once the basic structure was worked out, it was time to think about the decorations themselves.
The biggest question was how to make presents that could survive four months of our weather.
Four months may sound like a long time, but in our climate, winter really is long. We usually put the Christmas decorations up at the beginning of November and keep most of them until the end of February. I do remove some of the more obviously Christmas-themed decorations much earlier, while others can easily transition into winter decorations and stay up for longer.
So anything outside has to be able to cope with snow, rain, freezing temperatures and wind.
I spent quite a bit of time looking for different ways to make or buy weatherproof presents.
Eventually, I found a solution that worked surprisingly well.
I ordered pink flower-wrapping paper that had the appearance of matte paper but was actually made from a thin plastic material, which meant it was waterproof.
For the ribbon, I chose silk ribbon. It holds up well outdoors and, just as importantly, still looks beautiful up close.
The presents hanging in the café windows didn’t need to be weatherproof because they were going to be inside. For those, I used the same “wrapping paper”, but with sturdier lidded boxes that kept their shape well and looked neat from close up.
For the presents outside, I bought cardboard boxes in different sizes.
I wanted their proportions to be fairly similar, mostly cube-shaped, because I think that gives the whole collection a much more cohesive appearance.
Making 50 Presents
Once all the materials had been bought, the real work began.
I had around 50 presents to wrap.
Even before I started, I had to work out approximately how many large, small and extra-large boxes I would need.
For things like this, I always find it helpful to make small mock-ups or simply draw the different sizes on paper. Seeing the proportions visually makes it much easier to understand how many of each size I actually need.
One thing I have definitely learned over the years is that decorations look much smaller outside than they do indoors or when you are standing close to them.
Outside, the building itself is large and tall, and decorations that seem perfectly substantial when you are holding them in your hands can almost disappear once they are placed against a building.
So I tried to find the largest boxes I could and deliberately made more presents than I initially thought I would need.
Wrapping all of them took several evenings.
But as the pile of presents grew, I could finally see the original idea becoming real. That was also the moment when I started to feel confident that the concept was actually going to work.
Installation Day
Just before the installation day, I had finished making all the spruce garlands. I soaked them thoroughly and then left them outside to drain and dry.
I also bought the fir trees and kept them safely behind a locked gate next to the shop until we were ready to put them up.
The garlands are always the most labour-intensive part.
Climbing up and down a small ladder while trying to handle heavy garlands is not exactly easy. Each one also has to be securely attached with wire to the awnings and hooks.
You have to be particularly careful with the fixing because winter wind can put a surprising amount of force on something as heavy as a wet spruce garland. The last thing you want is for one to come crashing down later.
Then, just as we started putting up the trees, we discovered that one of them had been stolen.
Apparently, someone needed a Christmas tree more urgently than we did.
So I quickly headed back to the shop, bought another one, and the crisis was solved.
Decorating the large outdoor tree with presents was probably my favourite part of the whole project.
I arranged the presents symmetrically, almost as if they had been poured over the tree.
I used small pieces of wire to attach the boxes securely to the branches, while also making sure they would be relatively easy to remove later.
To make things even more special, I added some pink baubles and white sparkling twigs from last year.
Hanging Presents
For the presents in the café windows, I used fishing line to hang them from the ceiling.
Because these are old wooden windows, I could use a staple gun to attach the fishing line securely.
But I didn’t want the fishing line to be visible. I wanted the presents to look as though they were actually hanging from their ribbons.
So I added a length of ribbon from each present all the way up to the ceiling and attached the ribbon to the same point with double-sided tape.
This meant the presents were safely supported by the fishing line, while the ribbon could hang straight down under its own weight and create the illusion that it was actually holding the present.
It is a small detail, but these are often the details that make a temporary installation look much more convincing.
How Long Did It Take?
The outdoor installation took around eight hours.
The café interior, including the rest of the Christmas decorations, took roughly another eight hours.
So if you are planning something on this scale, make sure you allow yourself plenty of time.
The good thing is that every year, with a little more experience, it becomes easier to anticipate what is coming. I know more accurately how long different parts will take, how much material I need, what needs to be prepared beforehand, and which little problems are likely to appear during installation.
There are still surprises, of course.
Sometimes a Christmas tree disappears overnight.
What to Keep in Mind
- Go bigger outdoors.
- Use a limited colour palette.
- Use larger quantities for greater visual impact.
- Choose a few large statement pieces rather than lots of small details.
- Plan for the weather.
- Use weatherproof materials where necessary.
- Use plenty of lights.
- Keep the light colour consistent.
- Secure heavy decorations properly.
- Plan electrical connections beforehand.
- Prepare as much as possible before installation day.
- Allow plenty of time.
- Expect the unexpected.
