(ARA) – That lush, towering green fir covered in twinkling lights and pricey ornaments really brightens the holidays for your family, doesn’t it? It also makes the power company, tree sellers and retailers pretty happy too – at your expense.
Everyone deserves a happy holiday season. Imagine how much merrier yours will be if you can celebrate the season and save some money at the same time. You don’t have to give up spending to save money; you just need to spend wisely on decorations that will offer both long- and short-term savings.
Here are some budget-friendly holiday decorating ideas from the ornament experts at Wards.com:
Real vs. fake
Yes, a real tree brings a special holiday feeling into your home. But a modestly sized 6-footer can cost upwards of $50 on many lots. And, a real tree may or may not live to the end of the year, depending on when it was cut and how long it sat on the lot before you bought it. Artificial trees have come a long way since they first appeared on the scene in the early 1900s. Modern artificial trees look very realistic, are far less messy, come pre-lit and can be used repeatedly for years.
Artificial garlands and wreaths also offer many advantages, from a longer usable life to less mess and less risk to children and house pets. The cost of a real poinsettia garland and wreath could be quite high, and the plants pose a poisoning risk, especially to cats. Artificial versions offer the beauty of fresh plants, but will last years rather than a few short weeks.
Light the holidays
The holiday season without twinkling lights would be as much fun as Santa without his “Ho, ho, ho!” Each year, lighting accounts for more than 15 percent of Americans’ total electricity consumption, according to the U.S Energy Information Administration. Many of us see a jump in our electric bill during the holiday season – even if we don’t engage in the decorating excesses of Clark Griswold in “Christmas Vacation.”
In addition to the expense of powering all those holiday lights is the cost of replacing them year-to-year. Maybe it’s wear and tear, or exposure to the elements outside, but it always seems a light strand never makes it for more than a year or two. A cost-effective alternative may be to switch to LED lights. They’re brighter, generate less heat, use less power than regular lights and can last up to 100,000 hours longer. You’ll pay less to power them and won’t need to replace them every holiday season.
Decorations that make sense
You can spend a few dollars every year building a cache of low-cost ornaments, but how long will they last? Holiday decorations are notoriously breakable – after all, they sit out for everyone to see and touch for months at a time. If you want to get more than a single season’s use out of your ornaments and decorations, have small children or pets in your home, or would like something of lasting quality, consider alternatives like shatterproof ornaments, portable electric fireplaces or collectibles such as a Christmas village.
Quality decorations don’t just dress up your house, they enhance its atmosphere and your holiday spirit. Good decorations can last for years, and even become family heirlooms. For example, a Christmas village is something you can collect with your children and even pass on to them someday when they have homes of their own. And electric fireplaces and stoves can create a warm glow throughout the winter, and not just during the holidays.
