28 Creative Christmas Tree Decorating Ideas

Where is that sneaky little elf hiding this year? In your Christmas tree! Here's a new twist on the holiday tradition that is sure to surprise and delight the whole family. Re-envision your Christmas tree as a larger-than-life advent calendar, starring your adopted scout elf in a silly new scenario: knitting with baker's twine, zip-lining along a length of red ribbon, sculpting a small snowman, or wrapping up a miniature gift.

Textured and touchable, appealing and approachable, everything on this tree will call out to a child's curious hands and heart. Best of all, nothing is too delicate or fragile.

Colorful ornaments stand out against the dense branches of a Nordmann fir. This one has a vintage tree fence and a mound of fake snow at its base. The decorations include popcorn garlands, popcorn balls, and layered felt animals.

An entire village of gingerbread houses adorns this tree, creating tempting trimmings. The windows and doors have been crafted from dough that is different from the facades -- the lighter one is sweetened with honey, the darker with molasses -- to provide contrast.

With its boughs pruned, this Norway spruce can accommodate twice as many ornaments. Ribbon attached to wire lets ornaments hang securely from branches while unifying the color scheme.

In both Ukrainian and German lore, the tale of the Christmas spider explains the origin of tinsel. The story tells of a poor widow who couldn't buy fancy gifts for her children or decorations for their tree. One Christmas Eve, she decorated a tree as best she could with fruits and nuts. After she went to sleep, spiders came out and crawled over the tree, leaving their webs behind. When Father Christmas visited the house, he saw the web-covered tree and decided to turn the webs to silver. In the morning when the family awoke, the tree was sparkling and beautiful.

Kids undecorate this tree! The ornaments are gifts in ribbon pouches, one to open each day starting December 1.

In Poland, where the Christmas season is seen as a time of renewal, ornaments are fashioned from straw to symbolize thanksgiving for the harvest and hope for good things in the coming year. Eggs represent the promise of future prosperity, too.

Although there is no widespread Christmas tradition in Japan, people have learned a lesson of peace and goodwill from Sadako, a little girl who developed leukemia after the 1945 Hiroshima bombing. She learned of a legend that said if a person folded 1,000 paper cranes, the gods might grant his or her wish to become well. Although Sadako never reached her goal, after her death her classmates folded enough cranes to make up the difference. Since then, people all over the world have sent folded cranes to Hiroshima.

This tree gets its Christmas sparkle from the glass-bead ornaments. 

Pom-poms, tassels, and snowflakes made of vibrant yarn create a cozy, crafty theme for a tree. A sewing basket is a fitting container (the tree sits in a separate pot surrounded by gravel); the gifts are wound with yarn.

Curious little hands can't help but be drawn to the irresistible magic of a Christmas tree. With an unbreakable tree, you can let them explore without worry. Nylon threads provide invisible support for a small tree, which is decorated entirely with easy-to make, kid-proof ornaments.

Office-supply stores have all the trimmings for a tree that belies its workaday origins. Key tags decorated with stickers, ornaments cut from file folders, and paper-clip chains dangle from the branches. A bubble-packaging tree skirt and presents dressed up in graph paper, stickers, and rubber bands circle the base.

With its pipe-cleaner candles, this small fir recalls a time when Christmas trees were brightened with flame.