Trying to do less at Christmas might make you feel like you're missing out on all the fun, but that couldn't be further from the truth. The whole point of a more minimalist Christmas is to free up your time and energy for the things about the holidays that are truly important to you.
Even if you're trying to cut back on the Christmas festivities, it's important to focus on the traditions that are genuinely important to you and your family. By limiting yourself to the ones that are the most meaningful, you'll find that makes them all that more special.
Even if you're attempting a minimalist Christmas, very few of us escape from the holiday season completely stress-free. However, if you find that your holidays are more stress than Christmas cheer, it might be worth taking some time to think about what it is about this season that keeps you from relaxing.
By figuring out what causes your stress during the Christmas season, you can do more to avoid that stuff the next time the holiday season rolls around. Now, you probably won't be able to avoid all the awkward personal questions from your relatives, but you can definitely do a lot to cut down on the stress of the season.
For those of us who love gift giving, the idea of a present-less Christmas seems like heresy. However, you can still find ways to give during the holiday season without weighing down your friends and family with gifts they won't remember in two months. There are plenty of opportunities to give during this time of the year.
What better time than Christmas to find ways to give to those in need? Whether it's giving actual gifts or just offering your time, there are plenty of opportunities to help those in need during this time of the year. Just because you want a more minimal Christmas doesn't mean you have to act like Scrooge during the holidays!
For those of us who love going all out for Christmas, switching to a minimalist mindset can be a challenge if we try to do it all at once. However, there's nothing wrong with easing yourself into a Christmas with less clutter. Making baby steps is perfectly fine too.
One way to help make those small changes during the Christmas season is to focus on only decorating the inside of your home. We promise the neighbors won't hate you if you don't deck the outside of your home as brilliantly as Clark Griswold did. Save the decorations for where you can actually see and enjoy them.
One of the best parts of the Christmas season is getting to spend time with friends, family, and other loved ones. However, that doesn't mean you have to RSVP to every single holiday party and Christmas concert. If anything, having too many obligations could actually make you come to resent them.
By all means, get your fill of socializing during this highly social season, but don't feel like you have to make an appearance at every event you're invited to. Choose the ones you think you'll get the most out of, and then enjoy your free time by skipping out on all the others.
Elaborate gifts, trees swimming in a sea of wrapping paper, and maxing out credit cards seem to be all the rage, but that’s not what Christmas is meant to be about. Instead of going overboard with the presents, follow the Three Gift Rule.
Each person gets one thing they need, one thing they want, and a surprise. This shifts the focus from material things to true necessity and family.
Delectable food is one of the best parts of the holidays, but there is such a thing as too much. It’s normal to crave every pie imaginable, but your family of six does not need 10 different types of heaven’s dessert.
Be realistic about how much food your family will eat on Christmas, narrow down to the dishes you absolutely must have, and cook accordingly.
The flamboyant Christmas trees taking over storefronts around the country are beautiful, but they’re not even close to minimal.
To keep things simple and manageable, go back to the Christmas trees of your youth with traditional ornaments and lights. If you can’t see any of the actual tree, then you’re doing too much.
Elf on a Shelf is cool and all, but it’s also a lot of work. Sure, having house lights set to Christmas pop music is fun to watch (for all of five minutes), but goodness is it a pain to set up and take down.
You don’t need to do all of the extraneous, trendy Christmas activities. Christmas is magical enough on its own. Forget the pointless bells and whistles, and stick to the timeless basics this holiday season.
(Image via Flickr)
You shouldn’t totally abandon Christmas decorations, but you should keep your house from resembling an overstuffed Christmas store.
Elaborate, fancy light shows outside your house look cool, but they zap your electric bill like nobody’s business. Decorate your home for the holiday, but make sure it doesn’t become annoying or confining.
Stockings are a Christmas classic and were the original way people received gifts, but times have changed.
Now that we wrap all of our gifts and keep them under the tree, don’t stress over what you're stashing in your stockings. Use it to hold smaller things, like candy, chapstick, and socks, and don’t stuff it so full that it can’t hang from the mantel.
Plastic trees might be a better investment, but those price tags sure do hurt. Buying a pre-cut, live tree is easier on your wallet, but you can save even more money by finding and cutting a tree from your own land or that of a local friend or family member.
You’ll enjoy the fresh, piney scent mingling around your house just as much as the savings.
It doesn’t matter if you implement the Three Gift Rule or not. If you want to have a minimalist Christmas, then you need to set a budget for presents and stick to it.
Determine how much you can afford to spend on Christmas presents, divide that evenly among your loved ones, and plan gifts accordingly.
These days it may seem like everyone has a professional photoshoot for a perfect picture send out for Christmas. But these Christmas “cards” are expensive and aren’t specialized for the recipients, meaning they may be thrown out in the new year.
Go back to the classic method of purchasing actual cards and writing personal notes inside for the recipients. They’ll appreciate this token of holiday spirit much more.
(Image via Flickr)
One of the best parts about Christmas is all the smells. A minimalist way of bringing in the Christmas spirit with little effort is to switch out everyday scents around your home like your hand soap or kitchen soap.
Swap those out with cranberry, pine, and other holiday scents. You can also use wax melts or essential oils to perfume your family rooms.
Whether a lot of thought goes into the cards or not, most Christmas cards are pretty and cute enough to display. Not to mention, you take something that’s throw-away and turn it into something that’s long-term.
Now that’s the epitome of minimalism!
(Image via Facebook)
Plants are wonderful gifts because they provide continuous joy and beauty. If the person you’re shopping for has a hard time keeping a plant alive, you can always get them Devil’s Ivy or a succulent.
Both of these plants are pretty tough to kill.
(Image via Facebook)
Look at your decorations and see if there isn’t a theme. Most of the time, there will be something familiar that you can use to decorate your tree, such as the colors silver and blue.
Many people find decorating their tree with a theme is a great way to go minimalist.
(Image via Unsplash)
Everyone has access to nature, and it adds a nice little touch to any Christmas. Rather than tacky tinsel or over-the-top bulbs, sneak in nature.
You can put a branch and hang stockings on it or string pinecones along a fireplace.
(Image via Pinterest)
Wreaths are traditional parts of Christmas, and it just isn’t the holiday season without one. Rather than buying one from the craft store, you can make your own.
It also gives you the chance to personalize the wreath by adding berries, flowers, or herbs to add a little scent.
After you’ve decorated your home, take a look at anything that you didn’t use for the year. That’s a good sign that these items won’t be used. If it’s sentimental, consider making a shadowbox.
Otherwise, donate it or get rid of it so you can create more space for items that you will use in the future.
Paper and cardboard trees are incredibly cheap and just about as cheery as any other Christmas decoration.
Most of the time, you can even decorate your paper and cardboard trees in a way that fits the rest of your décor.
Advent calendars are either really expensive or offer low-quality stuff inside like chocolate that legally can’t even be called chocolate. You can make your own advent calendar with paper boxes. Plus, you can put whatever you want inside.
We suggest making an advent calendar with someone else so that they can be exchanged. Then, opening each day will be a real surprise. You can even add sweet messages inside instead of stuff!
