Alternative to Xmas tree - ideas please!

[messyisthenewtidy]

I'm so utterly skint this year (more than usual) that I can't afford a Xmas tree, not even a tiny one. DS is gutted but trying not to show it.

But I have a box full of baubles and hanging decorations and I need to think of a creative way to display them (other than just a piece of string).

I'm super crafty but short on ideas.....any help appreciated x

No crafty help I'm afraid but just wanted to let you know that I saw 3ft trees in the tesco sale for £2.50

Thanks ebolahat. I will go have a look first thing tomorrow

MIL has a selection of large twigs in a vase that she has sprayed silver and decorates with lights and baubles. One year we cut some holly branches from my parents' garden and put in a bucket and decorated, bit spikey but looked lovely.

A friend of mine made a really cool Xmas tree using stripes of masking tape on the wall in a triangle shape (short bit of tape at the top, gradually getting longer towards the bottom). it looks ace!

Large twigs and branches would look lovely decorated with baubles and other decorations

Sorry I realise that didn't actually answer your question. My mind focused on the 'no tree' bit!

I really like the twigs idea. I do have a forest where I could forage some fallen twigs and stuff. I'm guessing I need to dry them first. Just lay them out near heater?

Could you make a Christmas table with lots of little glasses / vases / bowls / jars / small cups etc and arrange the baubles in those? Then it could be kind of interactive and you and DS could change the baubles as you walked by to make different colour combinations etc. Could look kinda cool with varying heights etc, especially if you use a lot of glass containers and have a lamp or fairy lights behind them shining through...

Just to clarify - I don't actually have a forest! That sounded a bit like I'm lady Mary. Just access to one over the back fence!

My friend does a Christmas tree I the wall partly due to lack of space and partly lack of money. She strings the lights over some nails into the outline of a Christmas tree. Then she fills the middle part with decorations hanging on little nails/tacks inthe wall.

Just to clarify - I don't actually have a forest!

I think you deserve one - if only for making me genuinely laugh out loud!

This is great thanks you lovely lot.

MrsMcRuff thanks. I think I deserve one too.

Are you on any of these fb local selling sites? I have seen several being given away on ours..

If you are anywhere near Bristol I have a spare one.

Argos have one in stock in the sake for £4.98 if you could stretch to that?

I have a spare one in Edinburgh if you are near there?

Do you have enough baubles to string them up "artistically" like this (photo to side I hope, if I've managed to post it)?

We have a tiny (I mean tiny - about 1ft tall, cost about 99p in the sale a few years ago) tree on a table, as our house is tiny, so can't fit a tree any bigger; so other things we have tried alongside the tiny tree is baubles in a glass jar (they look quite fun) and a string of fairylights in a glass jar (a bit pretentious- but fun!) The DC's also have fun making snowflakes and paper chains - free if you have spare paper hanging about.

As we have such a small tree, I did just arrange this weekend for us all to visit my parents, so DC's could decorate their 6ft tree - DCs were quite pleased with that, and being allowed to put the baubles wherever they wanted, and not bothered that it isn't actually at our house.

I'm in Reading - so Edinburgh and Bristol both bit far. But thanks anyway

I love that picture Pawan and being crafty I do have a lot of fishing type thread. Hoping that simple drawing pins will hold them in ceiling ok.

Hell these ideas are so good I don't even want a Xmas tree now!

What did you do in the end?