Do you have a themed tree or an 'anything goes' tree?

[TasteLikeCherryChapstick]

My tree is usually mismatched 'tat'. I have attempted themes in the past but then think 'oh I can't leave that off....or this' so I end up with our much loved and mismatched bits and bobs yet again. I always put on the decorations the children have made (and they've made a lot ) but some friends of mine won't put their children's makes on or put them on 'round the back'. Even when said children were only 3 or 4 and were very proud of their efforts.

Neither way is right or wrong, everybody has to please themselves in their own home. I'm really not judging (I am in fact jealous of the beautiful trees my friends have!) I was just wondering what is the norm.

Random all the way at my house! I let DS decorate until he gets bored (quite quickly), and he usually adds to it in the run up to Christmas. We have decorations that were around when I was little, decorations we've both made, and random things like skeletons and spiders make an appearance too.

Oh and a mix of warm white lights and colour.

I remember when my mum decided Christmas decorations were going to be tasteful and there would only be white lights (when ww got to our teens), and it felt boring. I like a tree to have a bit of character!

I would have loved a themed tree in the past but my eldest always wanted to help (the youngest isn't yet two so not tried to 'help' yet!). I have in the past done a Monica and given her and my husband half the tree before turning around! Then the last two years I have had to let them do the tree (spd/crutches and then just run ragged with the baby last Christmas. This year I have decided everything will be 'fun' rather than classy including the dinner table - pure cheese! I'm actually really looking forward to it and for once looking forward to putting the tree up!

Ours is a maginificent tree of tat and tinsel put on by the DC. It makes several of my friends very twitchy which only makes me even more gleeful

Yes, I seem to know lots of people who don't let their kids touch the tree, or take everything off and rearrange it after they have gone to bed. It must be exhausting to be quite so controlling.

I am having a light-tastic tree this year.

I've just bought 2000 led lights to make it visible from space

Our baubles are in a colour scheme - purple and silver as they were bought in a pre-children phase. Everything else is a complete mismatch as the children have made, received and chosen new decorations over the last four years. It probably looks crazy to most eyes but we love it!

Mine isn't themed as such but i definitely have a colour range (glass, white, silver, pink, pale green, pale blue etc). There's no red or gold or purple jewel type colours (tho there is on smaller tree in dining room). The tree is my absolute favourite thing about Christmas 🎄🎄🎄

Sort of Scandinavian red/white theme

I also go with stuff as much on the tree as possible theme

I would love a Scandi tree - no tinsel, lots of wooden red and white stuff. White lights. I'd love berries and holly and natural looking decorations. Pine cones and nuts and cranberries.

Instead I have DD. Who is in charge of the tree. And every year it looks like Santa puked on it.

FML

Mishmash here too. Never really
Buy sets, just single bought each year, handmade from the kids, random gifts. I also have a but of a thing for buying really random vintage ones from car boots and attic sales. I can't believe people selling them for a few pence, all those memories! So I have other people's tat too .

When I was about 10, my mum got the tree out and then said 'Oh yeah, I chucked all the decorations last year' all our baby ones, handmade ones, lovely vintage ones... She went out and bought some really boring plain ones from b&q... She still uses those ones now and I still really hate them. Soulless matching decorations! I love to see people's mishmash sentimental trees over themed.

Mismatched, which IMHO makes for a good tree. Themed just seems cold to me. Each to our own though.

Ours is 8ft of pure gaudy clashing tat! Totally decorated by the DC.
Dp puts it in the stand after sawing off loads because he thinks the ceiling is taller every year the base of the trunk, I put on the lights, then I sit back and watch the rest unfold.
Like many people, the decorations are an 'eclectic' mix of styles, things they've made over the years and things we've bought, chocolates. Nothing gets moved by me, I genuinely don't care if there are clusters of things all together, if there's a big gap somewhere or if something's facing the wrong way, it's meant to be fun!
I'm not into tastefully decorated trees.

I do like a theme and I try to do colour schemes but I can never stick to a theme as I pick one theme but then fall in love with stuff from another theme so it ends up being a complete mish mash.

I'd one day like to have a house big enough to have two trees. One can be all uniform and 'themed' whilst the other can be a bit more personalised - best of both worlds

Definitely random! I've just bought more multicoloured fairy lights as I thought it needed more. There are baubles inherited from my parents that I remember from my childhood, ones made by DC, a couple of expensive crystal ones, some knitted crocheted and cross stitched by me ones and ones bought from various places for the memory. If I want themed I can find it at the shopping mall.

Themed - winter wonderland!

Does anyone else have a specific 'system' for decorating? Mine is lights first ('cause its hard to adjust them when everything else is on), then beads/garland (ditto) and finally let rip with the baubles. DH and now my kids relentlessly take the piss out of me about it. It makes perfect sense to me.

I don't have a themed tree. I also do loads of tinsel! If you can see a green bit, it gets covered. I also, have multi-coloured lights.

Mine has evolved into a theme over the last 25 years! It's very traditional, but that hasn't been deliberate. I've always bought a new decoration every year, and I'm obviously drawn to traditional looking things, it's. Or a conscious thought process.
For some reason my kids never made decorations at school, apart from dd making a "hug in a box" at nursery when she was 4, she's 19 now and that's still the first parcel that goes under the tree

My theme is 'memories' . Every year we buy one or two new decorations, sometimes from a place we've visited, sometimes to signify a special event or in memory of someone we've lost. Children at the school where I work have also given me some lovely decorations as gifts over the years. DCs made things when they were at school. Our tree has decorations from all around the world, decorations commemorating the births of dcs, special birthdays and anniversaries, memories of our dads and other family members who are no longer with us. It always takes forever to decorate and undecorate as every item prompts memories. This year we have a new cat decoration and something DC brought back from their holiday for us.

Last year I gave DC and their partner a special decoration for their first Christmas and have got them something special for this year too (to anyone who thinks this MIL is overstepping the mark, don't worry, they already expressed their hope that their tree would gradually become as full of memories for them as ours is and we're clear that they are happy to receive decorations as gifts).

Illegitimate yes I have a specific method for decorating the tree, lights first, then I put them on to check positioning. Then they have to be turned off until the tree is finished. Then tinsel, then baubles, then finally the star at the top. Then lights back on. We listen to Christmas songs the whole time.

Ours isn't department store co-ordinated, but has a base theme of warm white lights with lots of clear and white decorations. These are mostly clear baubles which I have filled with various things over the years- tiny envelopes addresses to Santa, miniature Christmas trees and snow, crystal snowflakes etc.

For years the tree was just clear/white/silver, then last year I added lots of different golds- copper, bronze, 'yellow' gold. This year I have collected red and white Scandinavian style decorations to go with the base collection.

We also have a small tree in the dining room which tends to be even more eclectic.

Ours is never colour-themed. It's themed according to memories, and what we like. DC are grown up, but many of the ornaments they've either made at school (those that haven't yet disintegrated!) or chosen at Christmas markets. I lived in Germany for a few years back in the 80s, so we've got lots of wooden Germanic/Scandi-type ornaments, glass baubles and stars strategically placed to catch the light and sparkle, jingly bells and things so the tree tinkles when you brush past it. It's great fun for us all to unwrap the decs each year, and we all chuckle at the memories. And it really does look lovely, everyone comments with lots of Oohs and Aahs - so many different and interesting things to look at. I wouldn't like a themed, staged tree - you see those in shops and hotels. Too impersonal

I have an increasingly Disney themed tree tree

Evans I think you have hit on the key for me, which is so many different things to look at. Thats what I like, rather than major repetition.

Evans, I so agree with you. I love all the memories our tree invokes, even the ones that have a tinge of sadness.