25 Easy Holiday Decor Ideas That Last from Thanksgiving to Christmas

Add holiday shimmer to your home with a quick grouping of mercury glass vases—and if you don't have any on hand, make your own! Create a variety of vessels in different shapes and sizes, then group them together for a quick and classy table display. A few sprigs of greenery (with red berries, once Thanksgiving has past!) provide delicate color.

Place this lush, harvest-themed wreath on your front door or mantel for a fresh-and-fruity take on holiday decor. To form the leafy wreath, we made dried orange slices and secured them around a wreath frame with floral wire. Learn how to make dried orange slices and assemble them into a long-lasting holiday decoration.

Need a color scheme for your mantel that's impressively festive but not too Christmassy? You can't go wrong with gold and green. String bold, shiny magnolia branches with green floral wire to create a lush garland, then layer in eye-catching accessories like gold birds, starbursts and towering paperwhites in metallic containers.

Investing in a few neutral pieces can carry your table decor from Thanksgiving to Christmas. Buffalo check napkins ($14 for 4, Bed Bath & Beyond) are the focal point of these holiday place settings. A woven charger, simple plates, and a sprig of faux greenery complete each spot.

The flicker of a pretty candle is an easy way to add cheer all season. Make these mini candle holders by placing mini grapevine wreaths around tea lights. Tuck in faux moss and succulents to finish the Christmas place setting. Add a few glittery birds ($16 for 12, Walmart) and your holiday table is ready.

Craving the lushness of evergreen foliage, but not quite ready to put up your Christmas tree? Put it on your table! Create the holiday tablescape by laying wood slice chargers down the center of your table. Top each with a glass lantern. Finish with green bottle brush trees, copper mugs, and sprigs of evergreen.

Holiday hosting can get expensive. Keep your table decor chic and budget-friendly by making homemade place cards. Write names on the back of dried leaves using metallic paint marker. Keep the place settings simple by mixing and matching dishes.

This easy fall wreath idea is a cheery way to greet guests all season long. Make your own using a plain grapevine wreath form ($5, Walmart), greenery, cotton stems, and pinecones. Finish with a buffalo check ribbon tied in a pom-pom bow.

As this project proves, a few pieces of faux greenery makes a perfect centerpiece. Lay down a burlap or linen table runner ($9, Walmart) and top with an artificial greenery garland. Fill in sparse spots with brass candle holders and pomegranates.

Thanksgiving and Christmas are traditionally times of gathering for family and friends, so when better to display a collection of photographs that's often hiding in an album or on the computer hard drive? Label the ever-changing groupings in this low-cost display⁠—made with clothespins and twine⁠—with metal scrapbooking label corners, and mount the photos onto pieces of cardstock using photo corners.

Some decorations excel at evoking the festive nature of the season, making them perfect accents for entryways and porches. Fill a hanging railing planter with cut evergreen, red berry sprigs, pinecones, and faux succulents. Add a few clementines for a bit more color.

Paint and glitter can be fantastic helpers to create miniature focal points around your house. For example, classic gray paint and a dusting of glitter add contrast and sparkle to ordinary decorations. Wrap a tiny box in neutral paper and add pinecones and greenery for color.

Creating a festive flurry outside your home is easy, even if real snow clouds haven't arrived yet. Get the look by placing cut evergreen branches, giant sugar pinecones ($18, Etsy), and oversize ornaments on a bench. As Christmas gets closer, add sprigs of red berry branches.

Ensure your decorating feels at home from holiday to holiday by enhancing everyday spots with cheery details. For example, here a bit of greenery on the table and hung as a wreath offer a subtle nod to the time of year. A chain of jingle bells adds sound effect to the decor.

If you want to start your display of holiday-theme trees a little early this year, try this space-saving, sculptural idea. Cut a short branch with many off-shoots; secure inside a container filled with florist's foam and cover the top with moss. Spray-paint small pinecones in three complementary hues⁠—here we used blue, white, and silver⁠—and accent with small items such as stars and a length of chiffon ribbon.

It's never too early to unpack a pretty collection of ornaments! Keep the classic red and green Christmas ornaments in storage and instead showcase trinkets that fit the fall season. A collection of velvet mushroom ornaments ($25 for 5, Etsy) adds an earthy touch to a tabletop tree. After Thanksgiving, add in your favorite Christmas designs.

Colors that are festive without being exclusive to one season are a great way to ensure your decorating accents remain transitional from month to month. For example, cheery silver and gold orbs add welcome textural contrast to end-of-season landscape items, such as pinecones, displayed under glass cloches.

One of the easiest⁠—and cheapest⁠—ways to add timeless cheer at Thanksgiving and Christmas is to take what you already have, but draw attention to it in new and unusual ways. For example, group a few of your favorite holiday figures and ornaments under a glass garden cloche, for an instant, no-cost tabletop focal point. The best part? You can change the still life from year to year (or day to day).

Strategically placed greenery adds warmth and welcome texture to nearly any spot in the home from Thanksgiving through Christmas. Draw the eye up by draping greenery over a cabinet, or keep the focus on a tablescape or sideboard with a similar garland.

To make your mantel holiday-ready in minutes, pair a few red-hue glasses, votives, vases, and champagne flutes together and fill with mini white candles. Tuck a few real or faux berries around the containers for a lovely interior accent that will please no matter the season.

Displaying holiday cards is a beloved tradition. Here, a collection is paired with an evergreen garland to decorate an inside doorway that leads from the living room to the kitchen. Add a few small holiday balls or ribbon for additional color.

Pinecones evoke autumn, while silver and blue often call to mind winter. A deft combination of the two provides a dramatic yet easy decorating accent. Here, various shades of spray paint transform the textural beauty of pinecones.

For decorations that smoothly transition from Thanksgiving to Christmas, start with neutral basics. A beveled-edge mirror topped with simple white candles creates a classic foundation. For Thanksgiving add a simple fall garland and mini pumpkins. When Christmas draws near, replace harvest elements with pine boughs, clementines, and pinecones.

Oversize glass containers and vases offer a great see-through way to display holiday colors. Start with a large tray and a few jars and containers in various sizes. Plant evergreen saplings (we used Golden cypress) in several of the containers, and cover the soil with faux snow. For contrast, fill another jar or two with red fruits⁠—apples, pomegranates, or cherries⁠—or red ornaments. Place the collection in front of a window, at an entry, or as a centerpiece for your holiday table.

Trays filled with ornaments make a great holiday centerpiece. For warmth, temper the shine with small sprigs of greenery and miniature pinecones tucked between the ornaments or even inside small vases. Keep the vibe casual with a smattering of larger pinecones placed around or underneath the container.