23 DIY Winter Decorations You Can Keep Up After the Holidays

Candles are a wintertime favorite. Find some everyday hurricane lanterns to use as the base of these lanterns; we recommend checking your local thrift store for these. For embellishment, use fabric-wrapped wire to shape them into your hurricane shape. Use greenery and white berries or even fresh herbs or juniper berries to decorate. Place the winter decorations on your table or on your fireplace mantel for the remainder of the season.

This DIY evergreen star wreath will welcome the new year and look amazing while doing so. Grab a wood or foam star shape and some evergreen branches and twigs and get to work. Trying trimming down your evergreen branches to keep the desired star shape. Use twine, hot glue, and some adhesive spray to help attach evergreen branches and hold your evergreen star together.

Cranberry garland might be a Christmas staple, but if styled correctly, it can be a great winter decor option to keep up even after the holidays are over. Stringing real cranberries in front of your fireplace mantel looks effortless and makes a statement. Use floral wire to tie pinecones throughout the garland. Finish off the ends of this garland with some eucalyptus bunches to anchor your garland to your fireplace. 

Adorn your tree in vintage photos with these handmade pinecone ornaments. Cut cardboard into circles, squares, and diamonds to use as the base of your ornament. Using dried pinecones, pull the scales off using needle-nose pliers and sort them into groups of similar sizes and colors. Hot glue the scales around the edge of the cardboard making sure to overlap them. Cut photos to fit inside the frame and glue them onto the cardboard. Finish with gold twine with a loop at the top for easy hanging. Showcase them on a garland or mantel once the holidays are over.

Decorate your mantel with a star-studded design that will brighten your home all winter long. To make this DIY garland, cut out star shapes from sweater fabric and attach heavy fusible interfacing to the backs, trimming as needed. Hot glue the shapes to a length of yarn and hang. Use fabric in traditional Christmas red and green, or switch it up to match your holiday color scheme.

Versatile DIY decor that spans seasons is a smart investment of your project hours. A stunning centerpiece like this goes from fall to spring with a few easy seasonal additions. Create a rustic candle holder by drilling a hole large enough to fit a votive candle into the top of a birch log. Place the log on a tray and surround it with white flowers, spruce branches, and pinecones for a natural winter centerpiece.

A shimmery metallic wreath can hang above your fireplace mantel from Thanksgiving to New Year's Eve. Coat preserved magnolia leaves with spray paint and gold leaf before attaching to a wreath form with hot glue. A mixed-metal color palette adds dimension to this shiny DIY winter decoration.

Bring a wintry touch to your home with this easy snowflake garland craft. Fashion snowflakes out of crafts sticks instead of paper for a sturdier garland that will last year after year. Use white spray paint and spray glitter for a snowy look. Hang this DIY winter decoration across your mantel or trail it down a staircase banister.

Candles lend your home a warm ambience on chilly winter nights. This DIY winter decoration idea adds an even cozier touch. Embellish a glass Mason jar with plaid ribbon, jute twine, and a small sprig of evergreen to create a rustic candle holder. Place a simple pillar candle inside to give off an inviting glow.

Put those dried twigs in the yard to good use as DIY winter decorations. Gather an armload of sticks to create add a starburst look to a grapevine wreath. A light coating of white spray paint gives the wreath a snow-dusted effect. Use hot glue to attach the twigs around the wreath form, then tuck small pinecones and sprigs of greenery into the spaces between.

Outdoor winter decorating ideas can be just as beautiful as their in-bloom, warm-weather counterparts. For this easy display, place a store-bought spruce wreath atop an outdoor potting container. Nestle a hanging sphere wrapped in lights at the center of the wreath. Repeat for a handsome pair that can flank a front door or outdoor steps.

Skip the basic evergreen wreath in your winter decorations this year and opt for a modern iteration starring air plants. To make this living wreath, coat a wire form with metallic spray paint. Attach fresh eucalyptus and air plants with floral wire along the bottom and up the sides for an asymmetrical design. Hang with wide ribbon.

You can transform plain glass vessels into DIY mercury glass vases in just a few simple steps. Spritz the inside of a glass vase with water. While the vase's interior is still wet, spray it with a coat of Krylon Looking Glass spray paint ($14, Hobby Lobby). Let it dry and spray another coat.

Add holiday cheer to your front door with this DIY winter wreath made to resemble a Christmas tree. Use zip ties to attached real or faux greenery to mini brass rings or embroidery hoops, then assemble them in a pyramid formation with floral wire. A silk bow tops the festive winter decoration.

Use DIY winter decorating ideas to cozy up your space for the holidays and the cold months beyond. This textile wall hanging adds warmth to an empty wall and can be made in just minutes. Simply loop chunky yarn pieces around a piece of driftwood and cut ends at an angle to form a center point. Embellish with beads and tassels to add color or add knots to add structure to the wall hanging.

Look to nature for your DIY winter decoration inspiration. Pinecones make beautiful additions to seasonal centerpieces. Arrange candle holders on a round tray and top them with silver-painted pinecones and sprigs of greenery for an easy centerpiece for your coffee table or holiday tablescape.

Perk up a plain jute runner or rug with a classic plaid pattern. A roller brush makes it easy to create straight lines. Display the DIY winter decoration in an entryway to greet holiday guests.

Create these shimmery DIY candle holders in just a few simple steps: Spray a light mist of water into a glass holder. While the water is wet, spray a light layer of metallic gold paint over the water beads. Let dry, then add a layer of gold glitter spray.

Dress up a plain grapevine wreath with holiday-neutral feathers for a DIY winter decoration that spans the whole season. To create these colorful feathers, tie strands of yarn to various lengths of florist's wire. Dip each yarn-wrapped wire into liquid starch to form a stiff feather shape. Attach the feathers to a grapevine wreath using hot glue.

These simple paper trees are an easy DIY winter decoration you can keep up well past Christmas. Simply cut out tree shapes from white cardstock using our free pattern, and attach folded cutouts together to make the tree stand on its own. Arrange a forest of trees across a mantel or on a holiday table.

Create a winter tabletop that's personalized for each guest with this charming DIY project. Using a woodburning tool, add each guest's name to a log slice. For an extra special touch, have your guests sign their names onto the log and then use the signatures as the burning pattern.

Give a plain vase a glam makeover for an easy DIY winter decoration. Start by spraying the outside of a glass vase with gold paint. While the paint is still wet, add texture by spraying on a half-and-half vinegar and water solution. Use the technique on several vases of varying heights and group together as a table centerpiece or sideboard display.

Bring your winter decorations to greater heights with a tiered centerpiece. To make this beauty, secure a candleholder in the center of a large bowl using mounting putty. Cutting as needed, place the floral foam around the candleholder. Insert greenery to fill the bowl. Add snowberry and pinecones as accents. Cut floral foam to fit medium bowl and arrange greenery and accents inside. Secure the medium bowl to the top of the candleholder with putty.