Our Fave Christmas Wreaths, Garlands and Swags

Frosty is fabulous with this DIY wreath that you can craft for Christmas, then leave up all winter long.

Follow our tips to craft this colorful garland that's sure to boost your staircase's cheer factor — without damaging the banister or spindles. And, bonus, we'll show you how to securely attach the ornaments so you can display this gorgeous garland year after year.

Backyard clippings + brass bells = timeless holiday decor that'll help you ring in the holidays in seasonal style. Hang your completed swag indoors for a farmhouse-chic touch or on the front door in place of a standard wreath.

Let's toast to the holidays! Craft this tipsy Christmas advent calendar wreath to (joyfully!) count down the 12 days till Christmas. Keep it for yourself or gift it to your favorite holiday host or hostess.

Turn budget-friendly backyard clippings (hooray for free!) into a lush garland that only looks expensive. Just follow our tips, below.

Celebrate the ho-ho-holidays with this playful pom-pom wreath that'll put the merry in your Christmas decor.

Pair wood slices and foraged greenery (hello, free!) with mini bottlebrush trees and faux berry picks for a minimal wreath with maximum charm.

Our crafting tips, below, will help you turn an embroidery hoop, plaid fabric, iron-on transfer and faux greenery into this farmhouse-chic Christmas wreath that you can display either indoors or out.

Known for its fresh scent and year-round availability, eucalyptus leaves are a beautiful alternative to traditional evergreens when DIY-ing a wreath. Our tutorial and video, below, show you how to quickly assemble a lush wreath or use the same techniques to create a fresh garland.

Kids love seeing their handmade ornaments and decorations displayed at Christmas. This colorful yarn garland is an easy craft for kids of all ages, making it an ideal family activity to enjoy while watching your favorite holiday flick.

Raid your garage (or a garage sale) for a pair of vintage ice skates to fill with fresh-cut backyard greenery for an easy-to-craft seasonal statement.

The quick succession of fall and winter holidays — Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas — can make decking out your front door feel like a chore. Simplify with a single slim basket or straw tote you can use again and again to easily create beautiful looks customized to each holiday.

Although not technically a flower, (the 'blooms' are actually a type of leaf called a bract) poinsettias have been associated with the Christmas season for almost two centuries. Incorporate these beauties into an evergreen wreath by placing fresh-cut blooms into water picks so they stay well hydrated. Cut poinsettias aren't cold hardy, though, so this treatment is best used indoors or in climates where outdoor temps don't drop below 55 degrees Farenheit. Styled by Cote Designs.

Fabric poinsettias are easy to craft and make a beautiful addition to Christmas wreaths and garlands or place several together in a vase for a maintenance-free centerpiece.

Give a faux or fresh evergreen garland a coastal-chic upgrade by mixing in starfish and shells. You could even start a new tradition by gathering shells in the summer, then working them into your holiday decor as a beachy reminder of summer fun.

Give a plain evergreen wreath a beachy twist with capiz shells. To attach them, add a short length of wire to each shell with quick-dry epoxy, then just wire them on. Instead of a ribbon bow, wrap the bottom of the wreath with textural yarn or rope and embellish with a few starfish.

For interior garlands on mantels, work battery-operated LED twinkle lights into the greenery for a magical effect.

Don't toss that dated floral wreath. Instead, remake it into a snowy winter wreath. Our tips, below, will show you how to clean each element, then give them them a frosty fix-up that you'll be proud to hang on your front door.

Fill 25 mini gift boxes and favor bags with small toys or treats to help kids count down to the Big Man's arrival.

Although the busy days leading up to the holidays speed by for adults, Christmas can't get here fast enough for kids. Help them count down the days with this clever advent calendar. Fill the mittens with a small toy or treat to bide the time and build excitement for the big day.

Give your front door wreath a perfectly personalized touch with your family's inital. Check local craft stores for an oversized chipboard or plywood letter, then paint it in a shade to coordinate with your home's exterior. Image courtesy of The Yellow Cape Cod.

When decking out your outdoors, don't stop at the front porch. Drape outdoor fireplaces, window sills, fences or low walls with fresh garland. Our tips, below, will show you how to create your own garland using greenery scavenged from the backyard. Image courtesy of French Country Cottage.

Hit your local craft store for budget-friendly foam spheres, hot glue and lots of colorful ribbon to create this cheery wreath that'll bring joy to your decor. Because of the ribbon, this wreath is best displayed indoors or on a covered porch.

Cozy up your front door with this DIY yarn ball wreath. Create a pretty tone-on-tone effect using yarn in three to five shades of the same color or keep it Christmas-classic with a red, white and green palette.

Decking out your entryway is a sure way to add holiday cheer to an area of your home that both you and your holiday guests will enjoy. To create this look without damaging the banister, start with a long section of wired faux evergreen garland. Wrap it around the banister as a base, then tuck small sections of fresh-cut evergreens and magnolia branches into the wrapped loops. Finish with a few springs of fresh or faux berries.

Long stems of dark crimson berries that shine on bare winter branches, winterberries are a seasonal stunner that brighten up many backyards around the holidays. Work cut branches into an evergreen wreath to add a cheery pop of Christmas color.

Kids are natural scavengers. Put their talents to good use hunting up pretty pinecones to dip into craft paint, then knot onto yarn for an easy, rustic decoration.

Go foraging to gather 8-10 pinecones to craft this seasonal swag. Before stringing the pinecones together,place them on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake in a 200-degree oven for an hour to release the sap. This will also help the scales to open more fully and lend a bit of shine. After the pinecones have cooled, attach ribbon to the top of each with hot glue, then tie the ribbons together.

Make your mantel a real showstopper with a garland that combines a variety of greenery textures and colors. For ours, we mixed fresh-cut cedar and pine with magnolia branches and a string of felted wool beads.

Raid your fabric stash and, instead of a traditional wreath, dress up your front door with a holiday swag made from fresh greenery, DIY fabric branches and glittering pinecones.

Inspired by the natural simplicity of Scandinavian design, this wreath is crafted from inexpensive natural wood beads. Add either fresh or faux greenery, instead of a fabric bow, as a festive finishing touch.

Cut wood slices are a trendy material you can find at your local craft store or source (for free!) in your own backyard. Add letters to spell out a holiday saying and string together with colorful baker's twine.

Hit your local hardware store to brighten up your front door for the holidays. Just coat a ceiling medallion in green high-gloss spray paint then loop through some colorful holiday ribbon for hanging.

Make a large, lightweight and elegant holiday wreath by wrapping garland around an embroidery hoop and upcycling plastic pots into antique bells.

Create a wintry forest scene for your front door by adding bottlebrush trees and mini ice-skating figures to a foam wreath that's been wrapped in holiday fabric. Our tutorial, below, makes crafting this cute wreath a snap.

This year, don't just decorate the Christmas tree inside your house. Make these birdseed ornaments to add color to bare winter trees and treat hungry feathered friends to a snack. Kids will love making them to display in their own yard and to give as gifts to their favorite nature lovers.

Cover a straw wreath form with moss and garlands of fresh cranberries for a colorful holiday decoration that can be used as either a traditional front door wreath or, laid flat on the dining table, as the base for a Christmas centerpiece.

String together raw wooden beads in assorted sizes to craft this sculptural garland. Get our tips for four more ways to get crafty with wood beads, below.

Head outside with some clippers to gather an assortment of fresh greenery to craft this traditional (and gorgeous!) evergreen garland.