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How to Repurpose Old Christmas Décor

Don’t you just love changing your holiday decor each year? But what do you do with last years decorations? In addition, what about all those new styles when you have boxes & boxes of the old style?

Well, don’t throw away those old decorations, because here is how to repurpose old Christmas décor to make it look fresh and up to the minute.

I just saw the cutest bottle brush tree and wanted to invest in the new style so much.

Flocked Bottle Brush tree inspiration

However, I have tons of bottle brush trees at home. No, they are not exactly like the new one and that’s how they get you! They change it just enough to make you want to throw the old ones away and buy new.

Well, I was not going to be tricked like that so here’s how I repurposed my old bottle brush trees.

How To Repurpose Bottle Brush Trees

First, did you read my post about 2 Easy steps to Flock Christmas Trees? Well, this method includes those two steps plus, one more.

Begin by mixing up some spackling as directed here. Then add some glitter to the mix. I used a diamond fine glitter and because I added so much, I had to add just a touch more water.

These are the inexpensive bottle brush trees that I already had at home.


Once you have your mixture a mayonnaise consistency, use a small brush to apply to the trees. Begin at the bottom and lift the branches up to get plenty of spackling on the lower branches.

Continue until you have the whole tree covered with the glittery mix.

Add Berries

When I pull out my Christmas decor, I always find several berries have separated from my stems, so I’m using these discarded berries to complete the project. If you don’t have any, you can pick up a cheap berry stem at the Dollar Tree.

Add berries

Using a tiny bit of the spackling on each berry, place them onto the tree randomly.

Here is the before and after. Once the spackling is dry, the berries will be secure.

Repurposed old bottle brush trees to look like the latest versions for Christmas Decorating

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How to Repurpose Old Christmas Ornaments

If you like to use different ornaments on your tree each year, you may have an abundance of ornaments that will remain in storage. Here are some ways to use your ornaments to add sparkle throughout the house.

Fill a bowl with ornaments and greenery.

Bowl of vintage Christmas ornaments. for Holiday Decorating ideas.

Hang ornaments from a light fixture.

Hang vintage ornaments from light fixture for a unique Christmas Decorating Idea

Add ornaments to your table settings. This lovely pewter cutlery is from Barenthal.

Use Vintage ornaments on Table settings for Christmas Gathering

Repurpose Vintage Ornaments

This year I didn’t use my whole collection of vintage ornaments on the Christmas Tree because I only used the red ones. Since I have several and love the vintage colors, I decided to add them around the cloche filled with bottle brush trees.

Vintage Inspired Bottle Brush Trees

Bottle Brush Trees and Antique Shiny Brite ornaments fill a vintage European wooden bowl

I also have some special ornaments that I don’t use on my tree but still want to display. Here is a cute snowman, surrounded by a greenery candle ring and sitting in a vintage wooden bowl.

Place antique ornaments in wooden bowl with greenery to repurpose them.

Think Paint When Repurposing Christmas Decor

If you have items that are not the current color pallet for your Christmas décor, consider repainting them to match. I have painted some items 3 or 4 times over the years and continue to use them in my décor.

These white bells showed up in a big way a few years back. Last year they were put into a galvanized bucket and around the bottom of some trees.

Here’s what I have planned for them this year.

Spray paint the bell with your new color choice. Here I’m using Rust-Oleum Hammered copper spray paint to update these Dollar Tree Bells.

Spray Paint ornaments or bells in a new color for Christmas Decorating.

I love this update look and they will be perfect for another project I’m working on. These would also look great on the DIY Dried Fruit and Herb Garland or hanging on the DIY Shiplap Tree that I shared earlier.

Repurposed Christmas Ornament in a fresh new color of copper for Christmas Decorating.

How to Repurpose Christmas Wreaths

Another item that I’ve repurposed this year is Christmas Wreaths. I saw a beautiful, simple twig wreath with pinecones and a little flocking. Then I remembered that I had a gold twig wreath from a few years ago.

Add Flocking to an old wreath to update it for repurposed Christmas Decorating ideas.

I began by mixing my flocking materials and using a small brush, I painted the twigs and the pinecones with the mixture. I only allowed a small amount of the flocking to adhere to the preserved greenery.

Add Flocking to an old wreath to update it for repurposed Christmas Decorating ideas.

Here is how I am using the repurposed wreath this year in my home. It looks great with the newly flocked mini trees.

Those We Love Prints are available in the Store

Here is another wreath that I picked up from a thrift store. It is perfect for adding additional items.

Combine a thrift store wreath with a smaller wreath for more impact.

You can add simple pinecones and berries for a beautiful wreath.

This thrift store wreath will also look great with fresh greenery added to the stems. It would be easy to add because you can wrap the existing greenery around the fresh.

Combine a thrift store wreath with a smaller wreath for more impact.  Repurposed Christmas Decorating.

You can also combine wreaths to create a stunning display. Here I have the thrift store wreath wrapped around the smaller wreath from Floral Treasure. This allows the smaller wreath to work in a larger space.

Combine a thrift store wreath with a smaller wreath for more impact.  Repurposed Christmas Decorating.
Beautiful Repurposed Christmas Wreath combines a new wreath with a thrift store wreath.

Hopefully these tips will be helpful in repurposing some of your Christmas Items. If you have other tips, I’d love for you to share them with me.

Thanks so much for joining me today.

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How to repurpose Old Christmas Decorations for an up-to-date look.  Great Holiday Decorating tips.
How To repurpose Old Christmas Ornaments for an updated look for Christmas 2022.

Decorative Inspirations

Saturday 26th of November 2022

What a wonderful post Rachel! So many great ideas on sprucing up old Christmas decor. Have a wonderful day.

Rachel

Monday 28th of November 2022

I really appreciate this.

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Saturday 21st of November 2020

Great suggestions for updating and recycling Christmas decorations, Rachel. Thank you for sharing at Tuesday Turn About Link Party.

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Monday 23rd of November 2020

Carol, You are welcome.

Miche Ortega

Wednesday 18th of November 2020

Thank you, and pinned!

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Monday 23rd of November 2020

Miche, Thanks so much.

stacy

Wednesday 18th of November 2020

I love how you repurpose things all around Rachel! These are great ideas! xoxoxo

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Monday 23rd of November 2020

Stacy, I'm so glad you like this. Rachel

Kim | Shiplap and Shells

Tuesday 17th of November 2020

There are so many great ideas Rachel. I am inspired and am ordering some copper spray paint today!

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Monday 23rd of November 2020

Kim, I'm addicted to it. Rachel