Within the past three years, I’ve decorated eight different Christmas trees. That’s a lot of trees, a ton of ornaments, and plenty of glitter. Right now, I’m in the process of putting together my trees for this year. I actually have to come up with 5 or 6 ideas because a special opportunity will require me to completely redecorate my home for Christmas after Christmas. (This has me both excited and stressed.)

At any rate, I thought it would be fun to take a look at Christmases Past as a way to offer Unique Christmas Tree Decorating Ideas. Then, in another post (coming soon), I’ll share my tips for styling the perfect tree. I have been styling trees for a local gift shop since I was in high school, so I have plenty of ideas.

Unique Christmas Tree Decorating Ideas

First, let’s look at trees of a different color. Gone are the days of only having green trees. Nowadays, trees come in almost any color you could want. While I don’t get overly crazy, I have made a few unique choices.

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This silver tree was one I styled for a brand in the summer so it never actually saw Christmas day. Nonetheless, I think it turned out pretty cute. The theme for this tree came from a collection of ornaments that featured sweet treats like cakes and ice cream.

If you’re thinking about styling a new tree, I find that having a color scheme or theme can be helpful. You’ll notice one or the other in all of my trees.

Another non-traditional colored tree that I styled was this gold tinsel one. When I saw this tree, it instantly gave me a vintage-Christmas feel. With that as inspiration, I decked it out with vintage ornaments I bought on eBay. Most of those ornaments are made from styrofoam balls, sequins, and pins. (I even made a fun little video for this tree. Check it out here.)

I also tucked in vintage light-up tree toppers around the tree for added color and light. This tree was featured last year in Romantic Homes Magazine.

My final tree-of-a-different-color was my navy blue one from 2014. People still tell me that this is their favorite IBC tree. (It’s definitely a favorite of mine, too.)

Here, I chose to stick with glass balls in a gradient effect. I started with dark blue at the bottom and worked my way to the top, ending with light green. Copper ornaments throughout tied it all together. If you’re ever hunting for great glass ornaments at a good price check HomeGoods. It’s one of my go-to sources every year for really beautiful ornaments.

I think a gradient effect is an especially fun way to decorate a tree. Last year, I did the same thing in my office. I started with red and worked my way up to light pink. That time I used copper and white to tie everything together.

Another popular non-traditional tree color is white. I’ve seen so many white trees popping up over the past couple years, but to be honest, I’m not mad about it.

Last year, my Adele-inspired Christmas tree was white and worked beautifully in my dining room. I struggled with that tree at first, but in the end, I couldn’t have been happier with it.

I am going to miss it this year. It popped against my dark gray walls.

I was also super excited to have this image featured in the current issue (December 2016) of HGTV Magazine. You’ll have to flip through the issue to see if you can find the photo.

Now, if you want to stick with a traditional green tree, but still mix things up a bit, I suggest looking for a flocked one. Within the past couple years, the demand for flocked trees has been incredible. I had my first flocked tree a couple years ago. I picked it up at Walmart in a moment of desperation. The quality wasn’t the best, but it did have the look I was after.

It’s no wonder that flocked trees have become popular. That snowy effect is magical.

And for all of you traditional tree lovers, have no fear, I created a few trees for you, too.

I called this tree, “Into the Woods.” It was inspired by a country cabin set among the trees. I still love that black and red check ribbon.

This tree continues to live on at my mom’s house. I’ve been recreating this exact tree for her for the past two years and will set it up again this year. However, I suspect she’ll soon be wanting something different, so I’m betting it’s the last year.

Last, but certainly not least, is my rainbow tree.

This is probably one of my most well-known trees. Here, I used all glass ornaments to create a gradient rainbow from top to bottom. Most of the ornaments are thrifted, but a few new ones are tucked in here and there. By my count, there are more than 300 glass balls on this tree. Pretty amazing, right?

However, given that most of these ornaments were purchased at HomeGoods and thrift shops, it’s an economical way to decorate a tree for big impact.

And that’s it. Three years and eight trees have yielded a fun and unique collection of holiday cheer. Don’t you agree? I hope you’ve enjoyed and been inspired by my creations.

If you have ever recreated one of these looks (or plan to do so this year), please share it with me. Instagram is best. Tag me @inspiredbycharm and use the #myIBC so I can easily find it. I would absolutely love to see your tree.

In a few days, I’ll be back with some of my best tips for decorating a tree. Please stay tuned.