If you don’t have the space or budget for a live tree, are looking for a more sustainable option, or want to cut down on needle clean-up, there are a number of Christmas tree alternatives. You can create low-maintenance tree-shaped decor that allows you to reinvent this holiday tradition in style, using foraged branches, paper, felt, cardboard, chalkboard, and more.
Check out these creative and non-traditional Christmas tree alternatives in a range of materials, sizes, and styles that can be enjoyed for years to come.
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of 42Tree-Shaped Advent Calendar
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Hang a Christmas tree-shaped DIY advent calendar on the wall to add holiday cheer to a small space. Most Lovely Things made this one with clay tags, driftwood, and greens and tucked it on a narrow strip of blank wall by the windows.
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02
of 42Cardboard Christmas Trees
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Create a Christmas tree from 100% recyclable cardboard. Blogger Chelsea Foy of Lovely Indeed created a forest of life-sized corrugated cardboard trees that are easy and inexpensive to make and fold flat so that you can store them until next year.
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03
of 42Scavenged Branch Tree
Credit: Design and Photo by Kara Rosenlund
For a modern rustic feel, use scavenged branches to build a DIY tree. Australian travel photographer Kara Rosenlund assembled this one from thick fallen backyard branches, filling in the gaps with white and silver ornaments.
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of 42Gingerbread Christmas Tree
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An edible gingerbread tree is perfect for a holiday table centerpiece or a Christmas tree alternative in a small space. This one from Sugar and Charm is a homemade labor of love that can serve as both decor and dessert.
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05
of 42Pinecone Christmas Tree
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Spray-paint pinecones and acorns and glue them to a styrofoam cone to create a tall tree-shaped centerpiece. This DIY from My 100 Year Old Home can sub in for or complement a larger tree depending on how much space you have.
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of 42Wooden Dowel Christmas Tree
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Use wood dowels to create a Scandinavian-style tabletop tree in a small Christmas living room. For Bulgarian blogger Ivelina from Frichic, an understated DIY wood dowel tree painted white and hung with simple modern ornaments complements the modern space.
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of 42Wall-Mounted Branch Tree
Credit: Photo by Michael Wiltbank
Fill a blank wall in an airy, white-walled minimalist living room or a studio apartment with a deconstructed wall-mounted Christmas tree. Cut and hang an assortment of branches in a tree shape, then decorate them with a smattering of small rose gold ball ornaments to get this look.
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of 42Copper Pipe Christmas Tree
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Create an abstract tree with a metallic copper finish to complement a modern living room. This 6-foot-tall, cone-shaped DIY Christmas tree from Lia Griffith is made with copper pipe tubing strung together with copper wire, propped up by a copper bucket, and wrapped with string lights.
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of 42Kraft Paper Christmas Tree
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Construct a kraft paper tree to add whimsy to your Christmas living room. This full-sized DIY kraft paper Christmas tree from Lia Griffith uses a humble everyday material to create a festive and original focal point and conversation starter.
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of 42Christmas Tree Art
Credit: Design by MYK Berlin
Hang a Christmas tree poster from a simple wooden dowel for a colorful alternative that can rolled up and stowed away once the holidays are over. German designer Myra von Busekist of MYK Berlin used more than 200 small toys and decorations to create this bold Christmas tree art.
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of 42Pegboard Christmas Tree
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Design a kid-friendly Christmas tree alternative for your playroom or a kids‘ room by decorating a pegboard. Use faux greens and flowers and colorful ornaments and garlands for a 3D effect.
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of 42Feather Christmas Trees
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Use feathers to create an all-white Christmas tree. My 100 Year Old Home attached faux feathers to foam Christmas tree forms with hot glue and mounted them on rustic candleholders for a farmhouse feel.
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of 42Christmas Tree Tapestry
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A hand-painted DIY Christmas tree tapestry will evoke the charm of a real tree. This DIY from Craftberry Bush is timeless and classic enough to suit any interior, and will last for years to come.
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of 42Christmas Ribbon Trees
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Use an assortment of Christmas ribbons to create a tree alternative. My 100 Year Old Home chose a red-and-white theme and piled the mini trees onto a cake stand to create a charming display.
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of 42Present Stack Tree
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Use wrapped presents or empty boxes to create an easy Christmas tree alternative. Choose matching wrapping paper and bows and fill out the display with some potted white poinsettias for a polished look like this living room display from Marie Flanigan Interiors.
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16
of 42Christmas Tree Shelves
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Construct a triangular wall shelf for a versatile take on a traditional tree. This non-traditional Christmas tree from Lia Griffith is made with poplar wood shelves held together with macrame knots, and styled with dried pine branches, DIY crepe paper ornaments, and white candles.
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of 42Plywood Christmas Tree
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Match the style of your minimalist space with an abstract Christmas tree. The Merrythought created this one with plywood sheets for an ultra-simple and sleek look that can dressed up or left bare depending on your mood.
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of 42Dress Form Christmas Tree
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Decorate a craft room or home office with an alternative tree to spread the holiday cheer when you’re not in sight of the main tree. Attach pine branches to a dress form with chicken wire to create a DIY Christmas tree alternative like this one in a craft room from My 100 Year Old Home.
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of 42Lighted Branches Tree
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For a low-key take on a Christmas tree that is versatile enough to stay up all winter long, cover large branches with fairy lights. A tall bunch of spindly, salvaged tree branches lit with large, warm-toned LED string lights create an easy, atmospheric Christmas tree alternative in this dining room from Lobster and Swan.
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of 42Antique Spindle Tree
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Build a Christmas tree from repurposed antique spindles for a vintage look that’s perfect for neutral, shabby chic, and modern farmhouse interiors. Liz Marie Blog assembled pieces with whitewashed finishes to complement the monochromatic color scheme of the living room.
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of 42Graphic Christmas Tree
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Decorate a simple wooden Christmas wall tree with a holiday message to make it extra festive, like this DIY project from A Beautiful Mess. Pile presents beneath the sign or fill out the floor below with mini trees or Christmas flowers.
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of 42Foraged Tabletop Tree
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Use a tabletop Christmas tree alternative as a centerpiece for your eat-in kitchen table. Most Lovely Things made this one from foraged branches strung with DIY ornaments that complement the natural holiday decor throughout the house, but this could replace a live tree in a smaller space such as a studio apartment.
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of 42Christmas Floating Shelf
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Repurpose floating shelves with holiday decor for an easy Christmas tree alternative. Laura Gummerman from A Beautiful Mess used a bright red message board with a cheeky song lyric as the centerpiece of this holiday display replete with kitschy ornaments and family photographs.
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of 42Floral Christmas Tree
Credit: Design by Mel Bean Interiors / Photo by Laurey Glenn
Decorate your kitchen island with a mini tree made from ornaments and florals. Interior designer Mel Bean of Mel Bean Interiors decorated the countertops, pendant lights, window, and island of a neutral-toned kitchen with a collection of Christmas tree statuettes for a glamorous, pastel-hued take on Christmas decor.
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of 42Mantel Christmas Tree
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Decorate your Christmas mantel with a DIY tree ornament. Blogger Lucy Akins of Craftberry Bush spray painted a small, wooden, tree-shaped mantel decor in gold and glued in some shiny bauble ornaments that look suspended within the frame.
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of 42Pallet Wood Tree
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Create a budget-friendly Christmas tree alternative with upcycled wood pallets. A Beautiful Mess made this rustic project by cutting, sanding, and covering pallet boards with matte sealer, then decorated the tree-shape result with small gifts and treats strung up with push pins.
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of 42Salvaged Greenery Tree
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Attach fresh or faux greens to a chalkboard for a quick DIY project. Thistlewood Farms attached leftover greens to a vintage style chalkboard for a modern farmhouse look that takes no time to pull together.
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28
of 42Christmas Tree Marquee
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Part of the fun of Christmas is creating your own traditions. This DIY Christmas marquee from A Beautiful Mess features a turquoise tree on top of a pink sports car for a personal take on the holiday.
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of 42Rag Ribbon Christmas Trees
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Give spare fabric a new purpose by using it to make DIY tree decorations. These rag ribbon Christmas trees from Craftberry Bush have a vintage look thanks to ribbon imprinted with French script that makes them perfect for a holiday coffee table display.
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of 42Herringbone Wood Tree
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Create a rustic Christmas tree alternative with wood planks arranged in a herringbone pattern on a painted black backdrop, like this DIY project from Funky Junk Interiors.
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of 42DIY Yarn Tree
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Put all that spare yarn to use to create a series of colorful mini trees. These DIY yarn-covered. cone-shaped Christmas trees from A Beautiful Mess are simple to make and look striking against a white wall.
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of 42Charlie Brown Tree
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Place tree branches in a large vase on the floor to create a Christmas alternative. Decorate it with tree-shaped ornaments to reinforce the theme, like this easy project from The Merrythought.
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of 42Chalkboard Tree
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Create a simple DIY tree with plywood and chalkboard paint. Thistlewood Farms made a small countdown-to-Christmas version here with the addition of hot-glued clothespins and paper card numbers, but you can size up if you prefer.
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of 42Chalk Painted Pinecone Tree
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Glue chalk-painted pinecones to a foam tree form to create a homey Christmas centerpiece. My 100 Year Old Home mounted a pair of frosted mini trees on wood slice stands for a rustic farmhouse look.
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of 42Tree-Shaped Stocking Holder
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Create a multipurpose Christmas decor with a tree-shaped stocking holder. A Beautiful Mess used this one as an advent calendar hung with multi-colored stockings, but it could work as a Christmas tree alternative centerpiece in a small space.
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of 42Mini Paper Christmas Tree
Credit: Design by Emily Henderson Design / Photo by Sara Ligorria-Tramp
Anchor a seasonal dining room sideboard with a small paper tree. A tabletop tree made of paper, some shiny holiday baubles, and a smattering of holiday greenery creates a candlelit Christmas vignette in this dining room from Emily Henderson Design that could substitute for a full-size tree in a small space.
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of 42Window Ornaments
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Decorate your window with ornaments and pile presents on the windowsill to create a space-saving Christmas tree alternative. Thistlewood Farms hung sparkly ornaments on long pieces of colorful ribbon at slightly varied heights to create this DIY display.
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of 42Felt Christmas Trees
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Decorate a sideboard with handmade mini trees for a Christmas tree alternative in a small space. A Beautiful Mess mixed hand-stitched DIY felt Christmas trees with succulents and books to create a Christmas mantel-top vignette that could complement or substitute for a full-sized tree.
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of 42Skip the Tree
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Create a holiday focal point with lighting that can stand in for a tree in a smaller space. Lobster and Swan hung fairy lights behind a linen curtain and a string of Christmas tree ball decorations from a nearby wall sconce to create an abstract Christmas tree effect without the tree.
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of 42Cork Board Christmas Tree
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Cork is an eco-friendly material made from the naturally regenerating bark of the cork oak tree. A Beautiful Mess made this cork wall tree as a place to pin up Christmas cards in plain view, but a larger-scale version could also work on a spare wall in the living room or a small studio space.
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of 42Upside-Down Christmas Tree
Credit: John McClain Design / Photo by Zeke Ruelas
Hang a small Christmas tree upside down from the ceiling to create a whimsical feel. John McClain Design decorated the pendant over the eat-in kitchen with a small upside-down Christmas tree, covering the cord in branches and hanging icicle ornaments to enhance the illusion that it’s floating.
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of 42Bottle Brush Christmas Trees
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Cluster a bunch of small bottle brush Christmas trees to create an alternative to a large tree. This console table holiday display from A Beautiful Mess features a forest of multicolored bottle brush Christmas trees in a mix of colors and a mirror decorated with gold stars that creates a festive focal point.