How to Decorate Your Home for Christmas

Christmas is the one time of year everyone ends up under the same roof. The spare bed gets made up, extra chairs come in from the garage, and the house fills with the people you love, including a few you haven't seen since last December. For a few days, home is the centre of everything.

That's really what decorating is for. It isn't about putting on a show. It's about making your home feel ready for the people walking through the door: somewhere to linger over lunch, stretch out after it, and stay a little longer than planned. And because this is a summer Christmas, with the doors open and light well into the evening, your decorations need to look right in broad daylight, in rooms you'll be living in the whole time.

This guide starts with the one decision that makes everything else easier: choosing a theme that suits your home. From there we'll work through the tree, the front door, the living room and the Christmas table, with a few pieces from our Christmas range along the way.

Heirloom is our take on a traditional Christmas, with a little more character: deep forest greens, warm gold, and pieces that look like they've been in the family for years.

Start with the green Celeste Cashmere LED Christmas Tree. The lights are already built in, so you can go straight to decorating. Layer on the painted paper mache baubles in forest green, with stripes, folk florals, a nouveau pattern and a heart or two. Then add the antique-gold animals: a dachshund, a labradoodle, a tabby, a ragdoll, a squirrel and a mouse. Most families will spot their own dog or cat in there somewhere.

Off the tree, a pair of Festive Christmas Deer statues carries the gold onto the table or sideboard.

It suits homes with timber furniture, cane chairs and classic pieces, and anyone who loves a tree that looks collected over the years rather than bought in one go.

Start with where it goes, not what goes on it. The best spot is one you can see from where people actually sit. It shouldn't be in a walkway, and ideally it's close to a power point so there's no extension cord across the floor. Keep it out of direct afternoon sun too, which fades decorations and dries out real trees.

Check the height before you buy. Allow for whatever you're putting up top, whether that's a star or an oversized bow, plus a little breathing room below the ceiling.

A pre-lit tree takes the most fiddly job off your list. With the Celeste Cashmere LED, the lights are built in, so there's no untangling and no hunting for the dead bulb.

Then decorate in this order:

1. Fluff every branch. It takes longer than you'd think, and it's the difference between full and flat.
2. Add lights, unless your tree is pre-lit, working from the trunk out so the glow comes from inside.
3. Add ribbon or garland next, if you're using it.
4. Hang your largest ornaments, spaced evenly all the way around.
5. Fill the gaps with smaller pieces, keeping favourites at eye level.
6. Finish with the topper, then wrap the base. A woven tree skirt hides the stand and makes the whole tree look finished.

Step back and squint. Any bare patch or heavy cluster will jump out straight away.