Besides the snow, it’s not hard to know that it’s Christmas time. Stores, homes, and really anything that can support a garland will be festooned with some sort of decor. While these can range from cheap and tacky to intricate and ornate, there are a few people out there who take it upon themselves to make something new and special for the holidays. 

We’ve gathered the most interesting, festive, and creative Christmas decorations that netizens have shared online. So get comfy by the fire as you scroll on through, upvote your favorites, and comment on what you think about what these folks have put together. 

#1 Local Library Made This Snowman Out Of Books

Image credits: unique_mermaid

#2 She’s A Beauty, Clark

Image credits: hazardsgingerbreadhouse

#3 Finally Finished The Christmas Decorations

Image credits: savage_irony

Oftentimes people forget or perhaps aren’t even aware that Christmas is a sort of Christian “rebranding” of Saturnalia, the Roman holiday celebrating the winter solstice. Both gift-giving and some decorations were, reportedly, part of this holiday long before it was associated with the birth of Christ.

The Romans weren’t the only culture to celebrate the winter solstice, for example, the Germanic people had the concept of Yule, a word which we still use today. Similarly, the Celts understood the significance of this time of year and would even decorate trees in its honor. All in all, some form of “Christmas” can be found all over the world. 

#4 My Teacher’s Submission For Our High School Holiday Door Decorating Contest

Image credits: chaboyjimps

#5 Christmas Ready. I’ve Transformed My Outside Room With Fairy Lights, Foraged Greenery And Lots And Lots Of Candles

Image credits: katy_at_the_manor

#6 Holiday Decor Done Right

Image credits: GallowBoob

Indeed, the tree is perhaps the most enduring symbol of Christmas. Its current incarnation, as an evergreen tree with some decorations most likely originated with Protestant Germans in the 15th century in North Eastern Germany or in what is now the Baltic States. The rest of the decorations would evolve over time as various craftspeople tried their hands at making something unique. 

#7 Well, It’s Certainly Frosty

Image credits: phillydoorways

#8 It’s A Leg

Image credits: cfd253

#9 My Neighbor’s Christmas Decoration

No “L” – Noel.

Image credits: where_is_my_monkey

For example, possibly the most iconic Christmas decoration, the glass ornament, is relatively modern, first being created in 19th century Germany. In a curious twist of fate, the decorations were discovered by Frank Winfield Woolworth, of Woolworth’s fame, who brought them to the United States. 

#10 The Help Me. Christmas Decoration

Image credits: Is_It_Beef

#11 Santa And Reindeer From 1962 Popular Mechanics Pattern

Image credits: reddit.com

#12 Home Alone Has Always Been My Favorite Christmas Movie. Here Are Some Sculpture Decorations I Made

The faces are resin prints from 3D models I sculpted digitally. The rest of the head is a combo of construction foam, wood filler, and Bondo attached to Styrofoam. Then I painted them with an airbrush. This was the first time doing something like this for me, so I mostly just made it up as I went along. There are probably better ways of doing something like this but I had fun and learned a lot. The bodies are PVC pipe, pool noodles, cushion foam, and rebar.

Image credits: kvnorlly

One of the most wonderful parts of Christmas is just how festive everything begins to look. If you are lucky, many public spaces will be lit up and decorated to brighten up the longer winter nights. Flashing lights, candles, and banners all play their part in turning a normally gray and somewhat depressing time of year into something much more enjoyable. 

#13 Neighbor’s Christmas Decorations

Image credits: BSDBAMF

#14 I Want To See More Christmas Skeletons

Image credits: timesuck897

#15 Go Big Or Go Home, Right?

Image credits: arefx

If you live in North America, it can often feel like you don’t even get a break from the festivities. Between Halloween, Thanksgiving, and then Christmas, there is always something going on, from events to just decorations all over the place. It might not be to everyone’s taste, but it can be a nice way to spice things up visually. 

#16 Office Door Decorating Contest. I Wanted To Be Different

Image credits: MoreLeading5742

#17 Any Ideas For Making My Skating Pond Stand Out? Currently Using Incandescent Net Lights

Image credits: Baragon9112

#18 We Don’t Have A Christmas Tree So We Used Danny Devito Instead

Image credits: panoparker

Traditionally, most places are decorated by or around the first advent, but sometimes Christmas starts to “creep into” the end of Thanksgiving. Which can be quite jarring, for example, walking into a mall at the end of November and catching those first notes of Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You.”

#19 New Christmas Decorations Went Up In My Neighborhood

Image credits: SavoryFrank

#20 This Is My Next Door Neighbors’ House. The Guy Across The Street Parks His RV Out Front. So, If We Already Have The Griswold’s And Cousin Eddie

That must make my husband and me, no decorations, no kids, Todd and Margo.

Image credits: HappyHappyJoyJoy98

#21 Merry Christmas To All. This Is Our Place This Year, Complete With Clark Griswold Hanging From The Gutter On The Left Of The House. Melbourne, Australia

Image credits: TheRamdomFi

At the same time, depending on one’s religious denomination, the exact date of Christmas will vary. This can even extend to when one opens gifts. In much of Latin America, one might open them on Christmas Eve. The Easter Church, which operates on a different calendar, doesn’t even celebrate Christmas until January 7th. 

#22 Best Christmas Decorations

Image credits: Attackul

#23 House Up The Road From Me Looks Fantastic

Image credits: dnekrash

#24 I Wasn’t Going To Decorate This Year For The First Time Ever Because I’ve Been Struggling With Anxiety/Depression. I’m So Glad I Decided To Do It Anyway

Image credits: Domino619

So if you have “accidentally” left your decorations this late, just say you are embracing everybody’s Christmas. Some superstitions, particularly in the UK, state that if you don’t take down your decorations by the 6th of January (the twelfth night) you then have to leave it up until the following twelfth night, which just sounds like an excuse made up by a lazy dad. 

#25 This Is Definitely A Holiday Home View

Image credits: beyond_gray

#26 Frozen Land

Image credits: Fondation Plan A

#27 I Didn’t Have A Tree So I Decorated My Piano

Image credits: NovaePiano

The first electrically lit-up Christmas tree originated in the United States, which had 80, hand-wired light bulbs, in red white, and blue. Its creator, Edward H. Johnson, who set it up in 1882 was ignored at first. But within two decades, electric lights on trees, windows, and practically everything else had become the norm in the US. 

#28 Happy Holidays

Image credits: WaitDontSh00t

#29 My Candle Today Is Lit In The Hope That Everyone Will Be Healthy For Christmas

Image credits: elinstad

#30 Do You Remember At Christmas There Was A Limited Number Of Guests You Could Visit And Keep Your Distance From Them?

Image credits: cheflovesgarden

Since then, material innovations, disposable income, and accessible tutorials have all “banded together” to allow people with that spark for DIY to impress the internet. So if you are interested in more clever Christmas ideas, Bored Panda has you covered, check out our articles about the best creations for Christmas of 2022 and 2021. 

#31 This Is How My Roommate And I Decorated Our Door This Year

Image credits: DFDamer71

#32 Christmas Decorations Done Correctly

Image credits: Holmes1519

#33 My Christmas Lights. Come See Us In Katy, TX

Image credits: coxmr1

#34 I️ Got These Little Christmas Ornaments

Image credits: natsamario

#35 My House Reminded Me Of A Christmas Card

Image credits: IcantBcereus

#36 Here Is A Close-Up Of The Entry

Image credits: coxmr1

#37 It’s The Gingerbread Man

Image credits: BunnyAngel546

#38 Deck The Halls

Image credits: phillydoorways

#39 My Christmas Lights For This Year

I live in a one-bedroom apartment but I still go all out for Christmas. I ended up replacing the lights around my bedroom window with c7 vintage-style ceramic LED lights (last pic). The building lights in my complex are absurdly bright but hopefully, my Christmas lights compete with them.

Image credits: Cheetohead666

#40 I Worked Really Hard On This, Today Was Our First Snowfall Of The Season. How Did I Do?

Image credits: dnekrash

#41 I Couldn’t Wait. Cozy Christmas Lights Went On Today

Image credits: TWEED-L-D

#42 Traditional-Themed Cozy Christmas

Image credits: reddit.com

#43 FAQ: “But Doesn’t The Wind Knock It All Over?” The Answer: Yes

Image credits: beyond_gray

#44 My Idea Of Perfect

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#45 First Year In This House

Had our neighborhood Christmas party. Put on by a couple who has been in the neighborhood for 40 years. They told me a story of how they didn’t put the lights up one year when it was exceptionally cold in St. Louis. They ran into their neighbors across the street with Down syndrome randomly at the grocery store. His parents told them how much the boy loved the lights, he said his prayers every night looking at the lights. The lights went up the next day. You never know what the extra effort means to others. You never know what the extra effort means to others.

Image credits: FrumpyDumpers1

#46 The City Is Alive And Well And Is Packed Up And Down Every Christmas

Image credits: villrosene

#47 This Year’s Display

Image credits: one_is_enough

#48 The Magic Of Twinkle Lights At Twilight

Image credits: phillydoorways

#49 First Christmas In This House, Came Out Close To What I Envisioned. Feel I Need To Switch From Static Display To Light Show Though

Image credits: Local-Lobster-8875

#50 My Setup. It’s No Professional Job, But I’m Proud Of It

Image credits: Landon_Punches

#51 I Don’t Recall Buying This Christmas Decoration

Image credits: jullax15

#52 Finally Got Around To Decorating Our Front Door. Christmas Is Coming

Image credits: craigtnc

#53 Do You Decorate Outside For Christmas?

Image credits: cheflovesgarden

#54 Just Decorated My Shop For Christmas

Image credits: PlasticOrchid1977

#55 Year 3 In Our Beautifully Decorated House

Image credits: ST1NS0N

#56 Already Dreaming About Our Christmas Lights Being Up Again

Image credits: rp_tenor

#57 Dining Room Festive Fireplace

Image credits: katy_at_the_manor

#58 I Did A Christmas Tunnel This Year

Image credits: Crazy-Objective-647

#59 Instead Of A Garland Wound Along Your Banister, Why Not Try Something Different This Year?

Image credits: homestylemaguk

#60 At Least Now It’s Christmas At The Entrance

Image credits: gardensvidja

#61 Our Outside Decor For This Year

We finally put the finishing touches on it! We play Christmas music every night and hang candy canes on the little tree to give away to passers-by. 

Image credits: ThatChickBells

#62 My Bedroom Decorated For Christmas

Image credits: DejectedSoul

#63 I Want Christmas To Be Joyful And Undemanding

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#64 Getting Ready For Christmas – Nuremberg, Germany

Image credits: arschkroete2

#65 There Is A House Near Me Using A McLaren F1 Car As A Christmas Decoration. Balboa Island, CA

Image credits: dt_sartre

#66 Christmas Morning

Image credits: Hopeful_Candidate274

#67 My Little House Is Decorated With Handmade Fresh Garland

Image credits: Dunham1409

#68 First Christmas Decorations Went Up Today

Got a few new things so we leaned into the Christmas spirit early this year instead of putting them away.

Image credits: Competitive_Dress671

#69 Decorating Early This Year

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#70 What Do You All Think, Should I Add More Color? Please Ignore My Ugly Front Door

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#71 I Put My Giant Santa Up Yesterday. So Happy

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#72 2019 Christmas Truck. Love Seeing People’s Reactions While Driving Through Town

Image credits: SwenMalmo

#73 Handmade Christmas Decorations Turned Out Much Better Than Expected

Image credits: TwoGunGonzalez

#74 Decorating Has Begun, And Trees Will Go Up Tomorrow

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#75 Baby Yoda Christmas

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#76 Christmas Is Finally Outside

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#77 Progress Picture

Image credits: Averytallman

#78 It’s Not The Best, But My First Time Decorating Our Door For Christmas. Makes Me Happy

Image credits: i_cant_have_dairy

#79 Small But Christmas Cozy

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#80 I Just Started Making Wood Cutouts This Year. I Made These For My Daughter

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#81 Finished The Outside Christmas Decorations Just In Time For Snow

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#82 Today The Snow Is Falling

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#83 We So Enjoyed Exploring This Sweet Christmas Town Yesterday. Adorable Christmas Touches With Every Turn And The Townspeople Were So Welcoming

So many strangers walking past wished us a merry Christmas.

Image credits: charmonafarm

#84 My Hopes Of Having A White Christmas Have Been Crushed. The Forecast Is Calling For Sunshine And Clear Skies. Mother Nature, How Dare You?

Image credits: beyond_gray

#85 Our Decorations This Year

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#86 One Decoration I Love To Do Every Year Is Line My Built-In Windows With Wrapping Paper So It Looks Like A Christmas Present

Image credits: Artemistical

#87 Good Morning. It’s Time To Visit Santa Claus At Sletta Soon. I Can’t Wait

Image credits: villrosene

#88 Finally Taking Down The Christmas Mantel, I Put Decorations Up Early And Took Them Down Late This Year. Until Next Time Christmas

Image credits: Bobbiduke

#89 Snow On Evergreen Boughs Is Such A Great Look

Image credits: phillydoorways

#90 My Lights For This Year, Aussie Christmas

Image credits: kaws_chaos

#91 Felt Cozy Decorating For Christmas Yesterday

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#92 Which Of These Two Christmas Multicolor Light Strings Do You Prefer?

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#93 Christmas Outdoors, Why Not?

Image credits: hillarysblinds

#94 There Was A Little More Snow Just In Time Until The Door Wreaths Got Winter Decoration In The Form Of Spruce

Image credits: etthusbliretthem

#95 Christmas Decorations Outside Are All Done

Image credits: housetohomeatalmondclose

#96 I Keep Adding Every Year. Up To 5900 Lights

Image credits: Lopsided_Process5141

#97 I Decorated Early Because There Are No Rules Anymore And I Need The Dopamine

Image credits: sneakyburrito

#98 The Cherry Trees Are Confused

Image credits: phillydoorways

#99 With The Advice I Got. Here’s The Updated Display. Most Importantly The Wife Is Happy With It

Added the “sparkle lights” on the small trees and the lighted wreath on the main house.

Image credits: Immediate_Fuel_4836