Setting up the right type of holiday display really comes down to using the correct amount of creativity combined with a sensible use of color, spacing, and design sense.
What you will likely notice when you look at most people's homes and even the displays that many businesses put up is a decided lack of any of those aforementioned qualities.
Why this is the case I truly do not know.
It just seems that for reasons that are beyond my understanding, people with a true sense and flare for good design are few and far between.
Fortunately this is a quality that can be learned over time if you take notes from people who actually know what they are doing.
A good way to start is by looking at designs that are on TV or in magazines.
Pat attention to all of the elements in the design, but pay particular attention the usage of color and the placement of the decorations in conjunction to the size, shape, and colors that already exist in the home or business.
The reason why color itself is so important to a good design comes down to basic psychology.
You might call it color psychology.
People (and animals for that matter) react in different ways to different colors.
This is a concept that businesses have been using for decades in order to illicit certain responses from their customers.
For example a fast food business that is particularly focused on getting people in and out their door will often use a color scheme that is less inviting.
It makes the customers that are eating in want to get through their meal faster and leave.
Of course this all happens on a subconscious level.
Colors can be used to invoke feelings of warmth, coolness, a homey feeling, anger, fear, excitement and more.
They can even be used to make people more willing to spend money.
The point here is very simple.
No matter what kind of display you are trying to create make sure the colors that you are using are representative of the feelings that you are attempting to evoke in that display.
Placement is another area where people tend to struggle when they are setting up their designs.
When I say placement I am referring to the size and location of the different decorations that are being used.
For example many times people will make the mistake of putting their largest decoration up front and center because they want the largest ones to be the focal point of the display.
The problem with this is that the large decoration then dominate the display and wash everything else out.
It makes the whole decoration scene look out of balance.
It is much more sensible and looks far better to use foreground, mid ground and back ground decorations.
The largest decorations should generally go towards the back, the smallest towards the front.
By doing it this way you will create a true sense of depth in your holiday display (or whatever type you are setting up) and it will draw the viewers into it and really make them look at the design in totality instead of just having their eyes dominated by one single thing.
Now there are times when it is okay to i mix the placement up a little bit, but it is far better to follow the placement rules of thumb listed above first and then when you get better at creating these designs go ahead and change it up a little to add some spice and variety.
Now that we have covered color and spacing let's talk about density.
This is another concept that people miss out on far too often.
Density here refers to the idea of how many decorations you should use in a single display.
There is definitely a point where you are using too few or too many.
Now this is something that only you will be able to judge because you are the only person that is familiar with the space that you will be working with.
For example let's say that you have a single Halloween inflatable decoration to use in your yard.
That would not be enough to make a true holiday display.
So don't try to! Don't place the inflatable front and center in your yard.
Instead offset it somewhere so it will be more of a background piece.
That way people will still notice it, but it will not stick out like a sore thumb.
The best way to deal with decorating density is to build your display slowly piece by piece.
Every once in a while just stand back and take a look at what you have created.
You will inherently be able to see gaps that just do not feel right and you will definitely know whether or not the yard looks like it has become a bit too crowded.
If you follow the basic decorating tips outlined in this article you will quickly find that your holiday display, whether it is for your home, a friend's party, or a business, becomes the talk of the town.
Build your display slowly.
Take time to think about it and have fun with it because in the end that is what the holidays are all about.
What you will likely notice when you look at most people's homes and even the displays that many businesses put up is a decided lack of any of those aforementioned qualities.
Why this is the case I truly do not know.
It just seems that for reasons that are beyond my understanding, people with a true sense and flare for good design are few and far between.
Fortunately this is a quality that can be learned over time if you take notes from people who actually know what they are doing.
A good way to start is by looking at designs that are on TV or in magazines.
Pat attention to all of the elements in the design, but pay particular attention the usage of color and the placement of the decorations in conjunction to the size, shape, and colors that already exist in the home or business.
The reason why color itself is so important to a good design comes down to basic psychology.
You might call it color psychology.
People (and animals for that matter) react in different ways to different colors.
This is a concept that businesses have been using for decades in order to illicit certain responses from their customers.
For example a fast food business that is particularly focused on getting people in and out their door will often use a color scheme that is less inviting.
It makes the customers that are eating in want to get through their meal faster and leave.
Of course this all happens on a subconscious level.
Colors can be used to invoke feelings of warmth, coolness, a homey feeling, anger, fear, excitement and more.
They can even be used to make people more willing to spend money.
The point here is very simple.
No matter what kind of display you are trying to create make sure the colors that you are using are representative of the feelings that you are attempting to evoke in that display.
Placement is another area where people tend to struggle when they are setting up their designs.
When I say placement I am referring to the size and location of the different decorations that are being used.
For example many times people will make the mistake of putting their largest decoration up front and center because they want the largest ones to be the focal point of the display.
The problem with this is that the large decoration then dominate the display and wash everything else out.
It makes the whole decoration scene look out of balance.
It is much more sensible and looks far better to use foreground, mid ground and back ground decorations.
The largest decorations should generally go towards the back, the smallest towards the front.
By doing it this way you will create a true sense of depth in your holiday display (or whatever type you are setting up) and it will draw the viewers into it and really make them look at the design in totality instead of just having their eyes dominated by one single thing.
Now there are times when it is okay to i mix the placement up a little bit, but it is far better to follow the placement rules of thumb listed above first and then when you get better at creating these designs go ahead and change it up a little to add some spice and variety.
Now that we have covered color and spacing let's talk about density.
This is another concept that people miss out on far too often.
Density here refers to the idea of how many decorations you should use in a single display.
There is definitely a point where you are using too few or too many.
Now this is something that only you will be able to judge because you are the only person that is familiar with the space that you will be working with.
For example let's say that you have a single Halloween inflatable decoration to use in your yard.
That would not be enough to make a true holiday display.
So don't try to! Don't place the inflatable front and center in your yard.
Instead offset it somewhere so it will be more of a background piece.
That way people will still notice it, but it will not stick out like a sore thumb.
The best way to deal with decorating density is to build your display slowly piece by piece.
Every once in a while just stand back and take a look at what you have created.
You will inherently be able to see gaps that just do not feel right and you will definitely know whether or not the yard looks like it has become a bit too crowded.
If you follow the basic decorating tips outlined in this article you will quickly find that your holiday display, whether it is for your home, a friend's party, or a business, becomes the talk of the town.
Build your display slowly.
Take time to think about it and have fun with it because in the end that is what the holidays are all about.