The 10 Christmas Trends That Will Be Huge This Year

One of our favorite seasonal traditions is hauling our holiday boxes out and decorating the house with trees, garlands, and twinkling lights as Christmas music plays in the background. And after skipping a lot of our favorite Christmas traditions due to the pandemic last year, we're more excited than ever to bust out the ornaments and start wrapping gifts.

This season we'll be decking our halls with bright colors and recycled materials in addition to some of our annual favorites (like Grandma's vintage ceramic Christmas tree). We're also seeing an increase in searches for budget-friendly decor and gifts due to the financial strain caused by the pandemic. But that doesn't mean people are cutting back on Christmas cheer. In fact, people are more excited than ever to get all of their decor out (us included!).

We've rounded up the most popular themes from Pinterest, Instagram, TikTok, Google, and the editors from Better Homes & Gardens to bring you the top holiday trends of 2021. Plus, we'll show you how to blend these ideas with the classic decorations you already have, so you can save most of your holiday budget for stocking stuffers and thoughtful gifts for friends and family.

White Christmas Trees

White Christmas trees are the most popular holiday trend across Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok this season, according to a recent study that compiled holiday data from each platform. Whether you opt for a white tinsel tree or go with the snowy look of a flocked Christmas tree, the white backdrop will make your ornaments pop.

Related: How to Flock a Christmas Tree

Nostalgic Decor

Living through a global pandemic has made us appreciate the small things in life, so we're fully embracing the nostalgic trends, like the iconic ceramic Christmas trees that have made a major comeback over the past few years. According to Instagram, we aren't the only ones scouring Grandma's attic for vintage holiday decorations: There are more than 13,000 posts under #CeramicChristmasTree, and people are already sharing this year's finds.

Recycled Materials

This season we're embracing going green: We're wrapping gifts with fabric instead of paper and purchasing eco-friendly decor items whenever we're able. Sustainable Christmas products are top of mind this year (Google searches for 'sustainable Christmas' are up 117% over the past five years) and an easy way to make an impact is to switch up your traditional wrapping routine. Stay on-trend while supporting the environment by ditching paper and investing in furoshiki wraps or use cloth gift bags (here are some of our favorite options you can buy online).

Inexpensive Decor

For the most part, we set out the same holiday decor every year because it's easy and practical. But incorporating new holiday decorating trends doesn't mean you have to do a complete overhaul of your existing decor. This year, we won't be spending a lot of money on new decor pieces—rather, we'll be repurposing our existing pieces and pairing them with inexpensive DIY Christmas decorations so we have more budget left for a big holiday meal and travel expenses to see far-away family we missed seeing during the pandemic.

Holiday Baking

According to the Pinterest Predicts report, users are searching for holiday content way ahead of schedule—and we can see why! After a year where nothing felt normal, people are really embracing the normalcy of their favorite holiday traditions, like baking Christmas cookies together. It's an activity you typically do at home with your immediate family members, so no matter what the situation looks like this winter, this is one tradition that won't have to change.

Pampas Grass Decor

Pampas grass has been huge this year, and it's made its way into the holiday world too. Pampas grass Christmas trees are the newest holiday trend we've seen, with options in various sizes and colors popping up all over online retail sites. If you're in the market for one, these are our favorite options.

Home for the Holidays

Pinterest's holiday predictions show that people are already searching for ways to celebrate the holidays at home. Last year we had no other choice but to spend the holidays at home, and while we certainly wish it had been under different circumstances, it was a nice change of pace from the crazy-busy holiday seasons we've been used to. It also made us realize what's really important: Spending time with our loved ones around the kitchen table. This year, we'll be skipping holiday parties and events we don't really want to go to, and spending more quality time at home together instead.

More Is More

According to our editors, people are going all out for the holidays this year. Because we had to keep celebrations small last year, folks can't wait to bust out as much holiday decor as possible, bake all the Christmas cookies, and host a big family dinner. If you're looking for inspiration, here are 10 meaningful ways to celebrate Christmas to help you get started.

Farmhouse Neutrals

Whether it's farmhouse whites or mid-century modern blacks and greys, neutral decor isn't going anywhere this year—which means neutral Christmas decorations are decidedly in. According to Google Trends, searches for farmhouse Christmas ideas are up 400% over the last five years. The best Christmas decor is the kind that matches your existing color scheme. You don't have to go all out on red and green if that's not your normal year-round aesthetic: White, black, navy, natural wood tones, and other neutrals can all look just as festive as more traditional Christmas colors.

Holiday Classics

Last year the pandemic changed how we celebrated, but it also brought us back to one of the most classic holiday traditions: Watching Christmas movies together as a family. Since we were celebrating at home with nowhere to go, we turned to the traditional holiday films we grew up on, like A Christmas Story and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. After all, it's not really Christmas until Clark Griswold puts the Christmas lights up! Plus, Hallmark is airing year-round Christmas movies, so you don't even need to wait until December to start indulging.

Related: 15 Facts You Didn't Know About 'A Christmas Story'