Easy Vintage DIY Holiday Decor Using Thrifted Items

Why buy brand new when you can DIY gorgeous holiday decorations using vintage finds? If you’re not sure how to get started, read on for some expert suggestions regarding projects that are fun and easy to take on this season—some of these will just take a few minutes to complete! 

Customize a Holiday Wreath

Why settle for a store bought wreath when you can customize one of your own and make it sentimental? “Many years ago I spent one frigid winter afternoon creating a holiday wreath made from glass ornaments with my mom,” says Chris Clark, an avid vintage shopper. “It remains a cherished family memory and still hangs in her home every Christmas, nearly two decades later.” Clark advises purchasing brightly colored and affordably priced vintage Christmas ornaments when shopping estate sales if you’re looking to take on a similar project of your own. 

Vintage Christmas Ornaments

Repurpose Existing Vintage Pieces

There’s no need to purchase brand new vintage items solely for the holiday season—if you’re looking to get creative with pieces you already have on hand, there are many ways to do so.

For example, Marcie Millholland, the Instagrammer behind @madebymolliesmom, is an avid collector of garden statues, busts and bust planters all year long. “During the holidays I like to give them crowns of greenery filled with twinkle lights or wrap them with a cozy plaid scarf,” she says. 

Photo courtesy of @madebymolliesmom

Photo courtesy of @madebymolliesmom

Source and Display Faux Fruit Pieces 

Millholland also likes to keep her eye out for faux fruit to use as decor. “It is such a great addition to holiday greenery arrangements, wreaths, or with ornaments in vintage bowls, baskets, or even a silver champagne bucket,” she says. “It’s a real find when I come across vintage beaded fruit.”

Last year, Millholland even used thrifted faux oranges and lemons to create clove studded pomanders. 

Photo courtesy of @madebymolliesmom

Use Tree Toppers as Centerpiece Decor

Wondering how to design a centerpiece that guests will admire all evening long? Consider displaying vintage metallic tree toppers, which Jeanne Van Dine of JL Studio Interiors likes to add to her tabletop. She says, “You can stick them in floral foam and add foliage around them to create a fun centerpiece.” 

Paint Wooden Toys

Kaelyn Guerin, the lead designer with and founder of Haus Guerin likes to pick up natural, unfinished wood toys including small sleighs or box cars and give them new life for the holidays. “They can be painted a color pulled from your existing decor palette or left natural for a touch of nostalgia,” she says. 

Hand Painted Wood Santa's Sleigh for Christmas Village

Give Jewelry a New Purpose

Will Hunt Lewis, owner of Hunt & Bloom, recommends picking up affordable small bags full of vintage beads, brooches, and earrings and using them to create ornaments or decorative trees. “I love to take styrofoam cones and completely cover them with vintage jewelry findings to create sparkly treasures that look stunning grouped together on a table or mantel,” Hunt explains. “You can do the same with styrofoam balls to create gorgeous ornaments for your tree, they also make for the perfect hostess gift for a holiday party.” 

Vintage Assorted Sterling Silver Jewelry

Sew Your Own Christmas Stockings

Hunt also purchases quilts whenever he sees them at estate sales and saves them for DIY projects. “These homespun works of art have had a resurgence lately in both home decor and fashion,” he notes. “Often, some of these quilts are well past their prime and only parts of them are still in good condition.” Hunt uses the quilts to make special stockings. “If you aren't comfortable hemming the top, just trim it with pom pom trim or ribbon and sew a loop of ribbon to use for hanging,” he says. “To be extra special, take it to a monogram shop to personalize it with kids’ or pet’s names—or even yours!”

Vintage Quilts at AuctionNinja

Written by:

Sarah Lyon

November 21, 2023     Updated 07:11 AM

Sarah Lyon is a Washington, DC, native living in New York City. As a freelancer, she frequently covers pieces pertaining to interior design, travel, and other lifestyle topics. Her pieces have appeared in outlets including Apartment Therapy, Architectural Digest, MyDomaine, the Washington Post, the New York Times, and more. When she isn't writing, Sarah works with designers to help them style spaces for photo shoots (and can't stop rearranging and redecorating her own apartment, either!). She has a penchant for shopping secondhand and loves giving preloved pieces new life. Sarah’s own spaces have appeared on Apartment Therapy, The Everygirl, Houzz, and Washingtonian.com. Her Dupont Circle apartment was featured in both the spring 2019 print edition of Small Space Decorating and the January 2019 print edition of Washingtonian Magazine.

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