A lot of the time, an Australian Christmas Day will be celebrated by entertaining outdoors, so we should always consider decorating our backyard as well as our deck, patio or balcony.
No matter if you live in the Northern or Southern Hemisphere, Christmas lights are essential and such an integral part of any outdoor festive season decorations. As many Australians have covered decks, consider hanging larger bulb string lights from the ceiling, or if you have trees surrounding your patio, look at hanging these lights from branch to branch. Another popular option is to hang icicle lights from the underside of your deck rail cap.
If you have a balcony or deck that will be your entertaining space on Christmas day, why not consider having your Christmas tree here? Not only will you be utilising this area on the 25th of December, but you will also probably be having parties and dinners outside for most of the month. If you have a covered space, you can use all of your normal Christmas tree decorations and for safety, simply use outdoor Christmas tree lights. This way, you can have it outdoors the whole time. If you are worried about the humidity affecting your decorations or fake tree, use a real tree with hard decorations, including baubles and disposable items such as string tinsel.
Who doesn’t love a beautifully decorated outdoor table on Christmas Day? It really sets the tone for the Christmas feast—it’s something you don’t do every day, so it really makes the meal feel special. Using a tablecloth or table runner is your first décor layer. Popular options for this are white or even burlap. For extra festive cheer, consider something white with a silver or gold fleck through it. For flowers, Australian natives are perfect, as many natives are green and red. Consider using the Scarlet Banksia with Bottlebrush and gum tree leaves, a perfect festive combination that celebrates our native flora. Or, why not simply use the NSW Christmas Bush, an iconic plant whose flowers turn red at this time of year. Combining this with different height candles and tea lights will look stunning after dark.
The final touches are the plates and cutlery. Why not purchase some gold or silver charger plates for use not only on Christmas day, but other special occasions as well. If you are worried about space, you could opt for either gold or bronze cutlery that will compliment any white dinner set. If you are short on space and decide you really just want to lay out all your Christmas food at the centre of the table, why not decorate a separate table for drinks or dessert using flowers and table linen?
Some of the flora elements you can use this Christmas to decorate your outdoor tree & dining table
Christmas pudding, mini berry Pavlovas and lamingtons will look really impressive surrounded by gum leaves, a red gum flower and even white hydrangea. The finer details will make your table decorations come together, but whichever way you decide to decorate the dining space, your guests will really appreciate the effort, and the decorations will set the tone for your meal.
Christmas is a time to catch up with family and friends, and in Australia, enjoy the outdoors, so make your outside space look merry! With these tips, we hope you create a cheerful and joyous space to celebrate this festive season.
