How to Decorate Your Entryway for an Informal Christmas

An entryway with informal Christmas decor imparts a sense of fun, almost a free-for-all. Here are some quick, easy ways to achieve a casual look.

Things You'll Need

• Butcher Papers
• Extra-wide Ribbons
• Christmas Figurines
• Appliance-size Boxes
• Crayons
• Glues
• Homemade Dough Ornaments
• Molded-plastic Santas
• Pins
• Satin-wrapped Plastic-foam Christmas Tree Ornaments
• Shallow Baskets
• Uncooked Pasta
• Toothpicks
• Bottle Caps
• Adhesive Tape
• Writing Papers
• Monofilament Line
• Spray Paints
• Twine
• wispy, pitiful Christmas trees

Instructions

1. Create a floor display that will instantly set a fun mood for arriving guests. This could be a plump molded-plastic Santa, a pitiful Charlie Brown-type Christmas tree, or an appliance-size box wrapped in white butcher paper plus a large bow and crayons (so visitors can write a personal greeting on the paper).

2. String twine from corner to corner across one or more walls, and pin on holiday cards as you receive them.

3. Decorate the interior side of the front door. You or the kids could make a funky wreath by gluing bottle caps or uncooked small pasta shapes onto a circular cardboard cutout and spray-painting it; or craft a collage of your kids' Christmas art, past and present, on the door.

4. Arrange a simple conversation piece for the top of an entryway table, chest or console. Using toothpicks, build a "tree" sculpture of satin-wrapped plastic-foam Christmas ornaments, or simply seat a Santa, angel or snowman in a shallow basket full of colorful outdoor-type Christmas lightbulbs.

5. Suspend paper cutout snowflake or homemade dough ornaments from the handrail if a staircase is visible from the entryway. Let the kids help.

6. Post family members' and pets' handwritten Christmas wish lists on the walls or in windows. Encourage everyone to be as creative as possible, or ghost-write imaginatively: a new Jaguar for dad, 50 pounds of liver treats for Fido (signed with a faux pawprint signature), eternally dry diapers for baby, $1,000 worth of CDs for the teenager.

7. Hang a whimsical Christmas decoration from the center of the ceiling or a light fixture. Consider a plastic Rudolph reindeer, a smiling elf or a small stocking suspended from monofilament (fishing) line.