We love it when a standout Christmas decorating trend emerges, especially one that ticks all the boxes – affordable, easy and suitable for everyone. For 2024 it is most certainly the bow Christmas decoration trend.
You may have already started to see the growing popularity of decorative bows on social media elevating home decor for the holidays. From Christmas tree decorating ideas to fun ways to decorate a living room on a budget bows are the hero for the holidays.
"Bows have become a Christmas icon thanks to their versatility, from tree decorations and table dressing to gift wrapping and even becoming an alternative to traditional door wreaths," says Lisa Cherry, Christmas Category Lead at John Lewis & Partners.
The big Bow Christmas decoration trend of 2024
"This year we've seen a trend of playing with scale, oversized bows are used for bunting and doorscaping, whilst smaller more delicate bows are used to tie napkins or decorate taper candles," says Lisa. "At John Lewis we've also played with texture this year, introducing sequin and velvet bows alongside classic satin."
Here's how to embrace this year's biggest trend in your home...
Adorn the tree with elegant bows
Bows are an easy way to elevate your Christmas tree theme, whether you complement your existing decorations and choose a ribbon to match the colour scheme or choose to emulate Victoria Beckham's minimalist Christmas decorations and have only lights and bows.
You can buy beautifully elegant pre-made bow decorations to ensure your bows are perfect or you can make your own. To do this all you need is a length of ribbon and the knowledge of how to tie a perfect bow and you are ready to finesse your tree with expert flair.
RRP: £14.99 | When fashioning DIY bows it always helps to use wired ribbon because it creates a more rigid frame, that holds a better bow silhouette. This gold-edged ribbon is 6.3cm wide to make hearty bows for all your decorating needs.
RRP: £6 | Red sequins are the perfect seasonal touch, just look at Amal Clooney's ruby red dress replacing the LBD for party season. As Lisa explains, John Lewis are embracing bows in more jazzy materials to ensure there's a style to suit all tastes.
RRP: £4 | If you're using colours but want to retain the soft elegance of velvet bows you're best to stick to muted jewel tones - like these readymade bows from Dunelm.
Wrap doors in decorative bows
Door bows have been gaining in popularity over the past few years. With the prominence of the bow Christmas decoration trend, this outdoor decorating idea is coming into its own for all doors in 2024.
It's simple but highly effective to actively wrap doors to become part of the decorations. It does require a long length of material to emulate the ribbon of bows which you can choose to wrap around the door or simply pin into the wooden frame at the edges – if you are doing this on your UPV front door you might need to use a strong adhesive tape instead.
Because the material is thin enough to seemingly go undetected you can still close the door with ease. This decorating idea is perfect for both front doors and internal doors.
Decorate dining room chairs
Bows are the easiest way to take your dining chairs from functional to fabulous. And why not? We go to great lengths to consider Christmas centrepiece ideas, place settings and festive tableware but so often we don't add a seasonal spruce to the seating.
Whether you tie bows onto the top of the chair to be seen from teh table or tied to the back so they are still visible even when seated, a little can go a long way to make your festive dinner table feel more considered.
Embellish swags with colourful bows & ribbons
Swags are the new way to use foliage, hung upside down from front door knockers, internal door handles and knoll posts on staircases.
Not only does the ribbon add a perfect finishing touch of on-trend bows it is also the perfect way to introduce a hit of accent colour in your decorating scheme. Simply leave enough length of ribbon free to flow from the bow and add an elegant splash of colour.
RRP: £5 | This perfect made 13 by 14cm velvet bow comes complete with a clip on the back to make it a) easy to fix b) reusable for years to come.
RRP: £29 | This ready made swag is an easy way to hang a bow with foliage on the back of chairs, bannisters or doors to dress the less obvious places.
RRP: £7.99 | Deck the halls with your own swag bows by using this thick green Christmas craft decoration ribbon. The traditional dark green shade is ideal for a classic decorating scheme.
Dress the bannisters
Decorating the staircase is an easy way to style a hallway for Christmas, to set the scene for the rest of the home beyond the entrance. The beauty of bows is that you can keep it simple and still make an impact, or you can go all out and use them in addition to garlands and strings of fairy lights.
We LOVE the simple example shown above, styled by the team at Annie Sloan, where the fabric bows are the only decoration used on the balustrades but to great effect. Measure enough in length to wrap around the post then tie a pretty bow, spacing them out to avoid overcrowding the space.
Another great idea for a family home is to use your bows as the anchor for lengths of ribbon to attach Christmas cards to. This is a fun way to spread season's greetings and extend a warm welcome to holiday guests.
Frame a mantelpiece
I'm a big fan of interior expert @_jesshurrell and her use of bows during the festive period. Last year, she still embraced bows, but they were smaller and less significant. This year, she has ramped up the ante by making a huge bow to adorn the circular mirror above the mantel.
This really is a show-stopper, a great way to captivate guests with the pretty bow Christmas decoration trend. In Jess's Instagram reel you can see the effort that goes into making it (she shares her mistakes so you can avoid them) but it's certainly worth it.
Enhance the exterior
We all dream of the full-on doorscape treatment that celebrities post on social media, but the reality is that that takes a lot of effort, time and money. Bows are the ideal way to make a house exterior look dressed for the holidays but without all the faff.
We love how the team from Yester Home have hung their red bows from a wisteria that frames the front door. This simple idea is a lovely way to use nature to your advantage and make a dormant plant pretty for the festive season.
You can tie bows to existing foliage and trees to make your home look suitably ready for the holidays. Of course, you can hang artificial garlands if you don't have foliage but these will also benefit from being dressed in bows.
Admittedly bows have always been a huge part of Christmas decorating, but this year they have been elevated to new heights. As Lisa said earlier it's the play on oversized bows and bows in more unexpected places that has brought them to teh forefront this year...and long may it continue.
We will use dressed our homes from head to toe in bows this coming weekend, will you?
