In preparation for the Christmas tree, the Victorian woman of the house would gild and silver nuts and make ornaments to decorate an old-fashioned Christmas tree. The children were encouraged to craft as many of the tree decorations as possible. An antique magazine featured illustrations and instructions to help the children make eight Victorian Christmas ornaments. Today you can gather up your supplies, follow the directions, and make some old-fashioned Christmas magic! Here we included instructions to make these free Christmas ornaments.
Victorian Christmas Decorations
Sometimes the young children do not wait for Santa Claus to bring the tree but searched the woods to cut a tree for themselves days before Christmas. They would bind the branches to the trunk to keep them from breaking, tie the tree on a sled or a hand wagon, and drag the fascinating burden home, as in olden times the people with merry laughter and song were wont to bring home the famous Yule log. Next, they decorated it with their pretty home-made Christmas decorations. In whatever way your Christmas tree is procured, make your own ornaments and decorate the tree with the help of brothers and sisters or young friends.
Eight Victorian Christmas Tree Decorations
Most of the Victorian Christmas decorations ideas featured here are for a daytime Christmas tree where lights are not used. If traditional Victorian tree candles are used, no paper decorations can be on the tree. So to begin, click on an ornament from our list and gather the supplies to create the magic of a Victorian Christmas!
#1. GILDED WALNUTS WITH SURPRISE
Victorian Christmas trees were decorated with colorful fruit, raisins, pretty paper baskets filled with candies, snowy chains of popcorn, and gilded walnuts.
#2. PEANUTS ON STRING TREE DECORATION
Peanuts wrapped in yellow, red, white, blue and green fringed tissue paper made colorful Victorian Christmas ornaments.
#3. RAISIN & NUT CHRISTMAS TREE GARLAND
Victorian Christmas decorations included a variety of homemade garlands like this garland with raisins and nuts. Other varieties were scarlet berries threaded upon cotton and looped from branch to branch; popcorn of white and red also looked pretty, hard candy tied in squares of colored tissue paper were also hung from the branches of the Christmas tree.
#4. ORANGE TREAT BASKETS AS CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS
In addition to store-bought and homemade Victorian Christmas ornaments, different types of colorful fruit were hung upon the branches like homemade Christmas orange baskets.
#5. VICTORIAN CHIMNEY SWEEP CHRISTMAS ORNAMENT
An ornament in which children delight, the idea which comes from Germany, is a jolly little chimney sweep, with his funny broom held high in the air.
#6. TINFOIL CHRISTMAS TREE DECORATION – NO. 1
One of the quickest made ornaments for a Christmas tree are decorations of tinfoil.
#7. TINFOIL CHRISTMAS TREE DECORATION – NO. 2
Another effective Victorian Christmas ornament was a decoration of tinfoil in the form of fringe ruching.
#8. POPCORN BALLS AND POPCORN GARLAND
String popped popcorn with a large needle and strong thread, then loop the popcorn garland from branch to branch.
