Christmas Ideas

Decorating for your party should be fun and easy. With a couple of quick tips from ShopAtHome.com, you’ll be well on your way to hosting a festive holiday party your friends and family will love.

• Candles create a warm an inviting atmosphere for entertaining.
• Focus your decorating in the rooms your guests see first or will spend most of their time – such as the entry way or the living room.
• Decorate with a decorated table runner or two rather than a tablecloth – not only can you create a unique layered effect, but you'll let the natural beauty of the wood shine through.
• Use ribbons to decorate in unexpected places – on candlesticks, doorknobs, vases and even on the backs of chairs. Walmart has a large selection of holiday ribbons perfect for decorating your home.

Christmas Mantles

Mantles are a classic Christmas decoration spot – they provide a safe haven for Santa's cookies as well as a beautiful backdrop for your family’s stockings. If your home doesn't have a fireplace, hang stockings from stair railings, doorknobs, bookshelves or even the backs of chairs.

• Deck your hall with garland intertwined with fresh fruit. The fruit provides bursts of color that add to the holiday decorations.
• Hot glue red-and-white peppermint sticks around a glass vase and tie with a red-and-white ribbon. Stripes are always the perfect complement to floral arrangements.
• String cranberries on thin gold crafts wire to make bobeches for candles.
• A fun project to do with the kids – spray Styrofoam cones with silver paint and hot-glue candies to cover. Set on silver or glass candleholders designed for pillar candles – they’ll look fun and festive!
• Hang a holiday wreathe on your door to create an inviting entryway to your home. Target sells wreathes and other door decorations.

Table Décor

Decorating your table should look as delicious as the food you’re serving. You don’t want to overwhelm your guests, so choose decorations that complement the theme of your house.

• Never underestimate the impact fresh flowers have on a table setting. Find Christmas balls in coordinating colors to decorate the rest of your room.
• Use pears, white cherries and figs to decorate platters filled with candles – the rich color combinations add warmth and beauty to table settings and centerpieces.
• Tie a festive ribbon around a punchbowl and surround it with a fresh pine wreath to create a quick, easy, and elegant centerpiece.
• Use glass candlesticks as elegant pedestals for oversized colored ornaments decorated with glittered letters.

• Ribbons, plain or fancy, are an inexpensive but effective napkin decoration. Tie a knot, a bow, or dress up any plain napkin with a border of ribbon. TIP: Make certain the items you use are washable. Prewash trims, if needed, so the bright ribbons won't stain white linens when laundered.

• Dress up your holiday gathering with inexpensive champagne flutes. Choose adhesive letters to express your festive message and place a single bloom in each for an elegant centerpiece.

Don’t forget about Santa! Whether you’re planning on decorating your own cookies, or grabbing something quick so you can focus on other elements of your holiday party, Christmas cookies and holiday goodies are a staple of tradition. Consider flavored popcorn tins from The Popcorn Factory make great gifts or the decorated tins can be used to spice up the room. If you love cookies, but don’t have the time to decorate, David’s Cookies makes an easy and tasty way to entertain your friends and family. Of course, you can’t go wrong with chocolate from Godiva. Elegantly packaged, Godiva Chocolate an instant crowd pleaser – just wait until your guests try it!

A proper host or hostess should always have a variety of beverages to serve to his or her guests. For your adult guests, buy a bottle of wine or two from Wine.com. Presentation is also key. Find holiday wine glasses or decanters at HSN.com and save money by earning 5% Cash Back. Eggnog, a holiday staple, is always a favorite among guests, but spice it up a little and make your own! Safeway has all the ingredients you’ll need for this tasty treat, plus you’ll earn 1% Cash Back.

In a large bowl, whisk egg yolks, sugar and nutmeg together. In a medium sauce pan, heat milk over medium heat until it steams. Pour some of the hot milk over the egg mixture and whisk ( to prevent the eggs from scrambling), then scrape this egg mixture into saucepan with the rest of the milk. Cook over medium-low heat, whisking constantly until mixture thickens (takes about 10 minutes or reads 165° to 175° on a candy thermometer.) Remove from heat and stir in Half and Half and vanilla extract, then pour the mixture through a strainer into a clean bowl. Add ice cream and stir until melted. Cover and chill at least 1 hour, then stir before serving. Garnish with nutmeg. Makes 12 servings.