16 Festive Ways To Decorate An Outdoor Fence For The Holidays

While you might be busy marveling at the creative Christmas decorations you can make with household items to deck your interiors, what about your yard? Or, more specifically, your fence? The sentinel protecting you from intruders, preventing your kids and pets from wandering, and maintaining your privacy is seldom given much thought. But, it's one of the first things your guests will see when they enter your front yard and your neighbors will notice while gazing outside. Fortunately, there are multiple ways you can decorate your outdoor fence for the holidays, including bows, wreaths, garlands, and lights.

You don't have to go all-out while decorating your fence. Decking them in festive gear, like Santa hats and the iconic red stockings, is more than enough to send the message. Similarly, getting an extra holiday-themed wreath or garland when decorating your gate will turn your serious-looking fence festive. If you don't want to spend much money or effort getting your fence ready for the jolly season, wrap a strand (or two!) of tinsel around each picket, and you'll be done. Excited to learn more about the ways you can decorate your fence this festive season? Here are our top 16 picks.

If you're a fan of Christmas wreaths made from boughs and holly, hang one from your fence for a festive look. You just need to loop a sturdy ribbon or twine through the wreath's middle and hang it from a baluster. However, if you're worried about the ribbon (or twine) peeking through, hide it with a large bow. Alternatively, use adhesive hooks, like 3M's Command Medium Designer Hooks, to hang your wreaths. Just ensure the wreath isn't too heavy and falls within the hooks' weight limit, or it'll come crashing down.

Keep your fence aglow after the sun goes down with this simple and classic holiday decor idea. Add a string of or two of lights to illuminate your fence and yard — options abound, from colored lanterns to amber Edison bulbs. For an extra-magical touch, try curtain lights, available at most home improvement stores. 

Worried about your utility bills going through the roof? Cut back your holiday electrical bill with LED lights, like Brightever's 100-foot Patio Light With 52 Shatterproof Vintage Bulbs. Plus, such lights are ideal for cold-weather conditions, so you won't have to worry about them malfunctioning.

Do you have more holiday-specific ornaments than you know what to do with? Or, perhaps you're replacing your old decorations with stunning, trendy Christmas decor options. Whatever the reason, don't throw away your old baubles yet. Instead, use them to string a jolly-looking garland for your fence. Set them against seasonal twigs and branches to make them pop. Hide any bald spots with bows, ribbons, and faux berries before decking your fence with the garland.

In case the idea of using Christmas ornaments as a garland seems kitschy rather than cute, loop a fresh garland along your fence. You don't have to spend tons of cash buying a grand garland at the store; instead, harvest pine, fir, and other evergreen branches from your property. Cut a length of twine or rope to string across your entire fence, then fasten your evergreen bundles to the string. You'll have to put in some work to keep your live garland looking fresh and beautiful the entire holiday season: an anti-desiccant like Wilt-Stop can be a lifesaver.

What's Christmas without a little starlight thrown into the mix? Spray paint salvaged metal barn stars red and green for a festive look, or snag Coozzyhour's burgundy barn stars for a more traditional look then add a string of battery-operated lights to ensure they remain visible once the sun sets. If that seems like too much work, get hanging stars with built-in lights, like MAOYUE's 3-pack Christmas Star Lights With 8 Lighting Modes, to illuminate your outdoors in style.

The holiday season won't be the same without candy cane making an appearance in your mug of hot cocoa, hanging from the roofs of your gingerbread house, or being displayed around your Christmas tree. But why limit your imagination to the indoors when using them outdoors will double the fun? For a quirky take on the traditional motif, snag QPDZ's candy cane rope light. Or, go big with a lighted display along your fence, like Bstge's Candy Cane Lights' 10-piece Set.

If your boss rivals Miranda Priestly from "The Devil Wears Prada," you might not have ample time to put up your holiday decorations. But that doesn't mean your fence has to look sad and bare. Just get a few strings of colorful fairy lights, like Joiedomi's 21.4-foot Multicolor Christmas Lights, to brighten it. Drape them along the posts and play around with patterns for a personalized decor. In case you have plants along your fence, let the lights graze their length to brighten them up, too. This way, you won't have to keep explaining why you didn't have the time to spread the holiday cheer to your yard.

Nothing, absolutely nothing, is more Christmas-y than Santa's hat. So, if you're looking for a low-key and low-effort decor to brighten your fence this holiday season, grab a few hats and place one on each post. Don't worry: you don't have to use the plush and expensive hats you got for your Christmas party. You can use little hats you find in your local Dollar Tree store, like Christmas House's Plush Santa Hats With Fur Cuffs. Or, get Christmas House's Reversible Sequin Santa Hats for a sparkly display. That being said, don't use this idea if you're expecting a wet Christmas since wet hats will ruin your decor and might invite mold.

If you've been on your best behavior this year and are expecting a few gifts from Santa, make it easier for him and his workers to put the packaged goods in your stocking. Instead of making them climb down a soot-stained chimney, string your stockings in a garland form and hang them on your fence. Ensure it's bold and bright enough to catch the eye so no one will miss it. An array of tiny stockings can be found wherever you shop for ornaments, or you can snag ELEGANTPARK's 7-pack of knit stockings for $13.99 on Amazon.

Bring a winter scene to life Las Vegas-style: with neon lighting. You just need a sculptural design that would look great against your fence and echoes the spirit of the season, like GLOWNOVA's Reindeer and Santa Sleigh 16-inch Lights Decoration. Once you have your neon sign, set some time aside to install it properly. You can even make your own "neon" sign by shaping LED light tubes into the form of a snowflake or candy cane if you're an expert-level crafter.

Bows are a classic and timeless part of Christmas decorations. They're essential to wrapping gifts, making your wreaths and garlands look more festive, and adding charm to your tree. But, instead of sticking with the norm and using them in a regular fashion, how about making a gigantic bow the sole recipient of your fence's spotlight this season? You just need an extra-wide red ribbon to make it happen. Bend the ribbon to resemble the number 8, cut out the sides, and tie the middle with a zip tie before fluffing up the loops. In case you don't have the time to DIY the bow, buy one like Hying's Red Velvet Snowflake Plaid Bow ($11.89 on Amazon).

Don't want to spend too much money on decorating your fence? Get the leftover tinsel from last year and wrap it thickly around your fence. Layer the varied hues in your desired pattern, and you're good to go. In case you don't have leftover tinsel or need more to cover your fence, go to your local Dollar Tree store and buy a couple of 9-foot Christmas House's Shiny Tinsel Garland strands. Get the classic red and green strands or go with the silver and gold shades for a metallic appearance. In case you have a few Christmas tree ornaments, loop them through the tinsel strands to make it stand out.

Slick winter roads don't make for good bicycle paths, but you can repurpose an old bicycle this Christmas by filling its basket with Christmas greenery and locking it to your fence. This charming accent is a great way to reuse an old bike that your kids have outgrown. Fill the basket with pinecones, bows, ornaments, and lights.

Christmas is the season of gift-giving and enjoying quality time with your loved ones. So, channel the festive spirit and decorate your fence with faux gifts. Find boxes of different sizes, then wrap them in waterproof contact paper to keep them safe in the weather. Adorn each gift with a special ribbon, then use wire to attach them to your fence posts.

Another budget-friendly idea to decorate your fence is to hang pine cones with bows. For the main part of this decor, you can simply check your yard to see if your pine trees have left any stray seed pods. Cones from other trees like fir and spruce work, too. In case you don't find cones in your yard, ask your friends and family. After you have the cones, clean them and add a sturdy piece of twine on top to hang them from your fence. Hide the string with festive red bows or ribbons.

The Instagrammer who came up with this decoration repurposed some plastic bowls to make poppies for Memorial Day. But, when repurposed with "leaves" made out of cut-in-half plates, they look like holly berries and can be salvaged for Christmas. Deck your fence with these red plastic cereal bowls, using sprigs of tinsel to represent the stem of the berry. You can score and then cut plastic green plates into leaf shapes using a utility knife.