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5 Salon Holiday Decorating Tips (On A Budget!)
Posted on December 9, 2019
Sola Salon Studios
The holidays bring light into the coldest and darkest days of the year with some festive cheer. There is something comforting about stepping into businesses and homes that have been given a holiday makeover, even something as simple as peppermint candies in a glass bowl or a poinsettia plant on the window sill.
If you love to go all out for the holidays but haven’t had the budget to back you up, you can still bring your clients into a world of festive fun with these simple budget-friendly hack to get your studio into the holiday spirit.
1. Get items that you can reuse year after year
In the spirit of the holidays, people tend to go out and purchase silver tinsel and even mini Christmas trees that will not last beyond one holiday season. As a salon owner, you have the opportunity to invest in your festive decor by purchasing items that can be reused year after year. Festive snowflake string lights, a holiday vase, a faux wreath or a holiday snow globe can last a long time, making the purchase worth your while.
We love these beautiful LED candles that create a warm ambiance for the holidays. There is nothing quite like a room that feels candlelit in the wintertime. If you don’t quite have the space for full-sized candles, try LED tea lights instead. The LED tea lights are great for bringing light into tight spaces, emphasizing any holiday displays, and filling decorative lanterns or candelabras in a way that does not pose a fire hazard. Add one real holiday scented candle into the mix and your salon will feel like a total spa.
Think about items that you can mix into your decor that can be reused and you won’t feel like you have to reinvent the wheel every year. Although there may be a greater upfront cost to doing this, give yourself a small budget - think under $70 - and remember that this is an investment in your business. If you usually spend $35/year on decor that gets tossed in the trash after the season is through, it will only take two years for you to have both upgraded your holiday decor while saving yourself money in the long run.
Contemplate the life of an item before buying it and you’ll save your business money in years to come. We like to think about the life of something in terms of how many uses you’ll use it - so if you use something once and it cost $10, that is $10 per use. If you buy something that costs $30 and will use it for 5 years, that is $6 per use. That is smart spending!
2. Choose your unique theme
Are metallics getting you in the mood for New Years? Or maybe funky colors are more your vibe? You don’t need to be religious or traditional in your holiday choices. In fact, your clientele is diverse and likely to be celebrating all kinds of holidays this season, so think outside the box, and look for holiday decor that inspires and fills you with joy. Any joyous makeover to your space will make it truly feel like the holidays in your studio.
Stylist Danielle Avila recommends a white and gold theme, to keep it festive without going overboard on the overwhelming holiday color palette. We love the sleek simplicity of “less is more” in the holiday scheme to keep your space feeling festive, yet calm. Your workplace should remain a space of serenity and keeping things simple also tends to keep costs down a bit.
3. Bring in Family Relics and Hand-me-downs
This is a time of year all about tradition. Add some holiday cheer free of charge by borrowing anything that your friends or family may have used for holiday decor in the past. Ask around to cousins, siblings, parents, grandparents, aunts or uncles. You never know who has downsized or would like to get rid of burdensome clutter. Sometimes people forget about holiday decor they have stored away for years, and having a purpose for (or even just clearing out) all the stuff may come as a relief. You never know what might be hiding in the old attic, and it surely never hurts to ask. You can add in the fact that having something from them in your salon would feel really special during your busiest time of the year.
They don’t really make holiday decor like they used to, so you may find some great quality items! Jenna Lytle (@quartzhairstudio) uses a vintage Christmas tree from her grandmother, which she says “totally fits the vibe of the Quartz Hair Studio.” If your family has never been big on holiday decorating, try a local thrift shop to recreate that vintage decor vibe. Nothing screams the holidays like some old fashioned relics of the past.
4. Shop the Deals!
We asked Sola stylists about some of their favorite places to grab holiday deals for salon decor and here were some of their insider tricks of the trade:
Sola Salon’s Brows by Lana (@browsbylana) recommends Michael’s 50% off holiday coupon that comes around yearly. Sign up for their email list to get the best deals and coupons that Michael’s has to offer. They have an extensive holiday decor section and can source all of the artsy materials for any DIY project. Sometimes just walking around Michael’s can give you inspiration for decor that is unique to you and your salon. Get creative!
Many Solapreneurs recommend dollar stores and the Target $1, $3 and $5 festive bins (at the front of the store) for all kinds of festive decorations. Think pillows, candles, tabletop displays, and any other cute accessories that can give your space some holiday cheer.
5. DIY Holiday Decor
Of course, the most endearing way of all to decorate is from your very own creativity. If you have the time to get creative, your clients will absolutely pick up on the love that you’ve put into your space. There is something homey and comforting of a space that has been prepared with holiday love from the heart!
Danielle Avila, recommends the Dollar Tree, Michael’s and Goodwill, where she gets creative with what they have to offer. “One of my favorite stops is the Dollar Tree. I buy the glass bowls and jars and fill them with salt (as fake snow). I add little ornaments and pine cones from there too. You can buy so many items for less than a few bucks! I also get Christmas stockings from the Dollar Tree and fill them with travel-size retail, or small items I sell, like hair ties.”
Here are a few more tips from Danielle:
- “You can turn your travel-sized products into ornaments with yarn or twine, and hang on a little tree. Let guests take them home as gifts or buy them off of the tree as stocking stuffers.”
- “I bought white Christmas lights and framed my mirror and retail shelves with them. Goodwill is great for little things like that.”
- “One year we took crates and stacked them like a Christmas tree in the corner for holiday gift ideas! Crates from Michael’s are $10 (shop the coupons!) and are super easy to move around with different seasons and displays. You can hang them on the walls or stack them up with retail, cover them in black cloth or festive fabrics. I change mine up every few months.”
As you can see, there are so many ways to give your salon a holiday makeover on a budget. Remember that your retail offerings should also be part of the holiday cheer because your decor should be embellishing, not taking away from your offerings! Make sure that your festive decorations are emphasizing any holiday specials, gift sets and/or holiday products. Festive displays link your offerings to the gifting season and will encourage clients to take a second look, not just for themselves but for their friends and family. For more tips on holiday retailing, read these Holiday Retail Tips.
