10 Ideas to Decorate your Craft Show Booth for Christmas
The mood shoppers are in while at your craft show booth will impact your sales.
And adding a few festive touches to your display can help put your shoppers into a more cheerful, gift-giving mood.
These touches will also get shoppers thinking about your products as gifts, imagining them under the Christmas tree or in stockings, and considering who they can buy for.
This article shares 10 ways you can decorate your table for Christmas craft shows.
I’ve layered each idea, however, you can use just one or two to create a holiday setting.
1) Color drenching
If you alter your products, or product packaging for each season, you may use Christmas colors for the holidays so your products can help make a visual statement.
Display elements, such as fixtures, props, and signage can all be spray painted a festive color (e.g. red or green), if you don’t mind spray painting them again after the holidays.
Drenching your display in one or two Christmas-themed colors or finishes (e.g. gold or silver fixtures) can be enough to suggest Christmas.
2) Tablecloth
Switching up your tablecloth can be a simple and effective way to make your display look a little more Christmas-y.
You might go with traditional Christmas colors (red, gold, green), or go with colors that are less traditional (e.g. blue and white or silver) but work well with your product colors.
3) Add gifts
Save a few empty boxes and wrap them in Christmas paper and ribbons. Follow a theme or color scheme to make a statement.
You may even add tags based on your target market (e.g. “For Grandma”).
These gifts can be used as props throughout your display, or as risers to elevate your products.
Another option is to use gift bags stuffed with tissue paper. This may be a better option if you offer gift bags, tissue paper, and tags as add-ons.
4) Tree shapes
If you use crates or boxes for display fixtures, and it’s safe to do so, stack them in a tree-like shape before filling them with products.
You could also add a star or angel as a “tree-topper” to help drive home the message.
5) Christmas trees
You can find Christmas trees in all shapes, sizes, and colors.
If you don’t have a lot of room, you might purchase “bottle brush” trees to add little touches around a display. Christmas trees designed for table or mantle decor work when you’re limited on space.
Or you may use a tabletop tree if you have more space on your table, or even a full-sized tree if you have a 10’ x 10’ booth.
A full-sized Christmas tree would make an eye-catching element in a bigger booth but might be better suited for a vendor selling items that can be displayed on the tree (e.g. Christmas ornaments, jewelry packaged in clear plastic envelopes or boxes, etc. A vendor selling winter accessories could wrap scarves around the tree, like a garland, and hang mittens on strings to catch shoppers’ attention.).
6) Garlands
Garlands that might be draped across a fire mantle are perfect to weave throughout your display.
If you’re short on table space, you can use a couple of table clips or even heavy stocking holders to drape the garland along the front of your table.
7) Lights
Mini lights always add a festive feel and you don’t even need access to electricity; battery-powered lights are easy to find.
Fairy lights, like the ones shown in the photo below, are perfect to add to a craft show display because they’re delicate and you don’t have to worry about bulky cords sticking out.
Alternatively, you may add battery-powered candles to your space.
8) Stockings
Use sturdy stocking holders along the front of your table and hang stockings from them or use another sturdy fixture to hang a stocking from. You may even be able to stuff your stocking and lean it against a fixture if you don’t have hanging space.
Stuff stockings with tissue paper so they look nice and full, and prop a couple of your items in the top to get shoppers thinking about your products as stocking stuffers.
9) Decorations
Dig out your Christmas decorations and see what might work for your craft show display.
You can add Christmas balls to a clear vase, nutcrackers, or any other type of ornament.
Try to stick to one theme to add repetition to your display and create cohesion that makes a visual statement.
10) Scent
Although you want to be mindful of people with scent sensitivities, chances are there will be bath and body and/or candle vendors selling smelly goods, so there’s nothing wrong with using a touch of “scent marketing” in your space too.
If you have access to electricity, you can use a diffuser and a festive essential oil mix to subtly scent your space.
Alternatively, you could place a bowl of Christmas potpourri under your table, lightly spritz your tablecloth with a Christmas-themed linen spray, or even place a couple of strong-smelling Christmas candles (unlit) throughout your display.
You can get as creative as you like; you may even dress up like an elf, or Mr. or Mrs. Santa Claus, or wear an ugly Christmas sweater (depending on your brand).
These are just a few simple and relatively inexpensive display ideas you may want to try.
Please share any of your own in the comments 🙂
Hey, I’m Erin 🙂 I write about small business and craft show techniques I’ve learned from being a small business owner for almost 2 decades, selling at dozens of craft shows, and earning a diploma in Visual Communication Design. I hope you find my advice helpful!
Love all these ideas!! Anything helps to draw people in and help them think about gifts for Christmas!
Glad you like them Pam! Thanks for reading 🙂
~Erin
Thank you for giving me the motivation and renewed excitement to up the visual appeal to my booth table. I have two holiday bazaars coming up so this article is great timing. My partner and I sell our children’s book so I think I will use the stocking idea with multiple ones along the top edge of the table and have our book sticking out of a few and a few toys in the others. Plus a garland and fairy lights!