Have a shed that could use a little festive cheer? Here’s how to decorate with garden shed ideas for Christmas (and beyond!) that will add the perfect holiday decorating to your favorite outdoor spaces!

As you may already know, I have this little rustic garden shed out back that I like to decorate with some kind of seasonal inspiration.

My little she-shed just happens to provide the perfect outdoor focal point with exterior shed design of any kind! The building tends to mimic a tiny house, with a small deck out front, creating a warmth that makes you want to gravitate nearby and use as a reading nook in the summer months.

It’s also served as a potting shed, with a bench running across the front.

THIS POST shares 20+ inexpensive ways to decorate your shed with fun and easy features to copy!

However when Christmas rolls around, the surroundings become extra special! Here’s a couple of past Christmas-themes:

Faux plank skis on a winter shed

Shed company shed decorating

Fun, right?! Simple touches can add a theme instantly!

So as luck would have it, we were about to get a new snowfall in a matter of a couple of days. Right before that happened, I quickly did some major fall cleanup around the shed and flowerbeds in anticipation for new fallen snow.

Then I added some quick garden shed ideas that were simple and easy for Christmas!

Gathering some evergreen branches to start, along with a few of my favourite vintage finds, here’s this year’s garden shed ideas for Christmas and how to come up with a theme each given season:

How to create garden shed ideas for Christmas

 

1. Start with a theme.

 

As a whole, this little rustic garden shed resembles a little cabin buried deep in the woods! So thinking cabin, what would one use a cabin for?

How about a ski chalet?

So starting with skis was the key. However, let’s back up a moment to a new addition to the shed that was added this summer.

View: easy window box planters for a garden shed

Earlier this year, these easy DIY window box planters were added to the shed to match the wood siding, along with some newfound stumps and mossy planters and such. It was a charming look that really brought out all things garden.

 

Leaving the window boxes up, I removed the garden tools and some planters, then started this year’s Christmas shed with painted skis in the main supporting role.

The skis tell a story. Imagine someone coming off the hills after a fun day skiing the slopes! What would they do upon arriving at the ski cabin?

They’d likely remove their skis, and lean them by the front door. Then flicker on a lantern, perhaps chop a little firewood, then have a seat in front of the fire-pit and enjoy a hot beverage.

So let’s expand on the story through decor!

2. Add accessories to support the main theme.

 

The wood stumps chime in with the wood chopping perfectly. So the handy window box offered an extra shelf to add one more for a little height.

Since we’re deep in the forest, evergreen branches became the perfect garland lining the roofline of the shed.

Shed decorating accessory ideas:

 

• Any DIY signs that chime in with your theme.
• Wreaths
• Skis
• Snowshoes
• Ornaments
• Christmas lights
• Lanterns
• Any antiques that chime in

View Christmas sweater stencil HERE

How the skis were painted:

 

1. Paint skis with Fusion’s Bayberry.
2. Stencil with a Christmas Sweater stencil in Fusion’s Casement.

Get 10% HERE on any online Fusion products!

HERE is how the skis were shown in a Christmas kitchen tour.

 

3. Add pops of colour.

 

Then thoughts of colour enter. What could make these elements pop? The smallest punches of red through an antique train red lantern and red ornaments give it just enough colour.

And I couldn’t resist on bringing in white glittery ornaments that resembled snowballs!

The two planters attached to the left side of the shed also became display shelves, holding evergreen branches, pinecones and red and white Christmas ornaments. With one fun addition below…

Since it’s the perfect season for fire-pits outdoors, a makeshift faux fire-pit was assembled on the shed’s front porch, with an old cooking pot sitting on top of an old outdoor cooker frame, stacked with firewood down below.

View how the shed porch or patio was made with pallets HERE

4. Bring in as many natural elements as possible.

 

Decorations and props are great! But one other big thing is bringing in natural elements you’d find outdoors. And in this case, the first thing you see are the twiggy grapevine branches that cover the shed roof.

So that was easy! Allowing the grapevine to grow over the roof leaves quite an impressive woodsy canopy after the leaves fall off.

However there’s lots of other natural elements at play as well.

Natural element ideas:

 

• Evergreen branches or evergreen garland
• Pinecones
• Snow (spray if you don’t get the real thing!)
• Holly leaves with berries
• Evergreen wreath

No need to buy garland when you can make your own! And that’s as simple as scavenging along the road near a large row of evergreen trees and cleaning up the road. I find tons of evergreen branches and pinecones with this method.

The other window box planter on the side of the shed was all too perfect to house a large evergreen branch, decorated with red and white ornaments peeking out through the snow.

As for the inside of the shed, the entire interior of the backyard shed living space actually holds firewood. So it’s essentially a wood shed. As a nod towards the fire burning season, an antique saw decorates the outside of the shed, with an antique red wheelbarrow filled with fire logs right below it, adding to the rustic charm.

5. Add mystic to the inside if you can!

 

Since the inside of my shed stores firewood, I haven’t figured out how to add ambiance through the windows yet. I’m going to keep my eyes open for perhaps solar window candles, solar Christmas lights or something similar.

So until then, I’ll suggest to add something, even if I haven’t yet, because I think seeing glowing windows outdoors during a winters’ night would be an epic addition! As long as it’s safe to be on at night unattended of course.

So I’m calling this little Christmas shed decorating complete… which will likely be tweaked right after Christmas as well, so stay tuned!

How to decorate with garden shed ideas for any season:

 

1. Decide on a theme. In this case, it started with green skis. Another year it was antique sleds.
2. Add accessories to support the main theme.
3. Add pops of colour to bring your shed to life. In this case, I chose red and green.
4. Bring in as many natural elements as possible. This shed benefited from the grapevines, pinecones, evergreen branches, and a perfectly timed snowfall for the photoshoot.

This little storage shed (or should I call it playhouse…) always offers such a relaxing, farmhouse cottage vibe with most any accents.  But I’ll admit, the shed feel becomes even more enchanting when Christmas rolls around! 

Do you decorate your backyard shed for Christmas too? What small shed plans will you come up with for yours?

Other shed decorating ideas:

 

Faux plank skis for a winter chalet shed

Make an antique sled sign

Fall shed decorating with signs, window boxes and pumpkins!

How to build 20+ inexpensive garden shed ideas to enhance your own HERE

Visit how this shed started as a greenhouse HERE

Check out the new and improved shed rebuild series HERE (includes barn doors, shingles and framing)

Check out all the most current garden shed projects HERE