Rockefeller Center Christmas: 13 Big City Decor Ideas That Bring New York Magic Home
Rockefeller Center Christmas magic is something millions of people dream about seeing in person at least once. The giant tree, the glowing angels, the skaters circling the rink below, it all feels like a movie set in the middle of New York City. Every year the tree arrives in November and the lighting airs live to millions of homes, and clips of it pull hundreds of thousands of views. You do not need a plane ticket to bring that feeling home. These 13 easy ideas borrow the best parts of the big city look, from a glittering star topper to a mini ice rink on your coffee table. Each one comes with a short supply list and three simple steps. Ready to bring a little New York sparkle to your living room..
The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Story
The tradition started small. In 1931, during the Depression, construction workers building Rockefeller Center put up a 20 foot balsam fir and decorated it themselves. Two years later, in 1933, the official tree went up, and it has been a national tradition every year since. Today the tree is usually a Norway spruce between 69 and 100 feet tall, wrapped in about 50,000 multicolored LED lights. Since 2007, the tree is milled into lumber after the season and donated to Habitat for Humanity to help build homes. That is a lovely story to share while you decorate your own..
You will need: A sense of wonder, a free afternoon and a little holiday music playing in the background.
How to make it: 1. Pick three or four ideas from this list that fit your space. 2. Gather supplies from the dollar store and craft store. 3. Set aside one cozy evening to make them together.
A Rockefeller Center Christmas Star Topper
Since 2018, the big tree has been crowned with a crystal star that has 70 spikes and three million crystals, designed by architect Daniel Libeskind. Yours can be made from cardboard. Draw a big star with long spikes, cut two layers and glue small cardboard cones on the tips for a 3D look. Paint it gold, then cover it in glue and gold glitter. Attach it to the tree with zip ties and a paper towel tube on the back. It will catch the light from every corner of the room. How big will you make yours?
You will need: Large cardboard box, pencil, craft knife (adult use), hot glue (adult help), gold paint, gold glitter, a paper towel tube, zip ties.
How to make it: 1. An adult cuts two big stars and small cones from cardboard. 2. Glue the layers and cones together, then paint and glitter it. 3. Glue the tube on the back and zip tie it to the top of the tree.
Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lights at Home
The famous tree skips fancy ornaments and lets the lights do the work. You can copy that look with big old fashioned multicolor LED bulbs, the C9 style that looks like the lights from your childhood. Wrap them deep inside the branches first, then along the tips, so the tree glows from within. Use more strands than you think you need. A tree covered only in colored lights looks bold, cheerful and very New York. LED bulbs stay cool to the touch and use far less power. Will you go all color or mix in a few white lights?
You will need: A real or artificial tree, five to eight strands of multicolor LED C9 bulbs, an extension cord with a timer.
How to make it: 1. Start at the trunk and wrap lights deep inside the branches. 2. Add a second layer along the outer tips. 3. Plug into a timer so it glows every evening.
Toy Soldier Guards at the Front Door
Giant toy soldiers are part of the Rockefeller Center Christmas scene every December, and they make a front door look grand. Make your own from two tall pieces of scrap wood or two cardboard concrete forms. Paint a red jacket, white pants, black boots and a tall black hat, then add gold buttons and a gold belt. Set one on each side of the door with a garland above. They look great inside an entryway too. For more toy soldier and nutcracker ideas, see our Nutcracker Christmas Decor. Who in your family would love to help paint them?
You will need: Two tall wood posts or cardboard tubes, outdoor paint in red, white, black and gold, a foam ball for the head, wood glue, clear sealer.
How to make it: 1. Glue a foam ball or round wood piece on top of each post. 2. Paint the uniform in sections and let each color dry. 3. Seal them and stand one on each side of the door.
Rockefeller Center Christmas Rink on a Mirror Tray
A skating rink opened below the tree in 1936, and it is still one of the most loved winter spots in the world. You can make a tiny version on your coffee table. Set a round mirror tray down as the ice, ring the edge with mini bottle brush trees and fake snow, then add little skater figurines. A small gold figure in the middle nods to the famous statue above the real rink. Kids love moving the skaters around. It is the cutest Rockefeller Center Christmas idea for a small space. Do you have a mirror tray hiding in a closet?
You will need: A round mirror tray, mini bottle brush trees, fake snow, small skater figurines, a small gold painted figure, battery fairy lights.
How to make it: 1. Place the mirror tray in the center of the table. 2. Ring the edge with trees, snow and fairy lights. 3. Arrange the skaters on the mirror and the gold figure in the middle.
Glowing Wire Angels Like the Channel Gardens
In 1955, artist Valerie Clarebout’s tall wire herald angels were added to the Channel Gardens in front of the tree, and they still glow there every season with their trumpets raised. You can make a smaller angel for a porch or a window. Bend a simple angel outline from thick wire, or trace one onto a cardboard backer, then wrap it with white battery fairy lights. Add a gold painted dowel as the trumpet. Hang it in a window so it glows to the street at night. Would one angel or a pair suit your home?
You will need: Thick craft wire or a large cardboard sheet, white battery fairy lights, a gold painted dowel, zip ties, clear fishing line.
How to make it: 1. Bend or trace a simple angel shape with wings. 2. Wrap it tightly with fairy lights and zip tie the dowel on as a trumpet. 3. Hang it in a window with fishing line.
City Skyline Mantel Garland
Bring the whole New York skyline, the backdrop of every Rockefeller Center Christmas, to your fireplace. Cut a long strip of black cardstock into a row of skyscrapers in different heights, with a few tiny windows cut out. Tape warm white battery fairy lights behind it so the windows glow. Lay evergreen garland in front along the mantel. In the evening it looks like you are looking out at the city at night. It is a fun project for anyone who loves the big city, and it costs only a few dollars. Which building would you put in the middle?
You will need: Black cardstock, a pencil, scissors or a craft knife (adult use), tape, warm white battery fairy lights, evergreen garland.
How to make it: 1. Draw a skyline of tall buildings along the cardstock and cut it out. 2. Cut small windows and tape lights behind them. 3. Stand it on the mantel behind the garland.
Rockefeller Center Christmas Ornaments in Red and Gold
Big city decor is all about scale, and nothing says that like giant ornaments. Look for oversized shatterproof balls at the dollar store or craft store, or make them by painting large foam or plastic balls red and gold. Group three in a corner on the floor, hang a few from the ceiling with fishing line or tuck them under the tree. Mixing shiny, matte and glitter finishes makes them look expensive. They give any room the feel of a grand hotel lobby. Where would your biggest one go?
You will need: Large shatterproof ornaments or big plastic balls, red and gold paint, glitter, ribbon, fishing line, ceiling hooks.
How to make it: 1. Paint plain balls red or gold and add glitter to some. 2. Tie ribbon loops to the tops. 3. Group some on the floor and hang others from the ceiling.
Department Store Style Window Display
Strolling past the holiday windows on Fifth Avenue is part of every New York Christmas trip. Turn your own front window into a mini display for the neighbors. Set a small decorated tree, a toy train, a teddy bear and a stack of wrapped boxes on a table pushed up to the window. Add fake snow along the bottom and warm battery lights around the frame. Leave a lamp on in the evening so the scene glows from the street. It is the Rockefeller Center Christmas look your neighbors will enjoy too. What toys could you pull from the attic?
You will need: A small table, a mini tree, a toy train, a teddy bear, empty boxes wrapped in paper, fake snow, battery lights.
How to make it: 1. Push a small table against the window. 2. Arrange the tree, toys and boxes at different heights. 3. Add fake snow and frame the window with lights.
Hot Cocoa Skating Party Station
After a cold afternoon of skating, nothing beats a mug of cocoa, and it is the coziest Rockefeller Center Christmas tradition to copy. Set up a skating party station on a kitchen counter or a cart with a pot of cocoa, mugs, jars of marshmallows and peppermint sticks. Hang a pair of vintage ice skates on the wall above with a few evergreen branches. Thrift stores sell old skates for a few dollars. Guests can make their own mug while they talk about their best New York memories. It is a sweet way to host a holiday movie night. What would you add to your cocoa bar?
You will need: A tray or cart, a pot or slow cooker of cocoa, mugs, jars, marshmallows, peppermint sticks, vintage ice skates, evergreen branches.
How to make it: 1. Set the cocoa and mugs at one end of the counter. 2. Fill jars with toppings and line them up. 3. Hang the skates above with a few branches.
A Mini Tree Wrapped in a Giant Red Bow
Every year, the big tree travels into the city on a flatbed truck, wrapped and ready to be raised. Fans of Rockefeller Center Christmas love to copy the moment with a small potted tree and a huge red bow. Wrap a wide red satin ribbon around the middle of a little tree and tie a big bow in front. Set it on the porch, in the entry or beside the fireplace. It looks like a present waiting to be opened, and you can plant a live tree outside after the holidays. Would you give one as a gift too?
You will need: A small potted evergreen, wide red satin ribbon, a decorative bucket or burlap wrap.
How to make it: 1. Set the tree in a bucket or wrap the pot in burlap. 2. Wrap the ribbon around the middle of the tree. 3. Tie a big bow with long tails in front.
Paper Snowflake Window Wall
Cover a big window in paper snowflakes and your living room will feel like a snowy city apartment. Fold white printer paper or coffee filters and cut different patterns, then stick them to the glass with a dab of water and a tiny bit of dish soap, or with removable tape. Mix big and small sizes and let a few drift down the sides. It costs almost nothing and kids can join in. From the street, the snowflakes glow beautifully against your Rockefeller Center Christmas tree at night. How many can your family cut in one evening?
You will need: White printer paper or coffee filters, scissors, removable tape or a little soapy water.
How to make it: 1. Fold paper into a triangle and cut shapes along the edges. 2. Unfold and flatten each snowflake. 3. Stick them to the window from large to small.
Ice Skates Hung With Greens
End your Rockefeller Center Christmas look right at the front door. Tie a pair of vintage white ice skates together by the laces and hang them from a wreath hanger. Tuck evergreen branches, pinecones and red berries between the skates and finish with a red plaid bow. It feels like a winter afternoon at the rink and says welcome before anyone knocks. Look for old skates at thrift stores and yard sales. You can read more about the history of the tree and rink on Wikipedia. Will your skates hang on the door or by the fireplace?
You will need: A pair of vintage ice skates, an over the door hanger, evergreen branches, pinecones, faux berries, red plaid ribbon, floral wire.
How to make it: 1. Tie the skates together by the laces. 2. Wire greens, pinecones and berries between them. 3. Add a plaid bow and hang them on the door.
