How do you hang Christmas decorations without damaging walls?

Use adhesive hooks within their weight limit on smooth, painted walls, and remove them properly. 3M rates its clear Command hooks at 1 lb (small), 2 lb (medium) and 4 lb (large), says paint must be cured for at least 7 days, and says to pull the tab straight down slowly along the wall rather than toward you. They are not recommended for wallpaper, brick, rough concrete or heavily textured walls.

Can painter's tape stay on the wall all December?

Most can't. ScotchBlue Original is rated to remove cleanly for up to 14 days. FrogTape rates its Pro Grade Blue at 14 days, Multi-Surface at 21 days and Delicate Surface at 60 days. For decorations up from early December to early January, about five weeks, only the 60-day rating covers it.

How do you get candle wax off a wood table?

University of Georgia Extension's method: hold an ice cube in a plastic bag against the wax to harden it, gently scrape it off with a dull knife or plastic card, remove the rest with mineral spirits or naphtha, then buff the wood with a chamois.

How far should decorations be from a space heater?

At least 3 feet. The CPSC says to keep space heaters at least three feet away from furniture, bedding and curtains, and the NFPA says at least 3 feet from anything that can burn. That includes tree skirts, garlands and wrapped presents.

Can a landlord charge for holes from Christmas decorations?

It depends on your state and on what counts as damage. In California, for example, the courts' self-help guide says a landlord can deduct for repairing damage other than normal wear and tear, and must return the deposit or an itemized statement within 21 days. Adhesive hooks removed correctly, which 3M says are designed to remove cleanly, avoid the question.

Christmas Decor Inside the House Without Damage

The short answer: most damage from Christmas decorating comes from four things: hooks overloaded or pulled off wrong, tape left up longer than it's rated for, water and wax, and decorations too close to heat. Weigh what you hang (clear adhesive hooks are rated 1, 2 or 4 pounds by size), wait 7 days after painting, pull strips straight down, slowly, and use tape rated for the whole season: most painter's tape is rated for 14 to 21 days, and December to Twelfth Night is about 36. Keep everything 3 feet from space heaters. Wax and water rings in January are fixable if you know the method.

Whether you rent or own, January is when the decorating bill arrives: the chip of paint that came away with a hook, the tape that left a sticky rectangle, the pale ring on the hall table, the wax on the rug. None of it is inevitable. Every product involved has a rating on the pack or the maker's website, and most damage happens when the decoration stays up longer, weighs more or sits on a different surface than that rating allows.

This guide covers the inside of the house. The mantel has its own rules for garland and stocking holders, in our Christmas mantel guide; outside, clips and magnets are in the outdoor decorations guide.

Every Surface, and the Safe Way to Decorate It

Surface	Safe way	Avoid
Smooth painted wall	Adhesive hooks within their limit	Hooks on paint under 7 days old; overloading
Wallpaper	Hang from picture rails, shelves or door tops	Adhesive hooks and tape
Brick, stone, textured plaster	Freestanding decor; clips made for the surface	Adhesive strips (they don't bond)
Wood trim and doors	Over-door hooks, ribbon ties	Nails, tape left for weeks
Stair rail	Garland on the outside of the balusters	Wrapping the top of the rail
Wood floor	Felt pads, a waterproof tray under the tree	Dragging furniture, wet stands
Wood tables	Trays and felt under vases and candles	Wet vases and candles on bare wood

Walls: Hooks, Strips and Tape

Fireplace mantel with a garland and warm-white string lights, a wreath hung on the wall above and a small tree at one end

Weigh it first. 3M rates its clear Command hooks at 1 pound for the small, 2 pounds for the medium and 4 pounds for the large. A fresh wreath or a lit garland can easily go past the smaller ratings, and the only way to know is to put it on a kitchen or bathroom scale. Our own rule: choose the hook one size above the weight, because wet greenery gets heavier.

The wall has to be right. From 3M's Command FAQ:

Painted walls work "when the paint is fully cured for at least 7 days, clean, smooth, and in good condition." Painted the living room for the holidays? Hang nothing on it for a week.
The products "are not recommended for wallpaper, brick, or rough concrete," or for "heavily textured surfaces because the adhesive may not make full contact."
When a strip takes paint with it, 3M's explanation is that "the paint was weak, old, uncured, damaged, or … the strip was pulled out instead of straight down during removal."

Take them down the right way. This is where most damage happens, in the hurry of January. Hold the hook, then "pull the tab straight down slowly along the wall. Do not pull the strip toward you." If the tab breaks, 3M suggests sawing through the remaining strip with dental floss or string, or warming the base with a hair dryer to soften the adhesive.

For renters, 3M says its products "are a good option for many rental walls because they are designed to hold strongly and remove cleanly," which holds only within the weight, the surface and the removal method above.

Tape: check the days. Painter's tape has a clean-removal rating in days, and a season of Christmas decorating outlasts most of them. ScotchBlue Original is rated to remove cleanly for up to 14 days. FrogTape's FAQ lists its lines:

Tape	Clean removal for up to	Covers Dec 1 to Jan 6?
FrogTape Pro Grade Orange	3 days	No
ScotchBlue Original, FrogTape Pro Grade Blue	14 days	No
FrogTape Multi-Surface	21 days	No
FrogTape Delicate Surface	60 days	Yes

From the first of December to Twelfth Night is 36 days. If tape is holding lights along a window frame or cards on a door, either use a product rated past that or plan to redo it halfway. FrogTape also advises waiting at least 24 hours before putting Delicate Surface on fresh paint, and 7 days before mounting its adhesive hooks. When it comes off, ScotchBlue's removal advice: pull it back on itself at 45 degrees, and at 90 degrees if adhesive stays on the surface.

Stair Rails: Decorate the Side, Not the Grip

A garland wound thickly around a handrail is the classic picture, and it turns the one thing you grab when you slip into something you can't grip. The federal accessibility standards set a graspable round handrail at 1¼ to 2 inches in diameter and explain why continuity matters: people benefit from a gripping surface they can reach for "particularly as the user senses a loss of equilibrium or begins to fall." Those standards are written for public buildings, but the point carries straight into a house with guests in socks.

So: run the garland along the outside of the balusters, tied with ribbon or soft garden wire, or hang it in swags below the rail. Keep the top of the rail bare, and keep lights and cords off the treads.

Floors and Furniture

Moving the sofa to make room for a tree is how floors get scratched. The National Wood Flooring Association's prevention advice is to put floor protector pads on the legs of any furniture that touches the floor, and to keep the house between 60 and 80°F and 30 to 50 percent humidity year-round to limit gapping and cupping. Lift furniture when you move it; don't drag it.

Under a real tree, the risk is water. A stand that holds the amount a tree needs (the numbers are in our Christmas tree guide) gets topped up every day by someone in a hurry. Our advice: a waterproof tray or boot mat under the stand, with the tree skirt over it, and a towel laid down for each refill. Check under the tray once a week; a slow leak shows up there before it shows up in the floor.

Heat: Three Feet From Heaters

In December, decorations and heaters end up in the same rooms. The CPSC's space heater rule: "Keep space heaters at least three feet away from furniture, bedding, and curtains." The NFPA's heating safety page says at least 3 feet from anything that can burn, which includes the tree skirt, garland on a side table and wrapped presents on the floor. If the heater has to be in the room with the tree, it goes on the other side of the room. The same distance applies at the fireplace, covered in our mantel guide.

Candles: Soot and Wax

Dining table set for Christmas with tall white taper candles in brass holders along a greenery runner, red and white place settings — Tall tapers down a runner of greenery look festive and drip onto the tablecloth. Trim the wicks and keep them away from the greens.

Soot. The black mark above a candle comes from the flame, not the wax. The National Candle Association's burning guide says to trim the wick to ¼ inch before every lighting, because "wicks that are left long or crooked can cause uneven burning, dripping, flaring and sooting." Burn candles no longer than four hours at a time and let them cool two hours before relighting. And keep them out of drafts: fans, air vents, open windows and busy doorways, because "moving air can disturb the flame, resulting in those pesky black marks."

Wax. University of Georgia Extension's wax removal guide starts every method the same way: an ice cube in a plastic bag held against the wax until it hardens. Then:

Wood furniture and floors: scrape gently with a dull knife, spoon or plastic card, remove what's left with mineral spirits or naphtha, and buff with a chamois.
Carpet: scrape, lay several layers of paper towel over it, and press with a warm iron, "not hot," moving to a clean patch of towel as the wax soaks in.
Painted walls and tile: scrape, then wipe with washing soda or detergent in water. "Do not use soap."
Fabric: scrape, then press between white paper towels with a warm iron from the back.

For white water rings on a wood table, the iron-and-cloth method is in our coffee table guide. Candle placement in the bedroom, where the fire data is starkest, is in our Christmas bedroom guide.

The January Checklist

Hooks: hold the base, pull the tab straight down, slowly. Broken tab: dental floss or a hair dryer.
Tape: off at 45 degrees; 90 if it leaves adhesive.
Walls: look where every hook was. A mark caught now is easier to clean or touch up than one found at move-out.
Floors: lift the tree tray, dry underneath, check the boards.
Wax: ice cube first, whatever the surface.
Textiles: throws and cushion covers washed before storage, per their labels.

Living room sofa layered with red and white checked throws and knitted blankets, a small lit tree and a garland on the mantel behind

Inside the House, by Style

Cottage: checked throws and cushion covers, a wreath on an over-door hook, garland along the stair balusters with red ribbon ties.
Timeless: a boxwood wreath on each window, hung from suction cups or ribbon over the top of the sash, nothing taped.
Coastal: white string lights on a curtain rod rather than taped to the frame, driftwood garland on the bookshelf.
Mediterranean: dried citrus and olive garland on a shelf edge, terracotta pots of rosemary instead of taped-up greenery.
Vintage-modern: cards on a string between two picture-rail hooks, a ceramic tree on the sideboard with felt underneath.

The Short Version

Hooks: weigh the decoration; clear hooks hold 1, 2 or 4 pounds. Paint must be 7 days cured. Not on wallpaper, brick or heavy texture.
Removal: pull straight down, slowly. Never toward you.
Tape: most is rated 14 to 21 days; the season is about 36. Only a 60-day tape covers it.
Stair rail: garland on the outside of the balusters; the top of the rail stays grippable.
Floors: felt pads, lift don't drag, a waterproof tray under the tree stand.
Heat: 3 feet from space heaters for anything that burns.
Candles: wick at ¼ inch, four hours max, no drafts. Wax: ice cube, scrape, then solvent or warm iron.