Red & Burgundy Christmas Decorations & Baubles

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A traditional Christmas in red and burgundy

Burgundy and red Christmas decorations, shade by shade

Red and burgundy Christmas decorations make up the classic palette of the season, and this collection covers the whole span of it. At the deep end sit the darker reds: mouthblown glass in a wine-dark merlot, cranberry velvet lined with natural linen, and faux berries in burgundy. At the bright end are the reds of the old-fashioned Christmas card, painted, stitched and beaded onto baubles and little figures.

The two ends behave differently in a room. Burgundy is a quiet, grown-up red. It recedes a little, reads as depth rather than colour, and sits comfortably beside oak, stone and soft neutral walls. Bright red does the opposite. It comes forward, catches the eye from across the room and brings the kind of cheer most of us remember from childhood.

Much of the range sits somewhere in between, and a good deal of it pairs red with white, which lightens the scheme and stops a red tree from feeling heavy. Because the shades vary from piece to piece rather than matching exactly, the collection is made to be mixed: deeper and brighter reds together read as warmth and richness, where a single flat red can look like it all came from one box.

Red and burgundy baubles and tree decorations

Red baubles here come in two kinds, and they do different jobs on the tree. The glass baubles are sold in matching sets in one deep red, in round and teardrop shapes, so they set the base colour. A few sets of burgundy baubles spread through the branches give a consistent wash of red that holds everything else together. The papier-mâché baubles are sold one at a time, each with its own hand-painted design. They are the ones people lean in to look at.

Between them sit the red Christmas tree decorations that are not baubles at all: hand-stitched felt figures and hand-beaded wool pieces, including a small red version of the Neptune van. Their flat, characterful shapes break up the rounds of the baubles and give a red tree a sense of story.

A simple way to build the tree is to start with the burgundy glass for colour, then add the painted and stitched pieces gradually over the years. A scheme collected like this keeps growing without ever losing its thread, because the colour does the work of tying old and new pieces together.

Red beyond the Christmas tree

Red carries well away from the tree, which is why this collection reaches further than baubles. Velvet and striped cotton stockings bring it to the fireplace, and a red-and-white striped bow can top the tree or be tied to a bannister.

Faux foliage brings red in more gently, through berries set among sage leaves and pinecones, in a wreath, a swag and a pre-lit garland. Used together, they let one colour run from the hallway to the sitting room, so the tree feels part of the house rather than apart from it. For more designs, see our Christmas wreaths and garlands and our Christmas stockings and sacks.

Red & burgundy Christmas decorations FAQ's

Choose by the light in the room. Our design director, Fred, points out that in a brightly lit room, red can become quite a statement, while a softer red suits darker spaces such as a study, a snug or a more formal dining room. On a tree beside a large window, bright painted red baubles hold their own by day without tiring the eye. In a low-lit sitting room, burgundy baubles in deep merlot glass tend to look richer, glowing rather than shouting once the lamps are on. Many trees use both, with burgundy as the base and brighter reds added where the light falls.

Creamy white and tones close to red itself. Fred's advice is to avoid very bright or neon colours, which clash with red and overwhelm it, and to pair it instead with a soft, creamy white for balance, or with neighbouring shades such as a pale pink or a darker red for a warmer palette. On the tree, that might mean burgundy glass among pieces from our white and cream Christmas decorations, or deep reds layered with brighter ones for a tonal scheme. Natural greens sit well with red too, which is why the red wreath, swag and garland set their berries among sage leaves and pinecones rather than tinsel or glitter.

Treat the white as part of the red scheme rather than a second colour. Red and white Christmas decorations work because the white lifts the red, and many pieces in this collection do that within a single design. Hand-painted baubles carry red pinstripes, radial stripes and optic swirls, others set holly and mistletoe on a white ground, and the striped cotton bows and stockings take the same look to the bannister and the fireplace. Spread the striped pieces evenly around the tree rather than grouping them, then let solid red and burgundy fill the spaces between. The pattern then reads as rhythm across the whole tree rather than as clutter in one corner.

Warm white lights suit red and burgundy decorations best. A warm glow deepens burgundy and merlot, and softens bright red so it reads as cosy rather than sharp, while cooler white light can make the same reds look pink or harsh. It is one reason our pre-lit trees are lit in warm white, and why the red garland in this collection uses hand-wrapped LEDs with a soft glow. If your tree leans to deep burgundy glass, keep the lights generous so the darker shades do not disappear into the branches. If it leans to bright red and white, a gentler string lets the pattern show.