Holiday decorating is never complete without the finishing touch: a wreath (or several) on your home’s front door or windows! But whether you’re hanging only one wreath or several, it’s just as important to know how to hang a wreath as it is to know which wreath or decoration is best for your style!

The catch? There are five different ways to hang wreaths on exterior windows or doors. Several will even work for adding a wreath over your garage door. Let us take you through each, one by one, so you know which way is ideal for your property.

What is the best way to hang a wreath?

When it comes to hanging a Christmas wreath, the last thing you want to do is break out your hammer and nails. Poking a hole in your front door is a surefire way to start a draft, expose your door to long-term damage, and reduce the property value of your home overall. Of course, you can’t exactly nail a wreath to your window, either!

Instead, the best way to hang a wreath is with removable hooks or other attachable materials. Hooks, strings, ribbons, and other implements are excellent solutions because they don’t adversely affect the surface or integrity of your target door or window, but they’ll still get the job done and hold up your wreath of choice all season long.

Before we dive into those specific solutions, however, you need to take two preemptive steps.

Weigh your wreath

First, you’ll want to weigh your wreath. Why?

Certain wreath-hanging solutions can only hold items up to a certain weight. As an example, cheap plastic hooks might only be able to reliably hold a few ounces before collapsing or losing their surface adhesion.

With that in mind, use a scale to weigh your wreath or check the product details of a new wreath you just purchased. Remember, simple wreaths with basic greenery and ribbons will weigh less than more complex, crafty Christmas wreaths with ornaments or other baubles.

Consider the door or window’s surface and exposure

Second, you should think about the surface of the door or window that you want to decorate with a Christmas wreath. Different surface materials might be better suited to different hooks or hanging solutions.

Need an example? Many adhesive hooks stick better to drywall or glass than they do to certain laminated surfaces. Always check to see what a given hook or hanging tool best fits before trusting it to hold up your wreath throughout the winter season! Otherwise, you might walk outside to find your cherished Christmas wreath on the ground after an unlucky fall.

Similarly, different wreath materials will hold up to different amounts of exposure to the elements. Use your hardier wreaths on any windows without overhangs, and place more delicate wreaths behind the protective layer of a storm door so they’re visible but not susceptible to damage.

Choose your hanging solution

Once you weigh your wreath and consider the door or window surface, it’s time to decide how to hang that wreath. Most homeowners should be able to rely on at least one of five different options.

Use a clear suction cup hook

Clear suction hooks are popular choices since they’re extremely affordable at grocery and home improvement stores (usually costing just a couple of bucks), and they’re easy to attach. All you have to do is push the clear suction cup on the back of the hook against your door or window frame of choice, then hang your wreath. Presto!

The downside? Clear suction hooks are far from durable, and they might not be the best for extremely cold climates. Additionally, you can’t count on these hooks to keep heavier Christmas wreaths up for very long.

Try a magnetic hook

You can alternatively opt for magnetic hooks, which work perfectly with metal doors. As you might guess from the name, a magnetic hook attaches straight to the metal surface of your front door – then, all you have to do is hang your wreath on the hook and call it a day.

To make your Christmas wreath look a little more festive, you can also attach a magnetic hook to your metal door and hang a piece of ribbon from the hook a few inches down its length. Tie a knot with a ribbon around the top of the wreath, then take a look. This could be a great way to hang a wreath and add a bit of extra color to a steel entryway.

Hang your wreath with a ribbon

If you like the ribbon idea but don’t want to use a magnetic hook, you’re in luck. You can still suspend your holiday wreath from the top of your door with a ribbon alone. To do this:

• Cut a section of satin red or green ribbon that’s long enough to hang your wreath however high you choose
• Then, loop the ribbon around the back of your wreath and join the ends together. Fold them over about one-half of an inch to make sure the setup is secure
• All that’s left is to secure your ribbon to the top edge of your door with thumbtacks

Attach self-adhesive strips

Self-adhesive strips are stellar tools to hang wreaths on windows or doors that you want to be very careful about damaging. They have sticky backs that, when pressed, form tight seals that should hold up throughout the season.

The trick comes with hanging a wreath on the strips. In our opinion, the best way to use self-adhesive strips to hang a wreath is to attach the strips first, then attach a traditional hanger on the strips in place of nails. This wreath-hanging strategy requires a bit of extra setup, but it's well worth it thanks to its reliability.

Use a wreath hanger

Our last recommendation for how to hang a wreath on a window or door is to simply purchase a dedicated wreath hanger. Wreath hangers can slide over the top of a front door — or the tops of certain windows if they open from the top.

Once the hanger is in place, you can slide your wreath onto the hanger and enjoy your new festive decoration. This is a particularly good choice for double-hung windows or other home fixtures that might not accept other wreath-hanging mechanisms.

Similarly, there are special hooks for hanging wreaths on vinyl siding. These are a great option if you have a large swath of siding that you want to give festive cheer without incurring damage, and they can easily be found at your local hardware store.

No matter what front door or windows you have – or what kind of wreath you want to hang – one of the above five methods should be just right for your needs. Of course, no wreath will fully mask a drafty door or cracked window, so it might be wise to look into replacements prior to decorating.

That’s where Window World can help. Our showroom specialists can connect you to the perfect door or new windows for your home’s aesthetic and your budget. Get in touch today to learn more!