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Decorating for the Holidays
By Inspriational Interiors: Ann Gill

So, you’re standing in the middle of the room, making that 360 degree assessment of what things look like these days. The cool air and autumn temperatures encourage South Texans to consider the few months ahead. Panic attacks and a small case of the shingles aside, think clearly, and let’s make a plan for Christmas 2011!

The first decision is simple. Choose favorite, comfortable colors. They could be showing themselves in your room right now with that perfect upholstery, fabulous wall paint, or the handsome new bamboo blinds hung last summer. If the flooring is Saltillo tile, select a soft palette of bronze, iron, clay, and dusty greens. The brick fireplace might be gray leading to promote pewter, dusty greens and reds.

Reincarnate items by mixing things differently. Decorating for the Season is personal and pleasurable. Perhaps you’re like most of us with “something old, something new, something inherited, something you’d like to be through.” Pass along items that no longer provide sparks of excitement and head to cabinets for a rediscovery of past purchases.

Remove clutter that has become a little too comfortable in the room. Think of alternate uses for things you already own. Remember, you bought those things because you liked them. Go “pearl diving” in your closets and drawers.

Find the pleasure of creating a new style from old treasures! Decorating for the Holidays, or any other time, should always start at home. Find the platters, pieces of crystal, and silver objects (no need to polish anymore- tarnish looks good as a rustic finish!) that have spent too many years behind closed doors. Resurrect “old friends” purchased on past trips and travels stored on impossibly high shelves.

There are wonderful woven baskets, urns, and cachepots hiding in storage rooms reserved for outdoor use; bring them inside this year. Purchase natural decorations such as fresh greenery, nuts, and pinecones. Buy inexpensive paper-white narcissus or Amaryllis bulbs from the discount stores early in November and plant them in a lovely tureen or bowl. Top the bulbs with fresh moss and watch tender shafts of fresh growth shoot upwards in a few short weeks. Both of these flowers grow and bloom quickly and look fabulous by the time Santa shimmies down the chimney.

Send a warm greeting before guests arrive by decorating front doors with fresh wreaths. Place tall rosemary topiary trees in pots on either side custom lead glass doors. Stair step a level down and add two chunky iron urns filled with moss and topped with gazing balls.

Layer the entrance using varying heights. Appropriate a child’s wagon, cart, or sleigh loaded with baskets of cinnamon infused pinecones, shatter proof Christmas balls, greenery, and lanterns.

Remember to use generous amounts of fabulous double-face ribbon! Candles in the window have long been a sign of welcome; use three or five of them in vintage glass stemware on window sills near the entrance. The flicker of light through cut glass casts a romantic glow and brings elegance to the simplest votive.

Create a vignette on your entry table or chest by grouping an arrangement of Christmas cards (use several toast racks or letter holders from the office supply stores) resting on books. Add a trio of chubby pillar candles that resemble birch skin or bark on a charger. Use lifts to achieve different levels. Combine several complimentary bowls or tea cups holding cinnamon sticks, anise stars, or whole cloves to welcome friends with the aroma of spices. “It’s about the mix and not the match,” says famed interior designer Charles Faudree.

Lay a large silver or woven tray to corral accessories on your coffee table or oversized ottoman. Discover the beauty of vintage or attractive hardback books stacked with your china or pottery platter on top holding several sizes of colorful hand painted balls. Place small ornaments under a glass cloche (dome) on the tray aside the books. Add a few sprigs of evergreen bound by a soft ribbon and the look is complete.

Gather bottles of selected wines sporting attractive labels on a side table with glasses and corkscrew standing by for spontaneous guests who arrive.

Hang a living wreath above the fireplace; the scent will bring back childhood memories. Choose pomegranates, apples, and pears to fill matching glass urns you might have stationed on the mantel. Or use a champagne bucket to house these fruits and center on the mantel instead. Make your home naturally festive. Fresh, plump cranberries poured into several footed clear vases enhance the arrangement.

For the best stockings, stuff fanciful jester’s socks (upturned toe required) with fruits, nuts, and candy allowing boxwood trimmings and ribbon to spill out the top. Fat pillars (I like the non -burning LED variety) join in the union to create a pleasant mix above the fire.

In your kitchen, group several items on the island or bar by using a shallow roasting pan as the container. Tie a bow with a small pine branch attached to each handle. Take colorful candy canes and fill a tall, favorite crystal champagne flute allowing the curved tops of the sweets to overflow the rim. A cake stand makes a wonderful pedestal to uplift a delicious panettone packaged in an attractive box. Use your sugar bowl and creamer to hold cherry sours or chocolate covered coffee beans. Combined inside the roasting pan, these selections take on a special synergy that makes Christm-magic.

Let an idle teapot house dessert forks for spontaneous cake sampling. One of the favorite things I enjoy in my own kitchen is an antique scale; I fill the brass bowl with glittering ornaments. Nest candles atop a rustic wooden box or in lanterns resting on the counter; it all creates an inviting mood in everyone’s favorite gathering spot-the kitchen.

Dress your everyday items in holiday fashion. Using familiar pieces in a new way makes comfortable and simple change that people find warmly inviting.

Above all, remember to find love, happiness, and peace in what you do for the Holidays. It is a time to appreciate the generosity our Season offers through friendship and family gatherings. Blessings!