Elegant Swellegant Trees

when two twin boys were young, their mom let them choose what to put on one of the trees...

and of course, boys being boys, they chose colored lights and bright colorful ornaments! 

the tree was set up every year in the family room, towering over the family activities each day of the season.

one year, this brilliant mom discovered some soft, adorable stuffed teddy bears - 

and bought a truckload of them.

they were, of course, immediately added to the tree decor!

when they boys came running in from school that year, 

they stopped in their tracks and smiled. and giggled. and laughed. 

they really loved the bears!

and so every year, before 'the boys' would come home from school on the last day before Break, 

we'd get that 'Bear Tree' up and decorated and lit just for them.

 we had a LOT of fun doing different things with the bears each year...

one year, the bears became gymnasts, 

flipping, cartwheeling, somersaulting, and hanging upside down

all over the tree above

the giggles that year were even better ;0)

another year, the bears formed a 'bear chain', holding hands and feet

to create a garland of furry cuteness swirling up the tree...

shown below

and one year, i found the perfect gift for the family...

a HUGE stuffed dog that looked just like the very live very large dogs that they owned!

the stuffed Bernese Mountain Dog was 'wrapped' up in the red velvet tree skirt and tucked next to the tree

and when the boys came home that day,

the smiles were pretty big, too!

 the tree was placed in such a way that it sat in front of this oval window, 

which faced the front entry
[you can see it in the photo in a post below, with the eight foot tall nutcracker guard]

so each year, i would find a way to put a few of the bears in position on the tree

so that they were visible through that window...

anyone coming up to the front door was treated to the bear acrobatics!

those two young men have since graduated from high school and are off to college,

and i am sure they still remember their 'Bear Tree' with smiles.

and isn't that why we do amazing things with our Holiday decor? 

for the Memories...

across the entry hall from the Bear Tree was a stately half-round wood-paneled office

with gorgeous antique furnishings,

which was home to a most elegant and regal tree...

 the white lights on the tree radiated through the windows to illuminate the front of the house

as it held some very beautiful and meaningful treasures...

this elegant tree was adorned with

gold and velvet ribbons, silk tassels, bunches of 'sugared' faux fruit, velvet poinsettias,

velvet and glass ball ornaments, gold musical instruments, dripping glass crystals and fruit,

beaded gold moroccan ornaments, gold beaded garland, and topped with a majestic mache' angel

it really was truly breathtaking

and a joy to create each year...

this wonderful family and the incredible woman at the helm of it

is actually the reason i spent seven years decorating executive homes...

she approached me and a co-worker one day at a famous Seattle nursery, 

where we were decorating trees for retail displays, 

and asked 'Can you make MY tree look like that?'

without a second's hesitation, i said 'Yes we can!' and passed her my phone number.

a few days later, we went to her beautiful home and made plans for her decor.

she was the first of some very special clients that we decorated for...

over seven years, she and her family welcomed us in to help create their Holiday memories

and in the process, we became part of the memories.

i can't thank Linda's family enough,

and Fran, or Marco & Fritzi, Karen/Penny, Cindy, and Marion - our other special clients...

and my friend Karen and my daughters B & B for working so hard each year

to help to create such wonderful memories

Swanky Black & White Holiday Decor

 in one MORE take on mixing up my basic white decor,

this time we've thrown a stark contrast into the recipe: BLACK!

so the crisp whites, warm ivories, and sparkling crystal now has a deeper side ;0)

enjoy the inspiration of this almost Hollywood-chic look,

created using everyday items combined with a few ornaments and very few greens.

it's crisp, clean, and classic...

on the chandelier, above, i loaded up clear crystal and glass ornaments, black beaded garland,

sprayed some resin crystal drops BLACK, and also found some smoky gray crystals just for fun

bringing out my mismatched collection of black and white platters, plates, and cups added to the look

even the wire mannequin in my office got into the 

'Black & White' party spirit...

and on the tree... which looks in this shot to be bare, but really isn't! 

there are a lot of white, ivory and crystal ornaments that aren't showing up from this far away...

 solid black, solid white, and black & white dotted ribbons cascade from the top, 

where a sparkling crystal snowflake sits

 those velvet-embossed ornaments AGAIN (see how many ways they work?!)

and a laser-cut Tord Boontje garland from Tar-Jay

 these are vintage medallions that have been hand-beaded. 

i have no idea what they were originally made for, but they work PERFECTLY as tree ornaments!

[i paid 50 cents each for them at a yard sale!]

 the black shape that you see is printed onto clear acetate pages. 

i bought them at the scrapbooking store, then cut them apart. 

they simply hang from a hook, adding sharp black detail on the white tree...

 ivory ornaments have our family initial drawn on with a black acrylic paint pen. 

i did each of twelve ornaments with a different font...

 dozens of long rectangular acrylic crystals from the most hideous 1970's era chandelier EVER

(we're talking Liberace in Vegas here, kids.... but it was free! )

became beautiful ornaments 

with the addition of black & white scrapbook paper glued to the flat backside.

It Takes a [Department 56] Village...

 many people collect Department 56 villages,

and  everyone has seen those 'ping pong table sized displays' of them in stores, right?

very impressive feats of visual merchandising, and entertaining, too!

but no one REALLY has that much room in their home to replicate it!

so how do you display a large collection of little houses and churches and people and trees 

...in a REAL home?

'Divide and Conquer'!

my client simply cleared off the tops of all of the tables in her formal living room, 

giving us room to design miniature landscapes for her elegant villages.

[the more 'playful' collectibles went into the kitchen, as shown in this post]

 the sofa table and two shelf units flanking the fireplace offer copious space to display her villages

and her gorgeous antique furnishings added such warmth to the scenes...

from year to year, the setups changed, but we always used her antique wooden boxes as risers, 

to lift some of the buildings up in the 'landscape'.
stacks of old books could be used for this, as well...

 

simple batting snow adds whimsy - especially when it is separated to appear as a 'shoveled' walkway,

or as a stream (see the shot of the sofa table up above)

 the batting snow also hides the boxes that these houses came in, so they can act as risers...

 AND it hides the electrical cords!

 placing some of the lighted buildings low on shelves brings light and interest to the shelf units,

offering a perfect viewing perspective for children.

 this close-up of the sofa table setup reveals that it is double-sided,

making sure that there is a happy view from any vantage point in the room...

 the sideboard holds yet another village scene... 

one year this setup was built on top of a large mirrored tray, 

so that the mirror could peek out of the snow as a frozen lake!

here are just a few more photos of this beautiful home...

the wonderful family who owned it has moved on,
as have i... and i will miss the creative and happy hours spent decorating there.

Cookin' Up Some Holiday Decor!

i had the pleasure of decorating an executive residence in Seattle for many years,
becoming friends with the remarkable family who lived there...

and let me tell you the homeowner's copious collections provided me and my decorating crew

with a PLETHORA of materials to work with!

the thing with huge collections is to divide and conquer...

her large collection of Department 56 houses 

was always given the place of honor in her living room and kitchen. 

each year, we'd rearrange and create new scenes using the same houses with changing props.

a few of the kitchen displays are shown here...

above, the gigantic island hosts a woodland scene 

with moss, snow, twigs, and shiny red ornament trees & garlands as the large focal points.

glass cake pedestals hold faux cakes, and a cut glass vase with a glass plate on top

serves as an even higher vantage point for woodland creature figures to gather...

in the bay window,

two nutcracker pedestals lift Department 56 houses and faux cakes up high, 

while various old food tins act as pedestals for more from her collection of 150+ nutcrackers -

these are bakers, candymakers, winemakers, and creators of other foodie delights!

gumdrop trees (some light up!) and candied faux fruit floral picks

add more color to the theme.

low glass pedestals hold more Department 56 houses.

 another year, we put the shiny red garlands into tall vases,

and topped them with huge clear glass platters.

those formed tall pedestals in the back of the bay window, 

where the largest Department 56 houses were stars!

 yet another year, the red shiny ornament trees moved to the bay window,
sitting up high on the nutcracker pedestals.
white plastic snowflakes dot the garland behind the houses
and from red shiny ball garland and greenery swags over the window.

i'll share another post with photos from her living room Department 56 displays soon...

in the meantime, take a look at her largest Nutcrackers, guarding the front doors!

these guys were 8 feet tall!!!

sweet snowmen

back in about '06, i created this display of charming little vintage-looking snowmen

for one of my retail clients (Columbia Winery in Seattle, WA).

i loved these sweet creations, but red is rarely a part of my home decor palette...

[note: i created this display and the banner in it, and photographed it, 

but the snowmen are not mine. they are Seasons of Cannon Falls, i believe]

i NEVER let what's available 'OUT THERE' limit me...

i just start making my own versions of things i love if i can't find exactly what i want.

that's what HOMEWARDfound style is all about:

grab what you've got on hand and make something you love!

[call it 'making do' if you'd like...

when I was a kid, i had a Childcraft book called 'Make and Do',

and i read it cover to cover and made every single thing inside!]

so, i decided to make some of my own snowmen using vintage papers,

and then accent them in colors that WOULD coordinate with my decor.

i gathered up 

scrapbook papers, old books, buttons, yarn, ribbon, stickers, styro balls, glue,

leftover sweater bits & pieces, bells, wire, glitter, paint, beads, cupcake papers, ribbon,

some aluminum stacking cups - and got to work makin' a royal MESS!

here's what i came up with:

 a JoYfuL SnOwMaN

some BLuShInG SnOw BaBiEs

[i think the little guy on the left looks a bit like Linus from Peanuts!] 

a miniature SpArKlY SnOwMaN

he's actually made from two pompoms, glued together and covered with glitter!

i also made a sweet decorated box

and embellished a house for them all to live in, happily ever after...

of course, about two years LATER, my color scheme had changed
so I 'made over' my little miniature snowman in neutrals:

 

then i made him a new friend and put him in his own mini-dome

[a stemless wine glass turned upside down]

 

they are a happy pair!

making do . make and do.
our decor can be what we want it to be!

CandyLand Holiday Tea

 for a Holiday decorating seminar presentation one year, i pulled together this colorful and fun theme...

'CaNdY LaNd HoLiDaY TeA'

it began with the traditional colors of red and green - with a twist: bright, happy LIME green!

the theme builds on the idea of a Holiday tea party with LOTS of 'sweet as candy' great ideas:

*in the photo above, you can see that a candy-striped vintage apron is used as a seat cover

[a charming way to protect OR camouflage your dining room chairs!]

*my wire mannequin was dressed as the hostess 

in her charming 'dress' of draped gingham curtain panel and another vintage Christmas apron

a 'pom pom' fringe was added to her dress by using resin ornaments from the dollar store

and her 'scarf' is a piece of garland adorned with more resin ornaments and 'candy' floral picks.

she would be perfect greeting guests at the door!

*vintage tablecloths in red and white, red and white ribbon and candy canes on the tree,

and a Santa hat tree topper add color and pattern to the setting.

*red and white ornaments and plain red plastic beaded garlands 

are displayed like hard candies in glass bowls, candy dishes, and champagne saucers

 [some of those ornaments actually look JUST like peppermint candies!

i separated a long glass garland so that i could use them this way]

* making these cute 'bon bon' ornaments is simple
AND everything you need can be found at the dollar store!

*start with resin ornaments. 

*hot glue a pom pom to the front of the hanger on top.

*pop them into prettily-layered cupcake/candy papers, 

and display on a cupcake tree or pedestal!

[of course, you can also hang them on a tree]

* i was inspired to make this sweet take-home treat by creative artist & designer Betz White

Miss Betz created some swirly felted cupcakes a few years ago (they are famous now!) 

and i made my own version for this display... NOT to sell.

*my cup cakes are made from fat green 'caterpillar' yarn, 

*wind in a spiral and glue to a styrofoam ball.

*pop that into a paper liner inside a teacup with a wired ribbon around it.

[making them actual CUP cakes, if you get my drift]

*on top, a wired ribbon flower with a fat red pom pom 'cherry' finishes it off. 

*a pretty tag shows each guest where to sit at your tea party!

PS: my Christmas China pattern is 'Happy Holidays' by Nikko

* i shared this tip in another post recently, 

but since it originated in this setup, i'll just pop the photo in here...

mini stockings make a terrific holder for flatware & napkin on the table or at a buffet!

*these candles and ribbon with 'candy cane' patterns add so much to the theme...

the candles shown are manufactured, but it's very easy to make them!

*start with plain white pillar candles 

[IKEA is a great resource for these - inexpensive and they burn beautifully & long, with no smoke]

*use red craft paint and a foam brush to paint on stripes
(use masking tape in various widths to mask it off if you'd like)

*once dry, cover surface with elmer's white glue and then roll in SUGAR!

the sugar adds a soft sparkle, which looks more like candy than glitter does...

had this decor been in my own home rather than at a resort for a seminar,

i would have added one more thing to top it all off:

ornament-draped chandeliers!

 easy to do with plastic or glass beaded garlands and ornaments

and big round light bulbs, just for fun!