Each year I bring in one unexpected pop of color in and during the initial set up, it usually gets picked over! As you can imagine, that often is a source of frustration for the designer! This year, my pop of color is an intense mint and a jewel-toned teal-green. The two colors blend beautifully together and to make a real impact, this art just happened to come in (!). Trees were a real find for this color story! Oh. yes.
There is that white again, to make the impact even greater. I love lining any flat framed art with the smallest of bottle brush trees. Try this on door tops, transom ledges, deep window sills … it’s a darling impact in any of these areas.
These glamorous bubble bowls are rimmed in a silver mirror finish … and dressed in snow, that gorgeous ornament color and tiny battery operated lights. It’s #ohsosusan for sure! If you look closely, you’ll see more battery operated lights (a bit larger in scale) on the shelf of the glass-topped table. It’s magical and so homey, you can use this trick anytime! Note another great table with storage …
In the same area with this bold and dramatic color, I designed this mantel to compliment it and yet stay more neutral. There is always a way to introduce color into your basic areas, and this is a great example of combining the two.
There is always a starting point for any mantel design and often it is the art or a fabulous mirror. In this case, the bold art (size and color) set the stage for my design. Metal sculptural trees, selenite candle holders and a beautiful, oversized vessel anchor the scene. I needed balance on the opposite side and found this perfect lamp was perfect, once I elevated it on a simple coffee table book!
The garland is detailed with glass and gold ornaments and metallic sputnik picks (a very popular item this year!). I selected a white flocked garland for the contrast found in the selenite accents and art. The striking contrast, weight and size of the objects here are quite pleasing. Note that on the mantel, the only Christmas items are the trees. It’s a real bonus when you can leave much of your everyday design and add a few holiday items for the season. We were able to achieve just that here with the addition of the garland as well.
Keeping the theme of the gold, silver and white—this tree speaks for lush style, literally packed with our favorite handpicked classics.
When selecting the actual trees for designing in the store, we like an open tree with loads of hanging space and extended branches for placing special ornaments. We have also found that flocked trees are the prettiest contrast for most color ornaments. Manufacturers are making huge improvements in the way trees are flocked and no longer does it make such a mess to set up! Great improvements are being made with lights as well, and a beautiful LED-lit tree can last years with no problem. A variety of sizes, shapes and styles are selected during the buying process and we generally include some of the finer shatterproof ornaments to seat deep inside the branches as well.
During the very first few days, these themed trees get picked over again and again. Because there is such a large assortment, sometimes there are as few as 6 of one kind. In this case, the early bird gets the worm!
I like incorporating a classic tree of these colors (gold, silver, white) each year that enables our very devoted repeat clients something to add to their collections from previous years. It’s falalalafabulous!