3OK

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Get Organized

A few weeks before you plan to decorate, start by looking through holiday items, check lights, ornaments, and artificial greenery. And replace broken or tired looking items. Group items together to determine quantities, and how items will be used.

Planning:

Choose the main focal areas for your holiday decorations, a front entry table, stair landings, banisters, and fireplaces.
Create vignettes by using small trees and arrangements of greenery, berries and flowers.

Inspiration:

Look for inspiring ideas from magazines, TV. Specials, public places such as a hotel lobby. Or your favourite florist. The Christmas décor section of a department store can inspire a look by offering coordinating ornaments and decorations.

Creating a Designer Look:

Whether you choose traditional red and green or something more modern, you can create a designer look by choosing a general theme with a limited palette throughout your home. By adding various elements to ornaments such as flowers, feathers, ribbons, and tassels will create interest and impact.

Do not scrimp on lights. Underlit garlands and trees will distract from beautifully decorated items. Plan for 100 mini-lights on a 6’ garland and 600-700 lights on a 7’ tree.

Hiring a Professional Decorator:

If time or the feeling of becoming completely overwhelmed becomes an issue, you may consider hiring a professional decorator. A decorator can create a uniform look throughout, purchase needed items, create floral arrangements and wreaths and decorate them for you. It will allow you to concentrate on other areas such as shopping and family gathers.

Have Fun:

Now is the time to try something new, show off your beautiful decorations and create a look that is unique to you.

Decorating

• Scale down everyday items to highlight holiday décor.
• Breakdown the focal areas into sections and plan to decorate over a few days. It prevents too much clutter of boxes and you will not feel so overwhelmed.
• Save one day to decorate the tree. Plan to give yourself 3-5 hours to set lights and decorate the tree. Add special touches to your tree such as antique jewelry, dolls, and masks. Balance the décor on the tree with small, medium and large ornaments. Use a beautiful piece of fabric or a retired fur coat as a unique tree skirt.
• When lighting a tree, wrap each branch starting on one side from the back and ending at the back on the other side and move to the next branch. It will guarantee lots of lights throughout the whole tree and not just the front.
• Reuse and dress up existing vases, bowls and candlesticks into holiday décor.