Decorating your home for the festive holiday season should excite instead of overwhelm.
But the 6,700 square feet of blank slate at Mary Beth Manwiller’s new Evergreen house presented more halls than she could handle decking.
“I just had never decorated a large house for Christmas before,” says Manwiller, a glass and tile designer who previously lived in East Coast apartments and condos as tiny as 750 square feet. “Now my husband and I have two stories plus a fully finished basement. I didn’t know where to start.”
To help give her house that designer-polished look, Manwiller turned to Macky Bennett, an interior redesigner who specializes in staging homes for sale. “Staging” is a design concept that presents the house at its best and most inviting so potential buyers can imagine themselves living there.
Central themes real estate designers use to “stage” homes offer tips we can steal when styling a home for the holidays. Placement and simplifying a look are key.
“When you think about staging, it’s similar to window dressing,” says Bennett, who also helps retail stores set up for the holidays. “It’s about creating a mood, creating magic. You take what people already have and use design principles to place those things in new ways that really make them pop.”
With all her extra space, Manwiller never realized decorating for Christmas would mean putting away other core pieces that serve the home throughout the year. Favorite artwork, excess furniture, and collectibles were all stored away to focus attention on holiday accessories.
“We had a dining room with a long buffet and a display of crystals,” Manwiller recalls. “(Macky) had us get rid of all that for the season.”
Whether it’s a love of all things blue, a beloved set of silver bowls, a treasured hobby or an array of angel ornaments, use what’s already in the home to create a holiday decorating theme, Bennett says.
Interior designer Kathy Passarette has been known to take holiday inspiration from pieces such as gift-wrap paper or a favorite sweater.
“Most people will figure they have to go with red and green since those are Christmas colors,” Passarette says. “But if you have a blue sofa, red and green won’t match. Work with what you have by bringing in some touches of gold or silver to complement the blue sofa.”
Manwiller envisioned a cozy, Christmas mountain home highlighted with natural touches including pine cones, berries and artificial greenery that could be reused annually. “No big lights or plastic blow-up Santas in the front yard,” she insisted.
Bennett examined the space before selecting such key areas for holiday displays as pedestals on the outdoor deck, and the dining room table. The pair spent two hours shopping at the craft store Michaels for nutcrackers, poinsettias, candles and holly.
The nutcrackers became instant mood-setters when placed in lit wall nooks by the entryway. In the great room, intertwining greenery and berries through the twigs of a branch- shaped candelabra added a sense of festivity without taking up valuable space.
A trio of Christmas trees ranging in size from 18 inches to 3 feet were a simple yet dramatic focal point in the living room when placed in front of a large bank of windows. No ornaments adorn the trees, just crisp white lights.
A grouping of 3-foot-tall stuffed reindeer was nearly invisible in Manwiller’s great room, which boasts a 20-foot ceiling. But placing the reindeer on a raised shelf not only drew attention to a favored family holiday item but also drew visitors’ eyes up the lines of the wall to the home’s dramatic ceiling.
The result? Success.
“When you come down in the morning to drink your coffee,” Manwiller says, “the decorations create a sense of festivity as well as relaxation.”
Staff writer Sheba R. Wheeler can be reached at 303-954-1283 or swheeler@denverpost.com.
Holiday home style primer
Professionals offer these tips for giving your home a designer-polished look for the holidays.
Less is usually more. Remove clutter and personal items such as family photos to keep the focus on decorations. Use decorations to showcase key features in the home such as a fireplace or vaulted ceilings. Rearrange furniture for easier flow during parties.
Choose a theme to help focus your effort. An existing theme may be uncovered by taking inventory of leftover decorations or established collections.
Decide on your style and stick to it. For example, interior designer Kathy Passarette says if your home is a country style, consider decorations with natural elements such as rustic twig hurricanes and grapevine wreaths.
Accessorize in odd numbers. If you have an established collection like candle sticks, flowers or angels, cluster them in threes, fives and sevens for the greatest impact. Create drama by varying the height of displays using raised cake plates or empty boxes as stands, or place items on a mantel or at the center of a top.
The Christmas tree should be the main attraction. Give houseplants and other greenery a winter vacation by moving them to another room during December.
Repeat decoration colors or textures throughout the house with details like kitchen towels or bedroom pillow cases. A vase filled with bright glass balls is an easy way to pick up that color throughout the house.
Remember that holiday decorating is temporary. Look for short-lived changes that have strong impact. Repainting a wall for a pop of holiday color isn’t necessary when some bright pillows, textured throws or slip covers can achieve the same effect.
