SORT IT:I've been having lots of fun recently decorating my home for Christmas. The children are just about old enough to help so we've been creating our own festive frivolity.
When it comes to decorating you want to create a look that sits happily with the décor of your home. And decorating your home doesn’t have to cost the earth. Look to the garden: festive foliage, especially anything scented like pine or eucalyptus, in vases dressed with ribbon, can be visually and aromatically stunning.
Don’t hold back here, every room, even the bathroom, deserves a little bit of Christmas spirit. Combine fake and real foliage for a longer lasting display.
Scent is an important part of Christmas and if you have a real fire you can scatter orange and lemon peel into the embers. My favourite, though, is the cinnamon and clove candle by Max Benjamin – I save mine for Christmas Eve.
I love Christmas wreaths and have found a fabulous fake version which I have dressed with pine cones from the park, cinnamon sticks, faux red berries and some gorgeous golden bells which jingle merrily every time the door is opened.
You don’t have to be terribly traditional either. I have a pink and grey entrance hall and, using pink satin ribbon, I threaded some baubles of varying sizes to create hanging garlands.
A client stuck felt snowflakes to interior walls, and mirrored the effect on windows with spray snow.
Minimal trees are quite popular this year, from lights-only to nothing at all. If you do go the bare route make sure you use a real tree.
Fairy lights are always a hit – the warm white lights tend to be a little harder to find, though. The smaller battery-operated strings of lights are fantastic for adding some festive cheer to a house plant or woven through a Christmas wreath.
And don’t forget the music – when it comes to Christmas it’s all about atmosphere so play your favourite tunes and have a very merry Christmas.
