Thursday, November 23, 2006
People are steering away from the traditional reds and greens.
By ANNE WALLACE ALLEN
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Decorating for the holidays is supposed to be fun. If you're not excited about pulling out the ornaments and tinsel this year, it might be time to do things differently.
We asked some experts to give us their input on jazzing up your home for the holidays. Lime green is a Christmas color this year. Black and white are hot too, say Cathie Filian and Steve Piacenza, the hosts of DIY Networks "Creative Juice."
"People are steering away from the traditional reds and greens, Piacenza says. The old standards, gold and silver, are also big. If you want to make your own metallic Christmas tree, Filian advises you buy a Styrofoam cone (available at a craft store) and wrap a garland of tinsel around it.
"Use some hot glue right at one side, wrap it around, dot it at the top, now you've got a tinsel tree," she says. Prefer feathers to needles? Make a feather tree with a feather boa or bundles of feathers, available at craft stores, attached to a Styrofoam cone or an upside-down tomato cage.
It's easy to spruce up old ornaments, too.
"There's tons of different paint pens you can use to add swirls to them, Filian says. Or stick on some rhinestones -- they come in all shapes and sizes, with a self-adhesive backing. You can brighten up a menorah the same way, Piacenza says. For more ideas, see their Web site: http://www.cathieandsteve-.com.
Holiday wrapping paper comes in lime green, pink, or light blue -- not just red or green. Paper with polka dots, funky Christmas trees or other designs are available for the holidays at stationary stores.
It's a wrap
"You've got your silk ribbons, your organza. People are using different types of ribbons on a package and putting them together," says Brandy Stemmler, co-owner of Paisley Roberts Paper & amp; Press, a Boise boutique. Paisley Roberts, which offers workshops on wrapping presents and tying ribbons, sells printed Italian paper by the sheet. Customers can wrap each present under the tree in a different one.
Nesting boxes also offer gift-giving variety: you can put something small, like a wallet or a folded-up shirt, in each. The boxes themselves, stacked with a ribbon around them, make a great table decoration too.
Hallmarks approach is more traditional. Tina Wilson, a photo stylist for Hallmark Cards in Kansas City, Mo., likes to put a small tree in each room, with ornaments in different categories -- for example, with cooking ornaments on the kitchen tree. And ornaments aren't just for trees, Wilson says.
"I'm going to hang a ribbon in front of the window and dangle ornaments from it," she says. "Windows and tabletop trees are neat ways to put ornaments sprinkled through the house."
Hallmark's Web site has instructions on how to craft a little tree, with patterns and diagrams -- go to http://www.hallmark.com/experts.
Jodi Levine, editorial director, Kids, at Martha Stewart Living, says glitter adds sparkle in any color, and inexpensively. "Collect pine cones to glitter and put them in a footed bowl," Levine says. "Glitter dead branches and put them in a vase or plant pot (you can anchor it in some floral foam). Hang ornaments from it for a tabletop tree."
She and her colleagues have even used glitter on inexpensive plastic toy deer to line up on the mantle.
"You name it, we've glittered it," Levine says. "These are great projects to do with kids."
Martha Stewart Living's December issue offers a story about decorating with vintage Victorian Kugel ornaments, which can be grouped on a cake stand or tray or hung from a chandelier or window. And the Web site, http://www.marthastewart.com has loads of Christmas decorating ideas, including instructions for making personalized snow globes.
A spruced-up iPod holder makes a good personalized gift. "You can make one out of any of our materials," says Lisa Greb, a spokeswoman for Jo-Ann Fabrics and Crafts, a chain based in Hudson. "The quilted ones work best because they are cushioned. You can embellish with beads, buttons, ribbons, and we have little word charms with words like 'wish' on them."
Pretty much anything can get a new lease on life with some beads and glue -- wine glasses, picture frames, candleholders, and Christmas ornaments. Spray-paint a small ceramic pot and put pipe-cleaners in it to make a tabletop tree, Greb suggests. "We used silver pipe cleaners, which makes it sparkly and festive, Greb says. "The whole thing is about 6 inches tall, and then with the pipe-cleaners you hang different colored beads."
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