Create a Winter Wonderland in Your Home This Holiday Season

Create a Winter Wonderland in Your Home This Holiday Season

By Lauren Flanagan, About.com Guide

Wintery Bird Ornaments

Lauren Flanagan

Those of us who live in colder climates are really lucky – we get to experience the beauty of winter. Sure it's cold and we have to bundle up when we go outside, but in exchange we get pure, white snow; glistening icicles; crisp, cold air and all the other joys that come with winter.

Even if you don't live in this kind of climate you can create the illusion with your holiday décor. Here are some tips for creating a winter wonderland in your home this holiday season.

The Palette

Let the forest be your guide. To create a rustically winter-themed scene stick with a palette of silver, white, green and natural materials like birch bark or other types of wood. Icy blue can also be a great addition. Avoid any strong colors that you wouldn't find in a forest in the middle of winter. No red, purple, orange or hot pink.

Ornaments and Accessories

• Small decorative trees are a great addition to holiday displays. They come in tons of colors and materials like wood, birch bark, glitter, and more.

• Garlands are always great during the holidays. Go with natural greens or other natural materials like bark. To up the winter ante you could try a white garland (opt for one with sparkles if you can).

• Galvanized metal is inherently rustic. Grab a couple of pails and stick some candles in them. Use them indoors or out on your front steps or porch.

• Lanterns can also work indoors or out. If you want to use them indoors you can display them on their own or tuck them into a garland. Just remember that if you light a candle inside of a lantern be very cautious and make sure there are no fire hazards.

• A pinecone wreath is the perfect rustic accessory. It's a natural, rustic material, but also sculpturally beautiful.

• Wood spheres are great for adding a rustic accessory. They're not festive per se, but when you add them to this type of décor they add depth and shape without adding kitschy clutter.

• Glass is also a great material as it creates a little sparkle and can be reminiscent of ices. A candle flickering in a glass vase is always a pretty and festive look.

• Decorate with branches. It's cheap and easy. Simply collect some from outside and display them in a clear glass cylinder vase.

Woodland Creatures

One of the keys to creating this kind of woodsy look is to include some woodland creatures. Sparkly bird ornaments, birch bark reindeer, mercury glass owls and any other little animals can be tucked into garlands, displayed on mantles or hung on trees. The key is to keep it classy and not overdo it. Try too avoid anything too cutesy like little stuffed animals. Keep them within the palette and don't stray too far from the other materials you're using.

Where to Shop

Pottery Barn – Pottery Barn is the go-to store for this type of décor. They have all sorts of mercury glass accessories, little woodland creature ornaments, lanterns and more. It's also worth taking a look at the website just to get some ideas.

West Elm – Even though West Elm tends to be a slightly contemporary store, they have tons of silver mercury glass pieces that can contribute to the winter wonderland theme. Check out their little votive holders and owl figurines.

HomeSense/HomeGoods – These stores are terrific for finding these kinds of holiday decorations. This year look for sparkly birds, birch bark reindeer and other such objets. The inventory is constantly changing so check back often.

These kinds of decorations can be found just about anywhere. If you're looking to create this style on a budget you can find plenty of items in the great outdoors. Pinecones, sticks, branches with some greenery – the list goes on. You can also always use household items like cotton balls to create a snowy effect and head over to the dollar store for some silver glitter to add a little sparkle.

No matter how much you want to spend or how far you want to take the look, a winter wonderland theme is a great way to add some holiday flair to your home.

Great Looking Interiors Mix It Up with Styles and Budgets by http://www.rentaldecorating.com

(ARA) - So many of us find ourselves in the same decorating boat - a home filled with a few family heirlooms, flea market or tag sale finds, and maybe even one or two treasures from a successful dumpster dive. You love them all, but how do you combine high and low design pieces to create a unified and polished look for your home?

First says Marjorie Marcellus, an interior design instructor at The Art Institute of California - San Francisco, forget about the cost of a piece. "A successful interior is not determined by the cost of its components. For a space to work, it needs to have balance and harmony," says Marcellus. Finishes and home furnishings, even kitchen rugs should relate to each other as part of an overall design scheme, but "that doesn't mean they have to match, be of the same era, same price or quality," she explains.
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For example, says Marcellus, "I placed an expensive slab of marble onto a salvage-yard industrial black metal stand and then added four black bargain stools from Pottery Barn." The similar finishes of the materials made it work. The result? "A custom kitchen table for my client's urban loft. Topped with a delicate antique vase, fresh wild flowers and colorful cloth napkins from IKEA, the outcome was unexpected and delightful," says Marcellus.

Suzanne Wilkins, an interior design instructor at The Art Institute of New York City, is another proponent of mixing both high and low design elements. A basic rule of thumb, says Wilkins, is to avoid having a less expensive item next to a more expensive similar item.

"Too many similarities invite comparison, and may make the less expensive things look cheap," she says. Instead, pair precious things with inexpensive finds by following two rules of thumb: keep it simple and clean lined, or keep it funky. According to Wilkins, simple clean lines naturally look expensive, and we associate clean lines with a more modern and expensive look.

On the other hand, she says, funky items can often stand alone and speak for themselves. But use them sparingly. For example, a nice grouping of African masks can add a lot of texture and color and can be found inexpensively in flea markets. To make it work, don't use more than three or four or in more than one location, says Wilkins.

Dan Noyes, chairman of the Interior Design department at The Art Institutes International, Minnesota, loves to combine modern pieces with weathered antiques, "to create a wonderful gypsy chic look." Whether high end or low end, an antique's patina and unique character flaws can set it apart from a great, modern piece of furniture, he says.

Furniture pieces themselves can combine the best of both high and low end design features says John Gambell, chairman of the Interior Design department of The Art Institute of New England. For a stylish-looking dining or end table, Gambell suggests taking a simple and inexpensive parsons-styled table (Ikea is a good source) and add a made-to-order stone top of either slate or marble. " A small 'reveal' between the base and the top wood appear to make the top float," says Gambell.

A few final words of wisdom about mixing high and low end design from the experts: When shopping at stores like Crate and Barrel or Pottery Barn, pick a few pieces from each instead of outfitting an entire room with one look. "Mix it up," says Wilkins. And remember, be patient and shop around. What makes a room look rich and expensive, no matter what the budget, is time.

Courtesy of ARA Content