Triple Decor Well=Planned Decorations Can Ease Changes Caused By The Turning Of Seasons

Halloween costumes. Trick or treating. Thanksgiving feasts. Christmas shopping. Yule parties. Christmas shopping. “The Nutcracker.” Christmas shopping. New Year’s Eve celebrations.

So much to do, so little time.

Halloween marks the start of the annual season of festivities and merriment. With so much to do, decking your home for the holidays shouldn’t mean major reconstruction - several times.

If you dread the triad of redecorating that comes with the holidays, you’re not alone.

There are some clever ways, however, to create displays that will be appropriate through the season’s festivities. Just follow a few simple guidelines and, with minor changes, you’ll have more time for you to enjoy the traditions at your house.

Start with a plan

Planning is the single biggest time saver in holiday decorating, says Robin Cote, a designer at Interiors by Design. “I keep the furniture arranged so there isn’t a huge, major overhaul.”

Centralize your adornments. Use an end table to hold an autumn display with jack-o’lanterns or other ghouls. In November, swap the Halloween symbols for a cornucopia overflowing with Thanksgiving bounties. When it’s time to trim the tree, simply remove the table, Cote says.

If space is limited, leave the table and place a potted tree on top. As an added bonus, you’ll have a tree to plant in spring.

Plan your space near a front window so your display can be seen from the inside and out, she says.

If your living room is reserved for guests, decorate a second tree (in the family room) for the whole family to enjoy, suggests Jackie Halversen, owner of Halversen Home Interiors in Liberty Lake.

Tabletop trees, spiral tree-shaped vines suspended from the ceiling and picket fences placed at the bottom of traditional trees are great for keeping small children and animals from doing a little redecorating themselves, says Halversen.

Your home decor as base

You don’t have to start from scratch to decorate. Wreaths, swags, fruit, garland, and ledge gardens that beautify your home year-round provide excellent opportunities to blend your home and holiday decor, says Kara Ereaux, a floral designer at Michael’s.

Many Christmas decorations favor Victorian design, but don’t let it discourage you. Contemporary motifs blend nicely with traditional as well as avant-garde designs. Carry your Christmas design throughout your tree, wreath and garland. Halloween and Thanksgiving decorations stand alone, complementing any home decor.

Remember, the idea is to converge two seasons - autumn and winter. Using traditional Christmas red and green limits your opportunities. Designers agree you get the most from your triple holiday design by selecting more neutral colors - white, mauve, peach, or burgundy.

This year’s holiday color selection includes burgundy, teal, rust, mustard and a variety of corals. In addition, specially designed paints allow you to coordinate silk flowers with your own unique color scheme.

Whether you’re buying ready-made designs or creating your own, shop around for an array of ideas. Don’t forget to check out your own bounty of decorations. You’re sure to find some old favorites to meld with new designs.

Start with a base design adorned with neutral colors, then blend decorating ideas to suit your own style.

Wreaths, swags, etc.

Wreaths made of grapevine, straw or eucalyptus provide an ideal base. For a unique look, create a swag from the twisted gnarled branches of manzanita.

Bows, ribbons, ropes, braids and tassels create instant change. If making bows is not your forte, they can be purchased at almost any floral, craft or holiday decoration store. Better yet, select your own ribbon and have a store designer wrap one-of-a-kind bows to go.

Select picks (those small bunches of grapes or leaves with a wire stem) that complement your color scheme. Picks come in a variety of styles including foliage, flowers, fruit and holiday symbols. Metallic grass picks come in an array of colors to add luster to any decor. Gold accents work especially well in complementing Victorian tapestries.

Unleash your imagination: Instead of a wreath, use a sleigh, buggy, cornucopia or any container you might have around the house. Change the focal point by adding symbols of the holiday - pumpkins, pilgrims or angels. Use a favorite keepsake to add luster to your design throughout the year.

Add trimmings for versatility or use them to create a single cluster for each holiday and incorporate them into your base design, said Roxanne Bjerke, a designer for Old America store.

Ledge gardens

Brighten your fireplace mantel, above the hutch or the top of the buffet. Trim the ledge with bows and picks to fit the season, and nestle symbols of the holiday between the branches.

Use autumn leaves, Indian corn and gourds to provide a base of contrasting colors and textures. For Halloween, add a few ghosts and goblins. Replace them with fruit for Thanksgiving. Overdo it. After all, bountiful harvests are what the season is all about.

To ring in the Christmas season, simply add poinsettias, ribbons and other holiday trimmings into your autumn design. For a more traditional Christmas look, add boughs of fresh cedar, pine and fir.

Lights

Interchangeable light covers are available in a variety of holiday symbols including skeletons, turkeys and nativity scenes. Holiday covers often come with their own strand of standard white lights. But that doesn’t mean you have to use them together. Hang a strand of lights and simply change the covers.

Hang lights from windows, interior doorways or outdoor railings. Use extra strands to add sparkle to a wreath or ledge garden.

Door banners

Decorate burlap with felt or other fabric swatches. Create an autumn scene on one side and winter on the other. Stitch a turkey on the autumn side and create an attachable jack-o’lantern or ghost to cover the Thanksgiving bird during Halloween.

Table settings

Make a reversible tablecloth or runner using a neutral autumn color on one side and a festive Christmas pattern on the other. Bring it together with matching placemats. For napkins, use a neutral color and accent them with festive napkin rings, says Halversen.

Metallic napkin rings are inexpensive and can be decorated easily with a hot glue gun, she says. Your art can be displayed on dinner plates or in the china cabinet.

Group candles of various sizes as a centerpiece. Change colors with the seasons.

Sights and smells of spring

Flowers provide a boost of energy during the cold seasons. Dried flowers, fresh-cut flowers, plants and bulbs are certain to brighten any corner of the room. Any blooming flower lends a festive touch for the holidays and can stay put for a touch of spring after the celebrating is over.

Create fresh- or dried-flower topiaries, suggests a representative of 1-800-FLOWERS, a national floral industry group. Grasp 12 to 18 flowers firmly to form a ball with the blooms. Tie a green pipe cleaner just below the heads and another at the bottom. Stand the topiary in floral foam, place it in a pot and cover the foam with moss.

The trade group recommends carnations for blooms that last up to 10 days. Remember that fresh-flower topiaries need water.

Amaryllis bulbs have long been a holiday favorite. Crocus, tulip, daffodil and hyacinth bulbs can also be forced to bloom indoors.

No green thumbs in your home? Don’t worry. You can’t miss with foolproof paperwhite narcissus, white long-stemmed flowers that resemble miniature daffodils.