Meet Mr Christmas!
heat speaks to the interior designer who is making all our festive dreams come true
If there was ever a year to put up the Christmas tree mere hours after taking Halloween decorations down, it’s 2020. We’re going to need a sleigh’s worth of festive cheer to get us through the wintery nights this year, and luckily, we’re already starting to see twinkly lights, trees and tinsel creeping onto our screens. With the streaming services dropping a whole host of Christmas content this month – yes, Vanessa Hudgens is returning in The Princess Switch sequel
– we decided to delve into one show that is set to make your heart sing with festive frivolity.
Holiday Home Makeovers With Mr Christmas arrives on Netflix on 18 November, and will see interior designer Benjamin Bradley share the festive magic with families and communities in the US who need a little help. In the show, Benjamin admits, “I have what you might call a healthy obsession with the holiday season.” He’s not lying – he has over 40 Santas in his New York apartment, which is probably how he got his “Mr Christmas” title. It’s also why we’re going to try to learn everything we can from him to ensure our Christmas is as bright and joyful as can be.
MAKING SPIRITS BRIGHT
Speaking to heat, Benjamin tells us the series is all about feel-good vibes. “I help families establish new traditions, recreate memories, and try to give them the holiday of their childhood dreams,” he says. “There are tips and takeaways, as well as plenty of laughs, a few tears and lots of glitter.”
While the show features regular families, Mr Christmas does hint that he’s worked with celebs
before, but unfortunately he can’t divulge anything about their decorating habits, thanks to disclosure agreements. “Their wishes are very much the same as all of us,” he says of the stars he’s worked with. “They long for a beautiful home filled with festive decorations that they can welcome family and friends to enjoy. Many of us, celebrities included, are just trying to recreate, in some way, the emotions we have wrapped around the holidays of our childhoods. The sights, sounds and smells of Christmas are what I pursue – I find those three things to be the most evocative.” No wonder we always stock up on sherry, so we can guarantee the sight of Grandma dancing to Jingle Bells.
When we ask which A-listers Benjamin would most like to work with, he plumps for Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell, who just so happen to be Santa and Mrs Claus themselves – well, in The Christmas Chronicles and its sequel (premiering on 25 Nov). “They have a sense of playfulness and really seem to embrace family,” he says. “Their whole aura just seems welcoming and warm – the perfect set-up for Christmas!”
THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME
Benjamin and Christmas go way back. “I think I must have heard the strains of my first carol when still in the womb,” he tells us. “I remember as a child trying to drag home a discarded Christmas tree from a neighbour’s home, because I was going to set it up in the garage and care for it the entire year.”
So, it’s no wonder he’s keen to get the season going ASAP. While celebs such as Stacey Solomon, Michelle Keegan and Mariah Carey (obvs) get started as soon as the clock strikes November, Benjamin tells us he begins decorating in October. “The fact that my partner and I host several fundraisers and our annual holiday party, I need to get it done. I also just get too excited to wait!”
And while we might not be lucky
enough to have Mr Christmas and his elves popping by to string up our lights, he’s given us a few tips for a truly merry Christmas.
MORE IS MORE
“No tags!” is Benjamin’s cardinal rule. “I hate when people leave tags and labels on light strings, ornaments, etc.” One rule we’re not shocked to hear from the man who has over 40 Santas is that more is more. “If you think one Amaryllis is pretty, five are prettier,” Benjamin enthuses. “One hundred lights? A thousand is better. Also, buy the big tree – let it tickle the ceiling. So much of what I love about the holidays
‘I’m one ornament away from tacky’
is the abundance. Too much food, too much family, too many friends, too much alcohol…”
When it comes to picking a tree, Benjamin isn’t fussy. “Fake or real, there are advantages to both,” he tells us. “Although, there’s nothing like the smell of a real tree”. He has a stronger reaction when we ask about lights, saying, “I despise LED lights! I know they’re getting better, but the ‘glow’ of an old-fashioned miniature light or incandescent bulb can’t be beaten.”
Noted. But we’re most pleased to discover that Mr Christmas has a penchant for the tacky. “I try to adhere to the dictates of good taste for the rest of the year,” he says. “But at Christmas, I always say, ‘I’m only one ornament away from tacky’, and fully embrace it!”
Hear, hear! n