Experts discuss holiday style
This time of year can be magical for many. All shiny and bright with holiday traditions, decorations
and time spent with family and friends. We reached out to a few locals in the interior design and decor business to find out what they enjoy most about the holidays, their favorite traditions and how they dress up their spaces and
themselves. Rachel Shingleton, interior stylist, color-loving designer and
founder of Pencil Shavings Studio and blog: Like most creative types that I know, I’ve got what I’d call design attention deficit disorder. I’m forever interested in finding new ways to decorate for Christmas each year and this December is no exception. One thing
remains the same and that is my love
for color.
My white Christmas tree always gets a lot of comments, and I love how the colorful ornaments pop against the white branches. This year all the ornaments are kid-proof to keep my youngest from destroying the tree too much. It’ll be a few more years before I will be able to pull out my fancy ornaments. And elsewhere in our home, I’ve kept it simple with lots of greenery and wreaths — Scandinavian simplicity feels fresh to me this year.
When it comes to a holiday outfit, I’m definitely loving a preppy plaid with something sparkly. But I keep it casual overall.
Janis Bevers, owner of Living In Style, a lifestyle company that includes interior design, men’s wardrobe restyling and personal gift shopping:
Every Christmas, my funny little velvet reindeer come out of storage and land on the dining table. I love to serve a beautiful Yulelog for dessert and always include a fresh floral arrangement. My favorite floral is Stargazer lilies, red pepper berries with pine cone branches and curly willow twigs.
Fun paper place mats are the best. I’m old school, too. I love place cards and sitting my guests by someone other than their significant other. It makes for new, fresh dinner table conversation. My little Scotty, Max, is seen running around in his red Christmas plaid and also on the wrapping paper, of course
My favorite part of the holiday is personal shopping for friends. I love giving to friends and relatives and usually have everything wrapped and ready before Thanksgiving!
Favorite holiday outfit? My equestrian riding pants, white fitted blouse, Hermes belt and black suede riding boots.
Jimmy Rupp, owner and lead interior designer, Interior Gilt:
I really enjoy traditions and incorporating things from years ago. I always have old movies like “White Christmas” or records of Bing Crosby playing in the house and the store.
In my home, I try to assess what the room looks like beforehand as my starting point for my decor. So in a room that has a neutral color throughout, I like lots of classic red and green décor to bring it more to life with the holidays, but in an already colorful room, I like to use lots of crisp and clean white and green to help neutralize the space and bring a lovely wintry feeling.
As for my personal style, I take the same approach as my more neutral rooms. I love color. Nice plaid shirts and cashmere sweaters put me in the holiday mood instantly!