DECK THE HALLS
Trinkets, treasures and tinsel – the individual touches that combine to create a spellbinding ambience
Mix traditional touches and personal pieces to dress your home for the festive season
As December approaches, the house undergoes its biggest annual transformation when it is dressed for the upcoming festivities. We spend more time than ever indoors at this point in the year, as the days grow shorter and the weather colder, so seasonal decorating is not just a celebration of Christmas, it’s also a way to brighten the bleak winter months.
The interior decorator Cindy Leveson is particularly passionate about the festive season and is frequently asked by her clients (which include the Goodwood estate) to devise a suitable scheme. ‘Often people will ask for help in that first year, as I think it can be quite daunting to dress a freshly decorated house from scratch,’ she says. Leveson is known for her traditional interiors that are imbued with idiosyncratic character, often through her clever display and arrangement of unusual heirlooms or antiques. Her commissions have ranged from hunting lodges, where she has festooned the ceilings with hundreds of antlers, to Goodwood’s restaurant Farmer, Butcher, Chef, which is enlivened by displays of found treasures such as vintage