Old World Elegance for the Holidays
Old World elegance was the tone I struck for a Greenwich client a few days ago, as I set about to decorate her home for the holidays. I turned to an assortment of greens (douglas fir, cedar, redwood, magnolia and Italian ruscus) for wreaths and a lovely mantle arrangement, with scabiosa pods and bursts of white hypericum berries as welcome accents. Among the most stunning of the creations was an exquisite garland of magnolia that I strung along a curving staircase. I capped the garlands, top and bottom, with sumptuous 16-loop moss green bows. If you look closely at these photos, you’ll see how the finished look corresponds with the interior décor, and picks up on the muted natural palette. (I left confident that my arrangements would stay fresh for weeks, thanks to the trough watering system I’ve refined over the years). Overall, the result was sophisticated, but soothingly understated. I had embellished the home’s exquisite architectural details without attempting to upstag...