Naturally Festive: An Organic Approach to Holiday Decorating

’Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse …
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of burlap and kraft paper danced in their heads.

OK, so it doesn’t have the same ring as “sugarplums.” But for designer Kerrie Kelly, natural, neutral materials are an equally sweet accompaniment to the season — and a lot more accessible for the average do-it-yourselfer.

Kelly illustrated this point in a house she decorated for the 2013 Sacred Heart Holiday Home Tour in Sacramento, California. Using common materials and a few DIY tricks, she transformed Stephanie Kilmer’s updated Tudor into a welcoming holiday showplace, forsaking tinsel and glitter for an organic palette that reflects Northern California’s lifestyle and aesthetics.

Photography by Brian Kellogg

Because Kilmer’s house was decorated in neutral colors, Kelly kept the decorations understated, so the rooms would feel celebratory but approachable. “We wanted to create an environment where everyone was welcome,” Kelly says. (It seemed to work: During the home tour, visitors were reluctant to leave.)

Gold and silver accents add a touch of shimmer, but the only real color Kelly added is green — mostly derived from evergreens and foliage. Kilmer had some pieces of mercury glass already, so the designer incorporated them into the decor and augmented them with more.


Because Kelly’s design team loves Napa Valley, they worked Wine Country elements throughout the decor. Old wine bottles were sliced in half to form votive chimneys and candles.

The mantel is woven with lengths of naturally dyed silk organza and garnished with moss balls and humble tarnished silver. Burlap stockings from Ballard Designs hang from a branch and sport monograms for Kilmer and her children. Antlers mix with silver pieces on the hearth.


A Pottery Barn banner wraps the tree, breaking up the mass of greenery and echoing the palette used elsewhere in the room. Kelly limited ornaments to silver and gold, and filled out the tree with magnolia leaves, which she brightened with mists of silver spray paint.


The living room wall is hung with poster-size pages of sheet music from Joy to the World. Kelly had a musician copy the score by hand (to appear more vintage), then enlarged the pages at a copy shop and tea-stained them for a look of instant age.

Wrapped presents tucked in the corners add a festive touch — and help conceal electrical cords. Kelly had ottomans made to look like old wine crates.


A cluster of illuminated trees from Restoration Hardware adds a festive touch to the entry, and helped steer traffic during the home tour. The evergreen garland on the bannister is woven with magnolia leaves, small toys and ribbons of musical notes. But it’s upstaged by the Naughty or Nice list; Kelly bought the hanger at Ikea and spray-painted it black before affixing it to the wall. “The kids all learned to be on the nice list,” says Kelly, laughing.


Kelly draped the table with a cowhide rug and topped it with burlap-wrapped vases bound with copper, silver and gold wire. (The tall arrangements help compensate for the lack of hanging fixtures over the table.)


Twiggs Floral Design Gallery helped Kelly with the flowers. The centerpiece is fashioned from driftwood, magnolia leaves, evergreen branches and moss balls interspersed with sprays of roses. A beveled mirror charger from Target is topped with china from West Elm and brushed-brass flatware from QVC. “I like people to be able to mix and match and use things they love,” says Kelly.


The dining table flanks the kitchen at Chez Kilmer, and that’s where friends gather anyway, so Kelly set it up for noshing. Wreaths adorn each window, lending the room seasonal flair.


Kelly loves typography and numbers, so she couldn’t resist these plates. Wine bottles are wrapped in burlap sleeves, in keeping with the decorative motif.


Why limit holiday decorating to the interior (especially in California)? Kelly gussied up the back deck with pillows, rugs and planters that are appropriate for the season.


Alphabet wreaths from Ballard Designs are hung atop the front shutters and wrapped with lights, sending a joyful message to passersby.

More: Budget Decorator: Easy Holiday Decorations

URL: Naturally Festive: An Organic Approach to Holiday Decorating http://www.decor-ideas.org/cases-view-id-22252.html