The holiday season – the busiest, by far, at the FRHS – is fast approaching and staff and volunteers are in the process of decking the place out in holiday finery.
Somewhat overwhelming, if truth be told.
Two trees with room decorations en suite are underway – the parlor and dining room – with the former nearly complete and six days in the making. I suspect the latter will be the showstopper but cannot quite say – the others are not done yet, so one never knows.
So, how does the design come about?
I would like to say that we plan months in advance, and have various components fabricated and ready for installation long before needed. Not quite the case, alas. With a very small staff, overtaxed volunteers, and a great deal to do, that is a luxury not available to us.
In some cases there is an idea for a theme so decorations are planned accordingly, but often we simply wing-it in a baptism-by-fire sort of manner and hope for the best. In fact, in past years, our best trees have come about in this manner – one was an international prize winner from the Holiday and Decorative Association.
Case in point: The FRHS parlor decorations for 2018.
The parlor tree is white and gold, ten feet in height and rather full, with soft white lights; there is garland roping to match. Several weeks ago we purchased frosted Magnolia branches at the florist supply and thought they would work well on the tree, combined with gold velvet poinsettias, heightened with glitter that the FRHS used a few years back and had in storage; we have plenty of those. Add some ribbon, throw on a few ornaments and voilà – done.
Not quite.
A trip to storage facility brought with it reality:
- We did not have “plenty” of the gold velvet poinsettias; only half a bin.
- The color was wrong – too brassy – and looked like hell.
Slight panic.
Regroup – quickly, because the clock was ticking.
A phone call to assemble “the team” and a hasty visit back to the florist supply. Fortunately, a new line had arrived: Poinsettias, Hydrangeas, and leafy things in pale pink and cream, heightened in gold … perfect with the Magnolias, and the tree.
Relief.
So, now the doing.
First off: Drape the tree in yards of wide white mesh fabric shot with gold, arranged billowy and cloud-like for fullness and texture; leave sections of the tree exposed for hanging ornaments. Best of all – the mesh will cover large parts of the tree so there will be less decorating to contend with.
The tree is very much asymmetrical in design, so add groupings of floral sprays made up of the heretofore mentioned flowers strategically “arranged” throughout; shove in a few long gold spiky twigs covered in glitter, add several green poinsettia leaves for contrast, stud it with various size glass balls in gold – shiny and matte – and white.
Done.
Use quantities of hot glue to hold it all together.
Note: Start at the top because the very high ladder – frequently moved – will bump into everything below and make an absolute mess of it, causing untold frustration, a mess on the floor, and oftentimes rather choice expletives uttered by yours truly.
Deep breath.
Shove in more yards of wide white mesh fabric shot with gold to cover up stems and nestle in the “carefully” arranged flowers.
Decide on a tree skirt.
A gold one was the obvious choice but it read green so use the white instead; artistically arrange so as to cover the creases – no ironing.
Someone walks in and says: “Oh, that looks lovely.”
Thought to self: “Does it?”
Next up: Make a good-sized bow, rather full … I hate making bows, by the way. In this case, two ribbons were used: A white satin imprinted with gold design, and a gold mesh, the former layered over the latter for contrast.
Perch precariously on the ladder and mount the bow to the top of the tree, likely burning oneself with hot glue in the process of trying to secure it.
Drape the tree with cascades of pearl roping, making sure the drapes are somewhat rambunctious and uneven, often appearing as if they have fallen off the bowers – believe me, this sounds awful but works well. Nothing worse than a tree covered with even loops of roping … much uninspired.
The desired end result: Controlled excess.
Now the excruciatingly difficult part: Cascades of ribbon.
A fact: Making ribbon appear as if it is richly meandering throughout a tree and falling in loose curvaceous loops is not easy and extremely time consuming; several people are required to bring it to fruition.
Person #1: Mount the ladder fully prepared to stretch into uncomfortable positions in order to try to make the ribbons look like something, all the while taking direction from Person #4. This is not for the timid – be fully prepared to get irritated and have fingers burned with hot glue.
Person #2: Hold a makeshift ribbon dispenser and try to keep said reels of ribbons from getting twisted and badly tangled, yet always loose enough so as not to pull Person #1 off the ladder. Despite resolute attempts to prohibit twisting and tangling from happening, it will – causing frustration in Person #1.
Person #3: Hold the glue gun, attached to a very long extension cord, and be ready to hand it off to Person #1 when required, often indicated by sign language or grunts … one must be very perceptive when undertaking this task. It is best to drape the extension cord over one’s shoulders so as to alleviate some of the cord weight when handing it off to Person #1, perched precariously on the ladder. If the latter step is not followed the cord weight will pull out the plug, likely disarranging things on the tree, and the glue will quickly go cold, causing further frustration for Person #1.
Person #4: Stand on the floor some distance away in the area used by visitors, and try to relay in a coherent manner to Person #1 where to place the ribbons to have them meander and fall in the desired effect. This may sound fairly straightforward – I can assure you, it is not.
Estimated time for ribbon application: Hours – lots of them.
I, by the way, am the guy on the ladder.
Finally, hang gold glass pendants and glittery ornaments in the areas of the tree not covered by the white mesh shot with gold, this for texture, contrast, and glitz. If you see any blank spots, fill them with something – mesh works well because it covers a multitude of sins.
Now walk away. After staring at it for several days you will hate it, but it will look grand come morning; absence, as they say.
Do not forget: During the process of decorating the tree, be sure to work on the mantelpiece and door swags in tandem, having them appear decorated en suite.
Fun, is it not?
Ah, Christmas preparation at the FRHS!
