Holiday Decorating of Foyer piece or Accent Chest
Many people have a small accent chest or a console in their homes today. What a great piece to display items on through the year, but during the holidays, it is the perfect spot to do something extra special! Here are some ideas to help you get started!
Before we add Christmas items, let’s make sure that things are set up correctly. If the accent Chest is near a corner, the tallest item on the Chest should be on that side. A candlestick lamp is a tall piece that works well. It also adds quieter light to ‘spotlight’ your decorations! If you are using a vase or candlestick, make sure the tallest one goes closest to your corner. This makes your eye move away from the corner, and into the room area.
Next assemble some pieces that you would like to display. These might be: candlesticks, a Santa figurine, a nativity set, holiday figurines, a Christmas dish, a holiday arrangement, etc. If the items are already Christmas, you will have your color predetermined. If not, you can add some Holiday accents like Christmas ornaments, beads, sparkly stems or pieces of garland to get some color in
your design.
A piece of Christmas material, lace or a table runner may be placed on the cabinet for some extra color. If you were going to purchase something, sparkly tulle is very inexpensive and adds glimmer to your display. You would only need a small piece, maybe 1/2 yard!
Take the tallest piece (which should be shorter than the piece you used on your corner side) you have in your collections and set it on the outside..closest to the edge of your cabinet. The rest of the items may be added in the middle area, alternating the heights of the pieces! Always try to use an odd number of pieces like 3 or 5. If you have candlesticks which are the same height, use a small book under one to raise it taller.
It is always good to add softness with hardness…for instance, material with glass vases. Many of our items will be made out of glass, metal or wood, so adding green silk stems, material and even column candles help to soften our display. Even wrapped candy in a beautiful bowl will add softness.
Lay in some Christmas ornaments, crystal jewels, stems of greens, a piece from a garland you have, etc. Ornaments reflect the light from your lamp or burning candles. This will cause your display to come alive!
If you are setting up a Nativity set, make sure to angle it inward towards the center of the cabinet. This helps to have your eyes focus to the center of the display. Try to have the tallest pieces of the nativity on the outside with shorter pieces in the middle. Pieces of fake straw would be nice under the manger set which adds to the realistic look of a manger.
Decorating this console the rest of year is just as important. We will cover general decorating in another segment. If you need help with your cabinet, please give us a call. We would love to help!
Talk to you next time! Merry Christmas!
Kathy