How to Make Your Home Festive Without Really Trying (Hiring a Professional for Your Seasonal Decorating)

It's that time of year for seasonal decorating. Parties and family gatherings abound and we all want our homes to be as festive as possible. For some families it's part of the tradition of the season to deck the halls but for those who may not have the time, how do you make your house party ready: Hire a designer!

Oh, but would that make me a Grinch if I don't do it all myself, you might think...No, it just makes you smart, organized and well decorated!

Winter Wonderland theme from Felici Events
www.felicievents.com

3 Reasons to Hire a Designer for Your Holiday Decorating

1. Time: There is so much going on at this time of the year that trying to make time for everything will cause undo stress and keep you from enjoying your guests. Let a designer do it for you. Then you can spend the holidays doing what is most important - spending time with those you love. A designer would have the time to decorate your entire home including your outside spaces giving your holiday season a complete look.

2. Theme Flexibility: If you are like me, you enjoy many styles of decorating and sometimes you don't want to stick with just one. If you hire a designer to come in and "stage" your home for your party you can have a different theme every year. Maybe one year you want a Dickensian theme, next year you want something more whimsical or modern.  A designer can help you craft a theme for your party and your decor whether you want it based on your home's architecture or the type of party you are hosting. Think of it as giving your home a stylist.

3. Storage: Is space an issue? Are you just starting out in a new home? You might not have a great deal of storage particularly the closer in you live. Having a designer bring all the decorations in and take them back out at the end of the season keeps you from having to find a place to store all those shiny things. You can still incorporate some of your own traditional family heirlooms but be able to decorate a whole house without having to store it all during the rest of the year.

A bonus if you work with a designer who has already designed a space in your home, they know you and your style and the pieces you already have with which to work.  As New York designer Scott Salvator says "This just goes to the notion that an interior designer is a full-service provider. As opposed to someone who just shops. You are creating a lifestyle."

Rick Garofalo helped a friend and client prepare her Chelsea studio for her annual Christmas party, trimming a white artificial tree in silvery ornaments and white feathers. Credit: Robert Wright for The New York Times.  For a family that lives in Europe, and maintains this Upper East Side penthouse, Mr. Salvator spent three days deploying the garlands, ornaments and nutcrackers he had collected for them. Credit: Trevor Tondro for The New York Times

www.nytimes.com

A Delaware dining room decorated by Brochschmidt & Coleman. Courtesy of Brockschmidt  & Coleman
www.elledecor.com

Happy Decorating!