Christmas Tree Decorating Tips

Being an Interior Designer in Marietta gives me the opportunity to help my client’s home look festive during Christmas. Sometimes a client would like to have a whimsical Christmas look and other times a client prefers a more serious and formal type of Christmas décor. I enjoy decorating their trees, garland or wreaths to reflect that special Christmas design they have always wanted for their home.

You can do the same thing for yourself. Here are some of my “how to decorate for Christmas” tips.  Make sure you choose the right size tree for the location you are planning to set up your tree. You might have to buy a “pencil tree” for your home if you are going to set up your tree in a small and confined area. 

A pencil tree is thinner and will fit nicely into small areas and not look crowded. Don’t allow the Christmas tree to touch the ceiling. A tree that does not fit properly takes away from the total beauty of the decorated tree. If your ceilings are very tall you need to have a taller tree. Or, you can build a platform for your 6, 7 or 8 foot tree. The platform allows your tree to fit better and you will have more room to display your Christmas presents. The ornaments you hang on your tree need to be the right size according to the size and scale of the tree.

If you have a large tree you need to use larger ornaments. If you choose to use smaller ornaments on a larger tree then connect or bunch three ornaments together to form the look of a large ornament. All of your ornaments should be attached properly to your tree or to your garland. One way to do that is to hot glue the “crown” to the top portion of the neck of the ornament. After the crown has been secured connect a wire or ornament hanger to the ornament and hang it on the tree or wire the ornament to the garland.  

 

There are a variety of ornaments you can add to your Christmas tree. Some families add a new and specially selected ornament to their tree each year. Others prefer to use theme trees in different rooms of their house. Adding a variety of styles of ornaments in a consistent manor throughout the tree adds interest and personality to your tree. 

Does your artificial tree have gaps or holes between the branches? You can find another Christmas tree at yard sales or thrift store to add another branch into the broken area to replace the missing branch. If you are not able to replace the missing branch this year then fake it.  

 Move the existing branches around closer together to try to make up for the gap.  Then add the garland that looks like a caterpillar loosely around a few of the branches.  The garland must be the same color as the missing or broken branch. If all else fails you can turn the tree that has the broken or missing branch area within the tree to the wall (if possible) so no one will see it.

If you prefer, you can fill the area up with a special Santa, Angel or ornaments.  

I would be happy to personally help you decorate your home for Christmas. Christmas is a fun and a special time of the year to enjoy entertaining your family and friends!

Jan Britt

(404) 510 -3636

www.decoratewithjan.com

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decorate@decoratewithjan.com

John Gidding from HGTV and Jan Britt

I am honored to be asked to be a Hometalk Interior Design Adviser on www.hometalk.com!

I will be giving interior design and window treatment advice to people that write into the Hometalk website. I will, as well as other design professional "contractors", be answering interior design and window treatment questions that homeowners may have about decorating. Please check out this website! I think you will really like it. Anybody can post questions about decorating, bathrooms, bedrooms, furniture, paint, window treatments, landscaping, gardening, and how to fix your house. After you post your question on the website, come back later and you will receive multiple answers to your question.

It was great to meet John Gidding from HGTV. John was very nice and enjoyed talking with the Hometalk professionals and contributors that were at the Home Show in Atlanta. I am proud to be one of the professionals answering questions to help homeowners with their decorating challenges!

Jan Britt

(404) 510-3636

www.decoratewithjan.com

Facebook - Decorate with Jan

decorate@decoratewithjan.com

Sewing is Back!

Sewing is the NEW thing for children and young adults to enjoy! Sewing allows you to be creative no matter how old you are. You can find pride in showing other people what you have accomplished for yourself. Be careful where you choose to take your sewing lessons!

Many times children and adults can get bored very easily when they take sewing lessons because the other students don't catch on as quickly as they do. Don't let this happen to you or your child! When your child learns quickly they get bored and don't want to take lessons anymore because they have to wait for every student to finish the project with the class. I do teach group sewing lessons for those who desire to learn to sew within a group. However, as an Interior Designer in Marietta  I specialize in private sewing lessons.

Private sewing lessons don't waste your time!  

I teach you sewing lessons at your pace, either a rapid or slow and steady pace. Private sewing lessons are $30.00 an hour. When you choose to take private sewing lessons you will receive all of the attention and expert help immediately. These lessons will allow you to learn how to make projects you have always wanted to make! Maybe you want to learn how to sew home decor or clothing projects.

Sewing allows you to have a beautiful home with up to date window treatments. You can also have the most stylish and unique wardrobe. You should consider taking sewing lessons. Not only does it save a considerable amount of money to sew these items yourself but you will have the satisfaction that you did it yourself! You set a goal and you will achieve it with my help.

You can learn how to make pillows, purses, clothing or special decorative items for your home.

As an Interior Designer, I have been teaching sewing lessons for many years. 

In the past six months the request for sewing lessons has exploded! If you or your child are interest in private or group sewing lessons please contact me. I am willing to accommodate your schedule.

Jan Britt

(404) 510-3636

decorate@decoratewithjan.com

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                              Dorm Rooms Don't Have to be Expensive to Decorate 

By Jan Britt 

Moving on from high school to college can be exciting and intimidating.  As an Interior Designer and Window Treatment Specialist, I have some creative ideas for you to help you decorate your dorm room.  You have to think "out of the box" if the college or university dorm rooms do not allow you to paint the rooms or use nails to hang items on the wall. The largest piece of furniture you have in your room is usually your bed. You will be wasting a lot of space if your bed is not elevated up higher than normal. You can purchase the bed risers from Wal-Mart, mattress stores and many other stores to help you make better use of the space under your bed. There are many storage units that will fit nicely under the elevated bed.    

If you are not able to put nails into your walls in your dorm room than I have a solution for you! You can use 3M Picture hanger command strips.  You would be surprised to see what those little hangers can hold. You can hang your jewelry pouch against the side wall of the inside of your closet or on the back of the closet door. You can use the larger 3M hooks all by themselves for larger pictures you may want to hang.  Read the directions and follow the weight suggestions for hanging.    

Bedding is one of the important items that will help you create the comfort feeling you will need as you go away to school.  You can either choose a "quiet" look to encourage calmness or a wild and creative comforter or bedspread to promote the fun and crazy atmosphere you are anticipating to enjoy. When you are choosing bedding for your bed you can have custom made bedding or a "Bed in the Bag".  Whatever bedspread or comforter you choose it is wise to choose bedding that is washable.  You can modify the dust ruffle that you have chosen by sewing in pockets with Velcro or button closures to the dust ruffle.  If your headboard does not have to be totally pushed up against the wall you can have a slipcover made to fit the headboard.  In the back of the slipcover facing the wall,  you can have pockets sewn into it with Velcro or button closures.  These pockets can be used for private items. 

www.decoratewithjan.comI have many more creative decorating ideas and storage techniques  that are just perfect to help you move a family member into a dorm room. Please contact me and I will be happy to help you decorate your dorm room in a traditional or "out of the box"  style for this special time in your life.  

If you have any questions please contact me at (404)510-3636 or www.decoratewithjan.com.

Decorating Ideas for Christmas 2011

Jan Britt Interiors Interior Decorator, Window Treatment Specialist, Home Staging Professional, Free Decorating Tips Newsletter 2011

WATCH JAN'S CHRISTMAS GARLAND SHOW ON Zeeltv.com I finished shooting a Christmas Garland show for ZEELTV. They are editing the entire filming process that we shot to create the garland. This episode will be available to watch in the near future www.zeeltv.com The channel the show will air on is called: Design News Network www.designnewsnetwork.com HOLIDAY GIFT CERTIFICATES ARE A WONDERFUL GIFT IDEA Sewing lessons ($30.00) Learn to use your sewing machine ($30 to $50.00 per hour) Help you choose the right style of window treatments for your home ($75.00) Re-Design consultation ($75.00) Staging Walk and Talk ($100.00) Please contact me to receive the gift certificate Click here to read more!

Decorating for Christmas Christmas Garland Class Holidays can be full of fun, excitement and creativity. There is so much to celebrate. It is the perfect time to do special crafts, cooking or decorating together with family and friends. Red, burgundy and green are the common Christmas colors, although many other colors are used as well. The nice part about Christmas is that you do not have to worry about the red and green colors clashing with your normal everyday décor. It is exceptionally nice if you are able to purchase Christmas decorations that match your everyday color palette. Your Christmas garland will help you to display the colors that are special to you during the holidays. It is common to see at least two different styles of garland to purchase . The fresh garland that has a wonderful smell and the artificial garland you purchase at the store. I want to give you decorating ideas on how to create artificial garland to look high-end. Artificial garland placed on staircases or mantels should look full and beautiful. To create a beautiful full garland in an inexpensive way, braid three or more garlands together loosely. Please make sure you pull apart and pull open each little branch before you wrap one length of garland loosely around the other garland. When placing your garland on your staircase area you will need to know how much garland is required and where to attach it to look nice. Take a string, ribbon or rope and tape it to the staircase railing in the desired areas to make the drooping of the garland look even. Try to make the spacing consistent. Using the string and tape will help you visually see where the garland will be placed. After you are happy with the placement areas on your railing that you marked, put little pieces of masking tape on those spots. Take the string down and measure the string. This measurement will tell you how long your garland will need to be. You can connect one garland length to another by wiring it or by twisting its little branches or "arms" together. Now you have one long length of garland. It should be the same length of the string. If there is any excess garland cut it off when you're finished. Here are the right supplies to choose for the class: Correct Garland ................................Incorrect Garland ....................................Incorrect Garland................................. For the glass bulb ornament, carefully lift the crown to expose the neck of the bulb, being careful not to remove completely. (As shown below) Apply a small amount of hot glue onto the neck then replace the crown. This angel is an example of a different type of ornament to be used on the garland. Click here to read more!