Ethan Allen's Holiday Workshop {What I learned}

I hope all of you in the U.S. had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. It always goes way too fast. We spent a week in Hilton Head, SC with our family. It was quite relaxing and of course we ate WAY too much food. I am headed to the doctors tomorrow and hopefully he doesn't think I am having triplets by looking at the numbers on the scale! hehe

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to attend the holiday workshop at our local Ethan Allen. I went to the holiday workshop last year and really soaked up a lot of ideas and inspiration. The designers at Ethan Allen did not disappoint again this year. They came up with new and fresh ideas for all of us customers that attended.

I know many of you have already finished your holiday decorating, but for the rest of us that are either in the mist of pulling our bins from the attic or trying to decide how to decorate our trees, I thought I would share some of the tips and tricks they taught us. And for the rest of you overachievers....you can pin these thoughts for next year!

Of course I forgot to get a before picture...but here the designers took a plain buffet and mixed rustic lamps with a glitzy mirror to add some interest. I love the unexpected pop of red tulips instead of the typical amaryllis or paper-whites. The designers also gave us some tips of going out into your own backyard or gardens to pull out different textures in leaves and greenery to add depth and character.

This was a neat display on a dining room table. Here they added a plaid scarf instead of a table runner for warmth. I love the open box with the different heights of candles. They created an asymmetrical look, but it feels balanced with all the different materials used.

{P.S. I won the cute little footed silver tray! I can't wait to use it for the holidays!}

This picture is kind of washed out, but you get the general idea. This is what they called the transition from fall to winter using rustic, velvet, burgundy or burnt orange colors and textures. 

Tips:

-Place a Large tray on top of your coffee table for drinks and snacks

-Borrow pieces from other rooms

-Use spice colors to bring in the holiday look without going red and green

-Add candles for warmth

-Varying heights of objects on your tray or coffee table

-Use tray for entertaining with some small hors d'oeurves

-Place the recipe for your hors d'oeurves in a small frame on the coffee table for guests

I adore mercury glass for the holidays. It says classic and can be used around the home all winter. This adorable vignette boasts fabulous with yet again an asymmetrical look. I love that bowl layered with greens, gold beads, pine-cones and baubles! I think I need to add that idea to my dining room for sure.

After walking around the store and having the designers share their vignette's and ideas, we were invited back to the design room for hors d'oeurves. They had everything displayed perfectly using a gold, black and white color scheme. I of course loved the idea of the centerpiece below.

How great is this idea? Using an old mirror for a centerpiece and then layering candles and flowers on top to create a glam look for the holidays! Now...if only I had an old mirror laying around.


While we snacked on all of the fabulous treats, we were given some great tips and tricks on how to create a designer holiday tree.

And of course I didn't get a great picture of the tree they decorated....so here are a few of my favorites from around the web. I love the variation in colors and themes. 

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Colorful Ombre Tree

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So tell me....do you change your colors and themes every year or are you a traditionalist where everything looks pretty much the same year to year? 

Hope some of these ideas spurred you on to finished your decorating or at least get you started thinking about the holiday season!

I am off to do some Cyber Shopping in my sweats! Nothing better. Have a wonderful start to your week!

To view last year's Ethan Allen Holiday Tips and Tricks click HERE.