SENSATIONAL

[ HOW TO ]home for the holidaysMaking your home look festive doesn’t need to involve a huge outlay of cash or thetalents of Martha Stewart. We asked interior designer Peggie Melnychuk-Millard for afew simple tips to add holiday cheer at home. Read on for Melnychuk-Millard’s thoughtson light, texture, colour and a great idea for building a pair of outdoor reindeer.— Kathy FrazerLight up your lifeDon’t stop at red and greenAdd rich texturePhotos by leigh freywith new lighting productscontinually introduced, it’sbecoming easier – and morefun – to add seasonal ambianceby creating centres of lightthroughout your home. Thelight output and colour of LED(light-emitting diode) lightingis improving, and the priceis coming down, making LEDchoices attractive. As well, LEDlights are not hot, so they’reespecially versatile indoors.Look for LED stick lights thatresemble branches, and arrangesome in a large clear vase filledwith coloured Christmas balls, oradd them to an entrance-way urnfilled with cedar and pine boughs.Ropes of LED lights (lightsencased in plastic tubing) arebeautiful wound through artificialgreenery strung along a banisteror curled above your top kitchencabinets.For instant drama, add acoloured bulb to a pot light. Tryred or green in an interior wallniche, or outdoors in a section ofsoffit.Simply replacing some ofyour knick-knacks with items thatreflect light can also be effective.Increase seasonal sparkle withshiny ceramic, metallic andmirrored surfaces.while the red and green colourscheme is traditional, a changecan be refreshing. No need topack all those reds and greensaway and start over. Keep oneof the colours, say the reds, andadd new items in an analogoushue like purple, to achieve a rich,harmonious scheme. (Analogouscolours are those adjacent to eachother on the colour wheel.) Or gomonochromatic, using differentshades of the same colour. Forexample, add lime, apple, emeraldor sage to traditional forest green.Feeling brave? Add a punch ofcolour with an artificial tree in anunusual shade. A brown tree withall-green ornaments decoratesMelnychuk-Millard’s office at GoDesign Group.Analogous colours are adjacenton the colour wheel.heavier textures – both visualand tactile – can up the cosyquotient in a room. Replace yourcotton or silk toss cushions withvelvet ones. Place a warm woventhrow over the back of the sofa –or go bolder with red faux fur. Filla large basket or bowl with pinecones, and add extra texture toyour Christmas tree with spraysof twigs or, for an exotic look,feathers.our expert“We’re not opinionated – we justhave a lot of good ideas.” That’show Peggie Melnychuk-Millard(Interior Design Technology ’96)laughingly describes Go DesignGroup, the interior design firmshe and business partner TammyMackay (also from the classof ’96) own and have operatedin Edmonton since 2003. Thecompany, which employs twoother NAIT grads on its staff ofsix, is busy with a wide range ofprojects from office and retailspaces to trendy cafés andupscale show homes.Reindeer projectEven an inexperienced woodworkercan build this pair of reindeer ina weekend. The wooden pieces fittogether like a puzzle and best ofall, stack flat for storage after theholidays. You’ll get both reindeerout of a sheet of plywood and neednothing else but an electric jig saw,paint brush and exterior paint.Plus the plans, of course – purchasethe instructions online atwoodstore.net/4footlarrein.html.Share your favourite holidaydecorating idea by Dec. 1, 2011 fora chance to win these reindeerplans. Scan this QR code or visittechlifemag.ca/holiday-decor.htm.Need a QR code reader? See p. 5.v5.1 2011 25