Fortnum & Mason’s window dresser shares top Christmas decorating tips
It’s the most wonderful time of the year – and the busiest! We've asked a few of our favourite ‘industry insiders’ – people well-practised in the art of making the festive season truly special – for their pearls of wisdom to help you get Christmas sorted.
Here we talk to Sallie Smith, head of visual presentation at Fortnum & Mason, and the creative mind behind their famous Christmas windows, about how to decorate with wow factor.
Fortnum & Mason Christmas windows are iconic — which has been your favourite?
SS: My favourite Fortnum’s Christmas window was based around how our iconic products are made. Cats in red frock coats used Heath Robinson-style machinery to put bubbles in champagne, check the ‘bangs’ in crackers and decorate chocolate yule logs as mischievous mice added extra humorous touches for our customers to enjoy. Every Christmas our aim is to create joy for the viewer, but this design had so many feel-good elements.
How do you prepare for Christmas in your own home?
SS: I think about it for months in the lead up to December, and people assume I must have no enthusiasm left by the time it comes around, but I absolutely love it. I have 11-year-old twin boys who have grown up thinking it’s completely normal to have a Christmas tree in each of their bedrooms!
No two Christmases ever look exactly the same in our house. I love choosing a big tree – often one that needs to be trimmed to even fit through the door – and I use lots of warm white lights and an abundance of decorations throughout different areas of the house.
What are your tips for creating the wow factor?
SS: Often the focus is on the tree when decorating the home, but I think it’s important to think beyond this when trying to create the wow factor. The stair bannisters, sideboards, top shelves of bookcases, and the all-important dining table are brilliant areas to add festive dressing to.
Being playful and thinking more broadly than traditional baubles and decorations allows for endless possibilities and can sometimes be more cost-effective too. In previous years, I’ve sprayed painted branches and natural elements, hung hundreds of clear crystal drops, made oversized bows from wired ribbon, and even scattered small, loose feathers in amongst the tree.
Decorative Hanging Fabric Door Bow
£37.99 at notonthehighstreet.com
Velvet Napkin Bows - Moss Green
Pink Velvet Bow Christmas Decoration
Favourite finishing touches?
SS: My favourite touches are often the simplest. Foliage and holly clippings from my parent’s garden, giant fir cones collected from the tree at my friend’s house, and tea lights in glass jars in every room. I always like to make place settings with the boys for Christmas Day. Last year, we made tiny gingerbread houses and piped everyone’s names in icing.
And it’s not just the visual dressing to consider. For me, there is nothing better than the scent of fresh fir. I trim small sections from my tree and add them into a wreath for the front door or add them into garlands elsewhere, so the fresh scent continues throughout my home.
Fortnum's Mini Hamper Christmas Decoration
Fortnum's Cake Stand Christmas Decoration
Fortnum's Cake Stand Christmas Decoration
Fortnum's Mini Hamper Christmas Decoration
Fortnum's Hot Air Balloon Ornament
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