Take a look around Molly Mahon's crafty countryside Christmas
The living room of Molly Mahon’s East Sussex family home is bathed in a soft candlelit glow and the open fire is crackling.
Molly has lived in this largely Victorian cottage on the edge of the forest for 14 years with her husband and children plus Bramble the dog.
Decorating it coincided with the blossoming of her business, designing distinctive block-printed style fabrics, wallpapers and homewares (have a look at mollymahon.com.) And now her products, alongside the homespun festive decorations, add warmth and personality to every corner of her home.
The warm shade on the living room walls – Parsonage Pink by Papers & Paints – feels appropriately Christmassy today but it’s a colour Molly has always been drawn to.
"It’s a happy, welcoming shade for me. I’ve designed several fabrics that combine red and pink, which probably breaks an old-fashioned rule, but I say, “Why not?” They make me smile."
The family goes tree hunting in mid-December. "It’s lovely to have a tree in the house for as long as possible, with that burst of piney fragrance that says Christmas as soon as you walk into the room." These days, Molly and Rollo are happy to let their daughter oversee the decorating. "She loves sorting through all our decorations so I’ve delegated the task to her."
Traditional bows, dried marigold garlands and fairy lights decorate the tree. Paper chains add more frivolous bursts of colour and paper stars hang in the windows. "Tie bouquets of freshly cut mistletoe with generous lengths of pink velvet ribbon to bring out the natural green tones."
Molly had always loved colour and pattern but she took a course in block printing when she was looking for a job more compatible with a young family. Now her designs combine the traditional beauty of the age-old Indian craft with motifs inspired by the local countryside.
The dining room is a joyous showcase for her vibrant homewares. The tablecloth is in Molly Mahon’s plain linen, trimmed with a generous frill of her Lunar print. Gleaming brass lassi cups from India and candlesticks add atmosphere. "Little details make the mood rich, opulent and special," she says. Her Patti and Lunar block-print designs hang at the window, the internal curtain is in Bagru and the cushions are in Lunar and Buti.
And this time of year, the creative skills she’s honed mean she can happily turn her hand to everything from needle-felted nativity figures to hand-printed cards. "Even now we have teenagers, I still gather everyone around the kitchen table to make our cards," she says. "Our day ends with walking to the post box and dropping the cards in with a plop – another small moment of joy."
When her children were little, Molly made each of them a stocking from fabric offcuts but they have recently had stylish handmade upgrades with decadent new versions made from her fabrics, which they hang by the fireplace. "On Christmas Day, I’m always up first," says Molly. "I light the fire and wait to see everyone’s faces when they spot their stockings."
This is a time when the family enjoys slowing down. "We don’t rush off to the theatre or the shops; we love just being at home," says Molly. Living on the edge of a forest, there are also plenty of dog walks. "In every season, there’s a magic to being in the forest, but Christmas is my favourite. Walking, for me, is a way to find stillness at this busy time of year."
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