Cool It
You know it’s almost here, don’t you? The season when we collectively go crazy—packing already crowded schedules with cookie bake-offs, school pageants, open houses, holiday parties, gift shopping, family dinners, you name it. Most of us just try to last until New Year’s Day, when we can collapse and doze through endless college bowl games.
Our suggestion for dealing with the approaching über insanity: Cool it.
Just say “no” to hyper displays of inflatable Santas and mechanical reindeer, to holiday décor that fuels the bedlam of sugar-fueled kids and mental exhaustion, to gift desperation that cranks up the pre-Christmas pressure. We packed this issue with ideas for keeping your holiday cool—none of them, perhaps, as surefire as a hot-stone massage, but then, what is?
This is the season when even the most inventive entertainers run short of fresh tabletop inspiration. Don’t panic; try looking around your own backyard—literally. For “Natural Beauty” (page 24), we asked Minneapolis stylist Barbara Schmidt to create elegant-yet-doable tablescapes based on found elements—a snip of spruce, a sliver of ice, a stray feather. She gathered pretty plates, glassware, and linens in three cool, crisp palettes. Each one captures a seasonal feel, but never loses its Zen vibe.
We also searched high and low for seasonal outdoor lights that are truly elegant and tranquility-producing. You’ll be impressed with the finds featured in “Make It Glow” (page 20), where we feature lighting ideas that range from $1,500 Moonlight Globe spheres to ice-molded forms you can make yourself. Whichever one you choose, be assured it will add just the right celebratory glow to your terrace or entryway.
Then, of course, there’s our ultimate aid for keeping middle-of-the-night panic at bay: “Ready, Set, Shop” (page 30), our 2009 gift guide. Associate editor Alyssa Ford, home-product procurer extraordinaire, reviewed and rejected hundreds of products before selecting these 35 sophisticated gifts. Whether the tough-to-buy-for on your list is a traveler, a cook, or a kid at heart, you’ll find inspiration here. And with wares priced from $16 to $1,160, one of them is sure to be a perfect fit.
From our home to yours, warmest wishes for a cool and calm holiday season.
Chris Lee, Editor
clee@midwesthomemag.com
6 ISSUES (1 YEAR)
