after-hours design

My sister Denise arrived from Denver late Sunday night to spend the week helping with client Christmas set-ups. Each year we do approximately 20 such gigs for those fortunate enough to book early.

After a grueling airport experience, we started bright and early Monday morning at Lani's house(having had a refreshing 2 1/2 hours of sleep). We couldn't have asked for a more pleasant start to our week! We hadn't been working more than a couple of hours before Lani announced that it was lunchtime--and we're not talking Taco Bell. Our sweet hostess/client had a beautiful sit-down lunch catered for us! We ate in her elegantly set dining room, using Holiday Lenox china and sparkling lead crystal goblets. Talk about graciousness and style!

Lani's tree is a beautiful flocked one, done in shades of aqua and brown. We transformed the music room into a serene holiday retreat, as well as decked her banisters with garland, and gave her holiday mantle a new look using my new favorite holiday color scheme--sparkling graphite and persimmon.



















The finished mantle is definitely a sophisticated touch to a lovely living room.

After wrapping up at Lani's, we went home for a two-hour power nap in preparation for the all-night set-up at the historic Yardley Inn. Armed with chenille wraps, the leftover lunch Lani sent home with us (including delicious chocolate-dipped strawberries--Denise wondered if all my clients are so generous and thoughtful), and a crew of six, we went to work decking the restaurant in its yearly holiday splendor.

The inside entry, downstairs and upstairs dining rooms, exterior--heck, even the restrooms--get a touch of holiday glam and sparkle.

We finished up around 4 a.m., just in time to sleep for a few hours before our next appointment, which I will have to share in another post, as it is already almost 1 a.m. and we've got another early day tomorrow--I mean today.