Stories from the Studio

Natural Christmas Decorations - Jemma's Styling Tips

Dec 05, 2019

Natural Christmas Decorations - Jemma's styling tips

This month we were joined in our Mount Edgcumbe shop by stylist Jemma Barnard.

A second year Interior Decoration, Design and Styling student from Plymouth College of Art, Jemma helped us to add a festive feel using natural Christmas decorations, locally sourced.

Jemma, tell us a bit more about your Christmas styling.

"The look I wanted to create in the shop was natural and organic, to mirror the sustainable principles and materials of Helen’s products, but also the park grounds."

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"I worked with foliage from the grounds of Mount Edgcumbe, in particular twisted willow, holly and ivy. I used basic principles of floral arranging and created a base layer with ivy, and then gradually layered up with the other foliage, finishing with the red berries. Fairy lights were also weaved into the greenery.

I also used linen offcuts to accessorise the twisted willow hanging in the window. I think it is really important to repurpose where possible and using techniques like this and collected foliage means you can work to a very small budget and make use of otherwise waste materials.

In terms of colour scheme I worked with warm toned linens in the window, to have more of a festive feel. The flashes of red with the holly berry sprigs also accentuate this."

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"My top tips would be to experiment with height and layering, drawing the eye to different levels but creating an element of symmetry and balance overall. Adding smaller finishing touches such as twine tied around notebooks and napkins with sprigs of holly, gives an overall more polished and detailed finish. It’s all in these smaller details!

I have always stood by the rule that it is important to know where to stop, so I often stand back from the work and get to get a good overview. With foliage it can be easy to keep adding but sometimes you do have to stick to the principle that less is more!"

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