Like jewelry, holiday trimmings

should complement—not compete

with—your existing decor, says

Lauren

(above

with husband,

Ciaran). “ I change things up a

little, but I don’t go all out and

redecorate. I’m about accessories.

That’s what I do.” She likes her

beaded window swags,

above left,

so much she doesn’t take them

down after the holidays.

C hristm as is a b ig deal fo r Lauren Henry. A really b ig deal. She fe ll in love w ith

her husband, Ciaran, over a rom antic C hristm as vacation in London. T hey

bought th e ir N ew England farm house in pa rt because she knew it w o u ld be the

pictu re-perfect place to celebrate the season.

“ I ’m th a t Jew ish g irl gone w ild fo r Christm as,” laughs Lauren, w h o was raised

in a fa m ily th a t em braced both traditions. “ I look fo rw a rd to it all year long.”

Lauren’s passion fo r the ho lid ay and all its trim m in g s even inspired her

cu rre n t career: A fte r try in g her hand at m aking beaded ornam ents several years

ago, she branched ou t in to earrings and necklaces. N ow she sells he r delicate,

sculptured je w e lry and handbags in boutiques. (See he r designs at

lukie.net

.)

H o lid a y decorations can be like jew elry, too, says Lauren, w h o uses sim ple

m aterials in subtle and sophisticated ways. For instance, she drapes beaded

garlands, necklace-style, above her w indo w s fo r a su rp risin g ly elegant topper.

Blue chandelier crystals (a few dollars each) dangle like teardrop earrings from

bare tree branches. C olor and q u a n tity are key, she says. “ The w ay to make things

th a t are inexpensive look expensive—and not over the top and C hristm as

cheap—is to do lots o f the same things and use lots o f the same colors.”

The fresh, unexpected com bination o f lim e green and blue gives the 1750s

house a slig h tly m odern tw is t d u rin g the holidays and year-round. In the liv in g

room , paneled w alls w ear lim e-green paint, toned dow n a b it w ith brow n glaze.

Fabrics include a bold indigo plaid on the sofa and chartreuse b lo ck-p rin t

curtains. Even C hristm as packages are w rapped in Lauren’s “ signature” palette.

“ It drives m y husband nuts,” she says w ith a g u ilty sm ile. “ I f he buys me a g ift

th a t’s n o t w rapped in m y paper, it goes w ay underneath the tree.”

J

g -Mil

mmm

The Henrys used salvaged

attic boards for the dining

room’s rustic pine

woodwork. Varying the

trim style in each room

creates a sense of history,

Laureh says. “ I wanted it

to look like different people

had lived here over time.”

For consistency, she

painted all the plaster

walls a warm white.

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DECEMBER ?OC>8 BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS