Article: It's Party Time! - Let's Decorate

[Sara Noel]

Holidays are here and so is the spirit of partying. Here are some wonderful ideas for transforming your home into an innovative party scenario and giving your guests an occasion that will forever remain etched in their memories.

1. Entrance: Do up your entrance. The entrance to your home should be magnificent and welcoming. Line the driveway with luminaries. Place a guest book at the front door for expressing sentiments. Clean up clutter near your entrance. Decorate the entrance traditionally or with something unusual to set a celebratory mood. You could also decorate according to the theme of your party. Sleigh Bells or wreaths for Christmas, ghoulish figures for Halloween etc.

2. Lighting: Lighting sets the mood for the party. Interesting ways to play with lighting are to cover light bulbs with multi-colored cellophane strips, cover lights or battery-torches with soft white cloth and place them separately to give the room an air of mystery, or use all your beautiful candles together instead of lights to create a romantic mood. If using candles, combine candles of various colors, shapes and sizes together.

3. Flowers: Flowers will never go out of Fashion. Use lots of seasonal flowers to add freshness and fragrance to your decor. Use garlands to decorate tall structures, floral arrangements on mantels and corners and floating displays of seasonal flowers and floating candles for an eye-catching centerpiece. Visit our Flower Arrangement Gallery by Chrissie Harten for some great ideas. If you expecting kids at your party, place such arrangements out of reach of children or use wooden or metal vases and bowls instead of glass and porcelain.

4. Fabric and Linen: The color and texture of the fabric in the room should be decided according to the occasion, theme, season etc. Cool fabrics go for summers. Rich brocades and Velvet go with a Victorian theme. Red, Golden and White will give the room a Christmassy feel.

5. A Special Touch: Give the party scenario a special touch by placing an object which will be the center of attraction for your guests. A party is the right time to show off your beautiful collection of dolls or your set of original oils by a famous artist. A set of rare books placed together as a 'mini-library' in your party room will also become a major attraction if your guests are Literature-Lovers. Apart from collections, you can use mini-aquariums, waterfalls, miniature indoor gardens etc. These will not only beautify the room, but also give your guests a beautiful theme to start a conversation.

Happy Decorating!

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About the Author
Lata Budhrani is the Founder/Editor of Dot Com Women, a premier women's website and online community. Lata is also a freelance writer and writes on a variety of women's issues. Visit her at http://www.dotcomwomen.com

[Guest1]

Great suggestions....

I realize this probably sounds no-brainer-ish, but this is the first year that I've actually "done" something to my door - GW's family does it all the time, but I've never even thought about it....I'm investing in a different "door item" for each season/holiday! It's so much fun!I'm loving it!! I bought some really neat sleigh bells at Wal-Mart the other night with a big blue & silver bow for Christmas...as soon as those turkey leftovers are in the fridge, I'm putting them up!!

Thanks for the inspiration Sara!