Toujours Patriotic Decorating Guide!

Check out the new Patriotic Party Guide - out today!  

Designer Emily Ruddo of Armonia Decors gives great tips for creating a festive, easy Fourth of July party!  Here are some extra photos and tips for great decorating.

Giving your guests a little snack while they eat is always a good idea - and we love how Emily garnished the glass with a slice of watermelon!

Simple roses and peonies make our dessert table sing!  And just throwing simple Red Vines in a glass and finding red and blue M&M's help round out the theme.

 We love the tropical outdoor blue table cloth paired with red and white polka dotted napkins Emily chose!  And these little shells are a great way to keep your napkins from blowing away.

We love Emily's cupcake fruit toppers - a healthy and pretty way to decorate - we only use food coloring in non-edible decorations!  

Check out the full spread here!!

I’ll be Home for Christmas. My Home!

By our Editor-at-Large Dawn Moore

Christmas glamour just isn’t what it used to be. I mean, how do you compete with a vixen-meets-hausfrau cocktail apron designed of black net and velvet? In 1965, my mother was definitely at the top of the glamour food chain.

Our annual open house featured silver rococo chafing dishes simmering sweet and sour meatballs; Sheffield trays with pigs in a blanket, slices of fruit cake (Mom made in September!) on handpainted porcelain platters and a massive sparkling American cut glass punch bowl with 24 matching cups with eggnog...all atop a Poinsettia print tablecloth. The tree – which morphed over the years from traditional evergreen to modern white mystery-material – twinkled in the corner with hundreds of gifts she wrapped herself in shiny red and green, spilling below.

There’s pictures of my Hollywood parents and their guests in crisply tailored suits from Sy Devore and cocktail dresses from Don Loper wrangling cigarettes and Manhattans with studied grace.

So, no pressure on me to hit that “ten” on the swank-o-meter. None. Oy.

With fluctuating careers and bank accounts, who wants all that stress? I certainly don’t. So, last year I gave in to the Pot Luck Christmas Day Soiree. Here’s the deal:

1. Throw some twinkle lights on the bookshelves, fireplace mantel or refridgerator. 

2. Use cocodot.com to create cool, free e-vites. Uber easy. 

3. Tell guests no presents – food only! No kidding! 

4. Get from them what they’re bringing, and set the table for the “buffet.” (I still have to control how the table looks. Come on.) Stick notes on the plates specifying whose dish is going where. Et voila!

5. Stock up on champagne, wine and whip up a batch of booze-free Cranberry Punch. I keep trying to serve eggnog, but always wind up drinking it all myself. 

6. Have someone with better taste in music than you, assort a playlist – Lulu Powers has some great ones!

7. Wear jeans and fun holiday foot attire. 

8. Find wacky little trinkets – books, CDs, candles – around your house that you think your friends would enjoy and wrap them up. ANNOUNCE your little re-gifting scheme and distribute! 

9. Light a zillion votives. 

10. Enjoy the genuine love that glows from being with your friends just because you want to be.

Fringe benefit last year? My best friend’s daughter announced her engagement infront of everyone – tears and champagne flowed – and it was the best Christmas ever. Sans cocktail apron.

Holiday Decorating Guest Blog!

Toujours Magazine asked East Coast designer, Joanne Palumbo, to share her favorite decorating tips for the season.  Seeing as Joanne styles and stages homes professionally, we thought she would be the perfect person to get more great decorating advice from this week to assure a fabulously decorated homes this season!  We hope you enjoy her great ideas and make sure to check out her blog for year round styling advice:

With Thanksgiving behind us, the time has arrived to tackle the task of holiday decorating. While nothing gives me more of a thrill than a string of bright lights, as an Interior Decorator, the act of decorating for the holidays is the equivalent of walking a tight rope between the tiny twig from the Charlie Brown tale or the over-lit home of the Griswalds. So, as I stare down the boxes upon boxes of my own holiday decorations, here are a few tips to keep the décor tasteful through the season.

1. Pick your vignettes. The first step in keeping holiday decorations tasteful is to use them thoughtfully. Try to refrain from throwing a ceramic Santa or tin reindeer on every table in your home. Instead, select several spots in your house where you would like to create a holiday focal point. Some examples of this might be a piano, coffee table, entry table, bookshelves, or a fireplace mantle. Pick several places throughout your home so visitors can feel the warmth of the holidays as they move from room to room.

2. Edit your space. This might be the most important step in decorating. Edit the vignette you wish to decorate. Don’t try to squeeze the menorah in with your collection of photos and tcha chakes. Pack up some of your year-round accessories and make some room for your special holiday trinkets. Keep the accessories that are either neutral or work in the color scheme of your holiday decorations and pack the rest up!

3. Choose your color scheme. Many people default to red and green or blue and white but if you are thoughtful in your planning, you can be more adventurous and change things up a bit. Why not try fuchsia and chartreuse? Green and brown? And almost every color can be coordinated with a metallic: pink and silver, red and gold. You get the idea. If you have boxes of accessories already, try to draw the color inspiration from the decorations you would like to use. Trail the colors throughout the room. And the color doesn’t need to exist specifically in the holiday décor alone. Incorporate a throw, a picture frame, some candles or books with jackets all in your selected colors and you’ll have an effortless looking jazzed up space. (Toujours Agrees!  Check out the Holiday Guide for more great ideas for color!)

4. Get the eyes moving! When considering the placement of your holiday décor, try to vary the heights of the objects. Don’t throw everything on the table top in your vignette. Try to hang a wreath or some stockings above the vignette and maybe add some potted plants or statues on the floor. Varying the placement of your beloved items is what keeps the holiday decorating warm and inviting. This picture shows a great example of that…I imagine that if you zoomed out, there would be a beautiful wreath on those amazing windows, too!

5. Unexpected décor always pleases! Besides decorating your main vignettes, perhaps drop a few coordinated decorations in unexpected places: a wreath in the bathroom, some garland over the master bed or scented candles in the hall to keep the holiday spirit flowing!

Enough of my babbling about how to decorate for the holidays- now it is time to get out there and tackle your décor. With a little mindful planning, you are sure to have a warm, inviting and tasteful holiday-ready home.

A little bit about Joanne:

Joanne Palumbo is the owner of Homestyling101, LLC, a boutique Interior Decorating firm in Westchester, New York. Joanne is a Certified Interior Decorator and expert in Home Staging, whose quest is to find simplicity in the decorating process. She is also the author of the Homestyling101 blog where she chronicles her experiences and tips as a decorator.

Holiday Guide: Beautiful Decorating Tips!

This Holiday Guide was such a blast to create and gorgeous designer (and our design editor!) Emily Ruddo seriously takes the hostess award.  Between Emily and Lulu Powers, this issue of Toujours Mag is an entertaining guidebook!  We love that taking your existing decor and adding some flowers, a few wreaths, simple decorations, and rearranging what you already own can make such a big difference.  Truly, Emily advises to use glitter (she uses the Martha variety) to brighten up inexpensive ornaments (try shatterproof - see the feather tree below).  You can match the glitter to your decor - and you can always change it in a few years with new glitter.  Remember, you can always use what you currently have in your house in a new spot - don't shy from rearranging - it makes all the difference!  For more great tips from Emily Ruddo, definitely check out the guide and the holiday issue - there are tips galore.  

Happy decorating!

Taking a little Loreal red lipstick to the mirror was an easy way to pop more color in the room - practice first - 

it's not hard to clean, but who wants to?

Ribbon candy, homemade glitter ornaments and a homemade feather tree helped this dessert table shine.

To see more lovely photos, definitely check out the current issue.  Go to page 42 for the Decorating Guide or meander there and see other fabulous design, decoration, and entertaining stories.  

Happy Holidays!

Photos: Meghan Beierle-O'Brien

Inspired Decor for Halloween

Decorating for Halloween can be a bit cheesy, so this fall, we are taking inspired tips from artist and art editor, Sasha Kinens.  While in New York shooting I got to stay at Sasha's home and completely loved her mantle display.  Enjoy the shots and send us your favorite holiday decor shots to info@toujoursmag.com.  We would love to feature some of our readers!

Happy Spooking!

Meghan

Sasha pinned up fabric over some unsightly bookshelves in her living room that she and her husband were not ready to deal with.  I love the way the fabric feels like wall paper without the mess or fuss.  Such a great way to hide an unattractive part of a room!

Sasha lighting the candles around her cast plaster skull  and tree branches collected in her yard.

Pillar Candles from Pottery Barn glow, a plaster skull, and a Moroccan perfume bottle are just a few of Sasha's favorite accessories.

While Sasha found her metal house that houses her pillar candles at a resale shop, here is a link to one you can buy online.  

Feathers are everywhere this fall.  Make sure to pick up some great ones from your local craft store, fabric shop, or vintage store.