In the Northern Hemisphere, Christmas lights and decorations are essential to brighten up some dull dark days. It isn’t easy getting up in the dark and feeling like you should go to bed at 17:00! I am not a fan of winter and yearn for bright blue days even if cold. We are getting close to December in a difficult year and as I walked down a major high street in Berlin it was sad to see that none of the normal Christmas street lights, the little train, the little aeroplane or even the Berlin sign were up. It seems as if no-one can be bothered or could see the reason why. Even the fairy lights in the trees are missing. Individual shops seem to be trying with chocolate houses, gnomes and chic stars scattered around.
What to Choose?
So we visited the ritzy KaDeWe store and happily spent too much on our decorations. There is so much to choose from apart from the traditional wooden houses and red and green baubles. You can now buy cupcakes, racing cars and cocktail glasses. Anything goes! When choosing your decor, you may wish to consider Feng Shui practice in both the colour and material. Many people make their own and some probably need to put them all up and then take a third down. There can be too much!
Wood and Metal
There are some lovely German traditional carved scenarios but also some minimalist wooden stars in a Scandinavian style. Wood is the element of growth and should be used in the areas that match that or where you wish something to grow. One thing to remember, the element of Metal cuts down Wood. Metal symbolises honesty and strength in Feng Shui. We have some lovely chic metal decorations which we will hang in the Travel and Helpful People sector where the Metal element belongs. The front door will have a metal bell wreath that gently jingles when opening the door.
Fire
Fire is all about energy and can be found in lights, candles and anything red. Preferring gentler colours, I will add this element with lots of fairy lights. Put some battery operated lights in a big glass jar, it always lightens up a room. We hang garlands of lights around curtain rods and hang decorations from there. Red and green berries are an old tradition as they represent growth and fruitfulness. The classic wreath is often seen with check ribbon and holly.
Choosing Colours
Our living room is in the Relationship corner and this means soft earth tones, pale rose and bronze colours with white icing on top. I love this combination and we have some beautiful drops and baubles. The dining room will be forest green with gold as this is the Wealth sector. We could also use royal blue or purple and there seems to be some fun decorations even if they border on being kitsch! Having said that, not sure a mermaid is any more weird than a red-nosed reindeer!
The Tree
Personally, I don’t like the idea of cutting down a tree just for a couple of days. Many friends have put a tree in a pot, keep it for the rest of the year and proudly bring it in during Christmas having looked after it. There are some very realistic fake trees out there, please consider them. Having two cats who would launch themselves at the tree and both being allergic to pine, we use lights as the garlands. So if you are lazy like us, unwind the lights and spend a few minutes arguing which should go where or if you are creative, get out that glue gun and go! Happy decorating.
