Look for an extensive overview of the San Francisco Decorator Showcase in the Bay Area News Group papers this Saturday, but in the meantime here’s a peak at design elements that felt fresh and noteworthy this year.

Contemporary Art as Inspiration

Check out the Cy Twombly inspired floors in Catherine Kwong’s living room, above.  See those splashes and swirls?   They set the tone for this entire showcase house and they’re likely to be the thing people are still talking about in years to come.   Similarly, Heather Hilliard looked to the public art of Sol LeWitt to create the painted detailing on the upper walls of her dining room.

And Martha Angus and Esche Martinez anchored their exuberant playroom with a op-art inspired custom carpet.

Oceanic Blue

Though black and white was the predominant color theme of the showcase, the #1 accent color was a rich turquoise blue.  Kelly Hohla hung it over the mantel by way of this mirrored “jewel” in her Makers Mark Retreat.

Matthew Leverone used it several ways in his ground floor Salon.

Kriste Michelini welcomed visitors to her cozy writer’s retreat with this cheery velvet sofa in the showcase’s signature color.

Decorative painter Willem Racke’ used it for his cut-out mirrored wall mural in Emilie Monroe’s 3rd floor bath.

And Alfred Gregory specified it for this custom tile by Waterworks in the “Elysium” guest bath (note the cool custom threshold while you’re here.)

Living Walls

Vertical gardening can happen just about anywhere, including this sculptural bathroom by Soil Studios.  The plants in this bath wall include French lavender and mint which can be snipped right there to scent the bath.

The same technology was used to create this gorgeous courtyard garden off the kitchen.  The befores are truly incredible–nothing was here besides bare brick wall before Living Green designed and installed these living walls.  Glorious stuff.

Statement Lighting

But living walls weren’t the only artful designs reaching skyward–unusual lighting did as well.  Here are some of my favorite examples.

Kelly Hohla used this mobile-like fixture to draw your eye to the unusual pitched ceiling in the Maker’s Mark retreat.

Alfred Gregory chose this glass chain link fixture both for dramatic effect and because it would stand up to the open shower in the room.

Gioi Tran commissioned a creepy crawly light fixture to fan out across this resin map of London in the teenage girl’s room.

Zoe Hsu paired this undulating fixture with python wall paper in the master sitting room.  Sssssspectacular.

And Stephanie Marsh Fillbrandt  used a hook-like light fixture from Coup d’Etat to add industrial heft to her sweet Chocolatier’s Lab.

Treat yourself and maybe a friend–mom!–to a trip to the showcase before it closes on May 27. You’ll come away inspired to try a new thing or two in your own personal showplace.

We’re down to the wire now people.  Less than a week ‘til Christmas and if your house is anything like mine, it’s covered in a staggering mix of wrapping paper scraps and powdered sugar. Time to take stock of what we realistically can do and what needs to go into our dreams of Christmas future.

Here are a few of my favorite, easy ways to pull your house together in the “Nick” o’ time.

Mix it up.  A hotshot professional florist once told me the best way to light a tree is to pick a color scheme and then vary the size of lights.  I’m a white lights kinda gal, but I love adding different shapes and sizes to my tree to add depth and sparkle.  Even if your tree is already decorated, think about adding one or two more strands of lights in larger or smaller sizes or shapes and see what a difference they make.

Simplify. Christmas decorations may be “driving the dark away” but they shouldn’t totally obscure it.  I like having a few spare decorative elements around to remind me that underneath all the fuss and muss this is the quiet, meditative time of the year.

Deconstruct.  In a similar vein, I prefer simple seasonal floral arrangements.  Gather 2-3 related vases and buy seasonal foliage in the same numbers, then instead of mixing them together place them side-by-side.  Breathe in, breathe out.

Light it up.  Years ago I went to a party where the host and hostess—young, broke artists—had gathered dozens of junk store glasses and filled them with white candles.  I loved the miss-matched nature of the holders and started gathering a few of my own. It was a sad Christmas Eve when a small snifter monogrammed with the name Audrey fell off the mantle and shattered.  Burn one fragrant candle as well. I adore Diptyque’s Pomander.

Decorate to Delight.  My inner child is completely entranced this year by a simple paper mobile by Danish Design.  When the stress of the season starts to get to me, I pause to watch it slowly turn in my entryway casting shadows by day and swimming in the reflected lights of my own Christmas tree and the neighbors’ porch decorations by night. Joy.

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Congratulations to Julie Woodfield of Simply Julie who won the ACE Hardware giveaway—she plans on using her $100 to add more garlands and window lights to her home—lovely.  Here are two other ideas for simple holiday decorations using things you find around your house or your own back yard from ACE’s design expert Julie Richard.

–Gather all the clear glasses vases you own. Fill them with either silver or glass balls before adding freshly cut tree branches.  If you want to give them a snow-kissed look, spray the branches loosely with white paint.

–Pinecones look beautiful painted as well.  Paint them with silver, gold white, or a combination of all three and mound them in glass, wood or metal bowls for an easy, elegant craft project.

Merry Christmas everyone!

See you in the New Year where I’ll be one son-in-law richer.

Yep.  Classy in the front and a party in the back. That’s the way I’ve lit up the holidays ever since our kids were little, and this year it’s been fun to deck our new halls with the old mix of white and colored lights.

Of course, it took a trip or two to Grand Lake Ace Hardware to pick up some new strands of lights, a few replacement bulbs–why don’t they make pink ones?–and a second outdoor timer in order to make the season bright. The next run will be for a front door wreath, cyclamen and mistletoe at the adjacent garden center.

I assume that you, too, are about to haul out the holly by way of a trip to the hardware store.  Fortunately, the helpful folks at Ace Hardware sent me a $100 gift card to bestow upon one of you lucky readers. Ho ho ho—a holiday giveaway!

So drop me a line by Monday, Dec. 10th about how you would use $100 for a holiday home makeover. I’ll pick a winner and publish some of your ideas in my next post along with some of my favorite decorating tips for the holidays.