Struggling for festive decor ideas with the same old box of baubles? Here’s the gift of inspiration from some of Yorkshire’s interiors influencers who show us how they get crafty for Christmas and create the wow-factor at home
Go bold!
Joanne Hardcastle lives just outside of Leeds with her husband and youngest daughter. She recently appeared on season four of BBC Interior Design Masters. She shares her home on Instagram at @hardcastletowers
How did you achieve this look
‘As I have become known as a maximalist it’s understandable there’s not much room for Christmas decor, I have to take things away to make space and I always struggle to fit in a Christmas tree, because of this my fireplaces are the main focal point for Christmas.
In my dining room, I always go really colourful with paper garlands and decorations, I try to change the look every year. I suspend the paper fans on fishing wire and attach these to the picture rail, it takes a lot of faffing, but I’m always pleased with the end result.
The table setting is a huge part of the scheme, and again it’s different every year, over the years I have built my collection of Spode Christmas tree crockery and I change up other accessories such as tablecloths and napkins to go with this.
I like to keep the look in the living room a lot more natural and I forage in our local woods for greenery to add to my collection of faux Christmas bits, the garland may change, but you will see the same bits in it every year.
I really struggle decorating Christmas trees, I find a smaller one on a coffee table is easier to manage although I would love a huge one. I just do not have the space.’
Reuse as much as possible.
Create a dedicated storage area for Christmas decorations and put away in colour coded boxes, so it’s easy to see what you’ve got.
Keep an eye out throughout the year for things such as colourful candles which will match with a scheme and lookout in the January sales for wrapping paper (top tip from Grandma!)
Forage for greenery in local woods, I think the rule is ‘just enough for what you need.
Plans this year
I really loved the red and white candy cane look that I did last year so I think it’s going to be a variation on that, maybe I will go a little bit more pared back on the fireplace and use some vintage decorations there. I need to have a look in my cupboard for some inspiration!’
Inspiration
I get ideas from all around me, luckily I get invited to a lot of the press shows that take place in the summer and start to formulate ideas from there. Last year the inspiration came from a red and white striped H&M tablecloth and the rest evolved from that.
There was a really pretty look at the Next show this summer with lots of Gingham and gingerbread, maybe that has sparked some ideas for me!
Christmas this year
It’s looking quiet for us this year, we are at that stage of our life where we’ve lost the older generation and we are still waiting for the younger ones to be born!
My eldest two daughters live in London and they will come home, they still have Christmas stockings and we do all the Christmas Eve traditions like leaving a carrot for Santa and spreading dust for the reindeers to eat.
We will get up early in the morning and open presents and then me and my husband cook dinner together whilst getting a little bit tiddly on champagne, and then we eat and have a lovely snuggly evening all together. It’s perfect.’
Cottage core
Caroline Smith lives in Boston Spa with her husband and three children. She started sharing her renovation journey and beautiful photos of her home on her blog and Instagram over on @simplycaroline.co.uk
Living in an historic coach house comes with quirks that I absolutely love—wobbly walls, uneven floors, and charming old beams that add so much character. My style is centred around a neutral palette that brings a sense of calm and sophistication to each room, with soft furnishings adding seasonal colour. Faux flowers play a big role in my decor, and I rotate them as the seasons change to keep things fresh and fitting for each time of year. Christmas is a wonderful excuse to bring even more texture and colour to our home, blending modern and traditional touches that make each space feel festive yet timeless.
Every year, my holiday decor grows as I add unique pieces that catch my eye, building a Christmas collection that feels like an evolving family treasure.
I like to have a Christmas tree in each main room, and each one tells its own story. In the kitchen, our traditional 8-foot real tree is decked in simple yet striking white and silver decorations, making it a real showpiece. In the lounge, we have a stunning faux tree from The White Company, dressed in pink and gold to match the room’s softer tones. Each year, I try to add a special new gold ornament to this tree—more is always better here, adding richness and sparkle to our holiday aesthetic.
Christmas this year
My husband is not working, so we’ll actually be spending Christmas down south with family. But before that our home is fully dressed for the season. I’ll start putting up the trees and decorations in mid-November, and I plan to keep them up for as long as possible – it’s truly my favourite time of year. There’s something so magical about hanging stockings above the fireplace, lighting candles, and cosying up by the fire with the decorations glowing around us. It’s a cozy, festive vibe that I look forward to every year.
Festive floral
Deborah Boulton lives in North Stainley with her husband, and runs her company Forage and Flourish where she creates beautiful floral displays and teaches others how to do the same. Follow her creations on Instagram at @forage_and_flourish
‘My love for florals and nature only began around 12 years ago when I saw a magazine photo of a beautiful Christmas door garland in America and had a great desire to replicate it.
I took myself off into the woodlands and was totally blown away by the abundance of foliage and berries available to me, I attended a wreath workshop, watched several YouTube tutorials and soon built a passion for foraging and designing for my home decor.
My main aim of the workshops is to demonstrate how a few foraged items and stems from yours or friends/families garden can produce a wonderful fresh wreath, garland or arrangement with little to no cost.
When my Christmas wreath orders are complete I look forward to dressing my home. This year’s design vibe will be a return to traditional red and green which will inevitably include dried hydrangeas, lots of foraged greens, eucalyptus, and more.’
Natural touch
Isobel Winterson is the founder of interior design business IsobelStar based in York. isobelstar.co.uk
‘Your choice of Christmas decorations should reflect the feeling you want to create at Christmas. For me that’s a combination of a celebration of nature, of creativity, of fond memories and of loved ones, friends and community.’
Bring winter inside
When green is part of your colour scheme, the best way to incorporate this is by bringing real or faux plants into your Christmas decorations. Fir and yew branches, holly, ivy, eucalyptus and hypericum berries are all fabulous additions to a Christmas interior. Gather greenery on to wreaths, bunch into garlands to use above fireplaces, twist up a stair banister or assemble into posies and sprays for dinner table centrepieces.
Moss used to line a hurricane lamp before adding a simple (real or faux) pillar candle is an uncomplicated and effective decoration. This works equally well on a Christmas table, next to a fireplace or outside your front door.
Scent your Christmas
Use Christmas scents in the form of candles, diffusers and pot pourri. Try cinnamon, clove, cedar, cranberry and orange. Real greenery will also add scent to your home. If you have an artificial tree but miss the smell of the real thing, put a drop of pine essential oil onto a natural wooden bead and hang this on your tree.
Make memories
Embrace the season of special people and special memories by building up a collection of Christmas decorations over time. Years ago, when I was first setting up home, a friend and I would buy each other one special bauble every year as a Christmas gift. It helped us both to build a collection of decorations that we could use for years to come that meant something to us both too and reminded us of our friendship.
Create ambience
It’s hard to believe that years ago people would balance real lit candles on the branches of their flammable Christmas trees. This may have looked pretty but was extremely dangerous! Nowadays we are lucky to have lots of much safer lighting options that still set the mood. Look for indoor and outdoor LED fairy lights that run off batteries or are rechargeable If you want a warm glow, be sure to find LEDs that specify warm light rather than cool or blue light. Faux candles with LED flickering lights that replicate flame are surprisingly effective, they won’t burn down and are safe for use around children and pets.
My Christmas
I have just moved to a little two-bed tucked away near the racecourse. It’s just me and my two dogs (both cockapoos, one brown, one black). It’s a modern house and I intend to make some decorative changes initially and hopefully some structural ones long-term to open it up to the outside more. This year I intend to have an open house over the holidays, get a real tree and ‘deck the halls’.
