Jenn, your comment is so funny! I'm not sure about flock, group, or herd--thinking more like "cluster" or in DH's opinion, "clutter". LOL Judith, I was so excited to find that glass topper. And it was still in the box and only 99 cents at the TS. The lady there had told me it had just come in and since it was "old" she didn't think anyone would want it! Wrong! Kathleen, I wanted to tell you that I put a little light in the bell jar in front of the little snowman I sat in there. DH said that at night it looks more like a Halloween decoration since the light isn't very bright and casts some shadows on the snowman's face! PF, I'm glad you liked my rose plates. I just added another one to my collection yesterday. All except three or four of them have been TS finds. It is so fun to hunt for them. I just think the roses are so pretty. I have quite a few cups and saucers collected now too. Just need to get my display stand painted and decorated to hold them. Ladycindy, you are right, the stacked plates make any food look more elegant, don't they? I hope you have seen the decorated ones Judith creates. They are gorgeous and usually match her table scape. Her fall one is what made me want to start doing them. Betty, I'll bet you have a lovely home since it is obvious that you love pretty things. And hey, it's your home, you can do what makes you happy. Luvs

Rafor's idea about attaching the finials with floral putty is a good one. But there is another way to use the putty. Pinch off a large marble sized piece, and roll into a snake. Circle the snake around the bottom of the finial and attach that to the candleholder or other surface, and twist just a little bit as you press. The open spot in the center of the snake creates a bit of suction that helps hold the object. No Christmas decorating here until at least mid-December. I like to leave up the decorations into January, because it is SUCH an ugly month here in Chicago, and seeing the pretty lights on the tree and happy touches around the house do a lot to help me forget that it is ONLY January. LOL Our neighbors put up their holiday wreaths the day after Halloween. I just shake my head.

I'm no decorator, but what seems to make this (and other layered spaces I've admired) work is lots and lots of symmetry. There's the repetition of things all over the apartment, and even if they're not matching pairs, the size, weight and finish is so similar, it reads as a pair. What I don't understand, is how the strong symmetry doesn't read as matchy. It seems so much more interesting than if they walked into a store and just bought two of everything. Is it the mix of textures and contrast? The library has those thin, sleek, straight, dark, unfussy side tables, but the curvy, rounded ottomans in the cool striped fabric. The other room has a rectangular sofa, ottoman, artwork, etc, but the lamp bases and the tables they're on are round. There's more roundness in the sconces and topiaries. I don't care for the black kitchens.

I would not try to decorate your furniture itself for Christmas. So I would not do Xmas throw pillows, no. Stick with the tree, the front door, and flat top surfaces, etc. for decorations. But I would "winterize" my home for Christmas based on what makes sense where you live. Example, if you live in a cold climate, then put down a faux fur throw on your brown couch. Get a container for scented pine cones by the fireplace (if you have one) or a holder for fire logs, etc. Then I would rethink red and silver. That can look too cheap and tacky. Stick with richer, more sophisticated color combinations like gold and silver, or gold and chocolate brown, or chocolate brown and olive green and gold, etc. That way you are incorporating your furniture/home colors into Xmas instead of trying to put a red pillow on a brown couch which will not look good. Christmas colors are a lot more than red and green, do not limit yourself to those. And warm gold will compliment your furniture colors better than cold silver will.