My Houzz: A Home for 3 Generations Gets the Holiday Treatment
Classic handmade wreaths shine in this modern glass-walled home in Seattle
Carrie and Stanley Stock sold their home in Rolling Hills, California, this past summer and moved north to Seattle. They joined with daughter Bret Ashlee Watson, son-in-law Steve Watson and that couple’s two children to purchase a modern home on a bluff above Puget Sound. For their first holiday season living together in a multigenerational home, the decorating took on new meaning. Carrie, an interior designer for many years, brought with her the boxes of classic holiday wreaths and garlands she had made by hand. Bret Ashlee, also an interior designer, contributed her penchant for a clean and streamlined look. In a true collaboration, the two created a sleek, contemporary, warm and welcoming home as a backdrop for their meaningful handmade decorations with a traditional bent.
Seen from the front entry, one of several large wreaths made by Carrie shares the spotlight with the home’s usual visual star: the grand piano. A lighted evergreen garland hangs from one of two upper balconies.
In the modern kitchen, another wreath by Carrie, flanked by two more of her creations, adds great visual weight plus a cheery holiday spirit to the all-white room.
“The key with making large wreaths,” Carrie says, “is to get the strongest wire support there is.” If the support is too weak, the wreath will warp.
A gifted bay leaf wreath encircles a festive faux cake, while holiday dishes collected and used for many years for the Stocks’ numerous annual holiday parties grace the island.
As a theater professional-turned-interior designer, Carrie is a natural when it comes to decorating a room for visual impact. “I’m used to ‘dressing the scene,’” she says.
The home’s modern and open design creates many opportunities to simultaneously enjoy decorations in different rooms. The large wreath viewed from the front entry and the decorated light fixture and garlands in the dining room combine with the kitchen decorations for a visually rich yet still streamlined view.
The home’s modern and open design creates many opportunities to simultaneously enjoy decorations in different rooms. The large wreath viewed from the front entry and the decorated light fixture and garlands in the dining room combine with the kitchen decorations for a visually rich yet still streamlined view.
With the outdoors such a dominant element, not much decoration is needed to make the dining room feel special. Amaryllis blooms and a stunning greenery-topped Italian light fixture bring the holiday spirit.
The table hails from the Stocks’ California home. It holds countless memories of holidays and celebrations shared with friends and family.
Crystal and silver look even more elegant beside a simple gathering of greenery punctuated by a gold bow.
Before moving to Seattle, the Stocks hung this, their largest wreath, from a beam to maintain its shape when it wasn’t being used. For the move, they needed to pack it in a box, but it stood the test well. “These wreaths are 6 or 7 years old,” Carrie says. To make them last, she says, “you need to pack them flat.”
The wreath looks just as beautiful when viewed from the second story. “In making wreaths,” Carrie says, “you start with the greenery first. You keep adding it until you think it can’t hold one more thing. Then you futz with it until you’re pleased with it.”
For Carrie’s wreaths, she bundled four components of faux evergreens and everlastings together on a floral stick, wrapped them with floral tape, and attached them to the wire support.
For Carrie’s wreaths, she bundled four components of faux evergreens and everlastings together on a floral stick, wrapped them with floral tape, and attached them to the wire support.
The Stocks’ California home had cathedral ceilings ranging from 14 to 30 feet, perfect for a tall tree. And as fans of natural trees, they had always had one until the year their home was to be photographed for a local magazine. Because a natural tree would never have lasted long enough for the photo shoot, Carrie bought a 14-foot frosted artificial tree. “Because of that tree, we have a lot of ornaments,” she says.
A much smaller tree now adorns their new home.
A much smaller tree now adorns their new home.
Although smaller in stature, the Christmas tree is covered with memories shared by both the Stocks and their daughter. Many of the ornaments are from a lifelong friend whose mother painstakingly made them out of pins, cord, sequins and beads, and gave them to the family year after year.
At night, the combination of the home’s modern architecture, the classic evergreen garlands outside and the wreaths inside exemplifies how well this home joins disparate styles in a glowing jewel box that reflects the warmth and tastes of the multigenerational family it houses.
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My Houzz is a series in which we visit and photograph creative, personality-filled homes and the people who inhabit them. Share your home with us and see more projects.
Browse more homes by style: Apartments | Barn Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Floating Homes | Guesthouses | Homes Around the World | Lofts | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Small Homes | Townhouses | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | Vacation Homes
Who lives here: Carrie and Stanley Stock, Bret Ashlee and Steve Watson, the Watsons’ two children, cats Chewie and Luna, and dog Paris
Location: Seattle
Size: 3,300 square feet (307 square meters); four bedrooms, 3½ bathrooms
Carrie firmly believes that decorations needn’t adhere strictly to the design of the home. “Christmas is Christmas,” she says.
Here, a simple faux-evergreen garland frames the front door and mixes with rustic earthenware pots filled with real, dried and faux plants, flowers and berries.