In Bloom for the Holidays:
Beyond boughs of holly

Turkey isn't the only thing that needs dressing at this time of year. This is the season when even the most resolute minimalists feel the urge to deck their halls and feather their nests. Here on the Garden page, and in today's Homes section, is inspiration. Whether you rely on grab-and-go flowers from your local grocery store or spend hours installing custom evergreen swags around your door, you can make any celebration your own with personal touches. Just remember: The best ingredient is love. More ideas for making the house look special in Tampa Bay Homes.

[Times photo: Lara Cerri]

On New Year’s Eve, the ballroom of the St. Petersburg Hilton will be transformed into a winter palace for Winter Wonderland, the annual gala hosted by the St. Petersburg chapter of Links, a prestigious national organization of black women. The theme is always silver and white, and over the years, members have collected an inventory of acrylic icicles, glass blocks, silver leaves, balls and beads, adding votive candles, twinkle lights and artificial snow, for centerpieces. “It’s different from the top hats and streamers you usually see on New Year’s Eve,” says Links president Mozell Davis, right. And, says decorations chairwoman Yvonne Alsup, left, not buying new centerpieces every year keeps costs down, making it as practical as it is beautiful.

[Times photos: Stefanie Boyar]

Gina Garcia, left, of Tampa loves flowers for holiday centerpieces (and has a bountiful supply from her mother-in-law, Norma Bean, whose garden was recently featured on HGTV). But because her husband is part of the large produce wholesaler Cruz and Garcia, she likes to use fruits and vegetables. She shines apples and pears with vegetable oil and lines her baskets with lettuces or herbs. For height, she uses candles and, for sparkle, gold accents, such as a gilded reindeer. The vegetable basket makes a lovely hostess gift that can be used with leftovers for soup. And the fruit can be plucked right after dinner for a low-cal dessert.

[Times photo: Cherie Diez]

Jeannine Hascall, a homemaker who lives with her husband Jim in St. Petersburg, is also an artist with a serious green thumb. On daily walks, she often forages for random clippings from shrubs and vines to create artfully composed floral arrangements, supplementing them with cut flowers from wholesalers. Her Thanksgiving center-piece is an homage to fall in Florida. No garishly colored maple leaves for her (this isn’t Vermont, after all). She chose gentler colors -- golden roses and wax flowers, pale orange nandina. Because Thanksgiving comes so late this year, the arrangement looks ahead to December, with white stock rising like icicles from its midst and Brazilian pepper berries -- the bane of many gardens -- trans-formed into a lovely accent of pink on the cusp of Christmas red.

Ian Prosser, noted floral arranger and owner of Botanica International florist, designed the over the door swag, wreath and panel sprays. he wanted to do something en vogue. A silvery gold ribbon and pale green accents keep the focal point on the door, the anchor of the display. The long bow adds drama. Prosser used birds, butterflies and pine cones, spraying some with glitter to make them shine. To get a bit of evergreen smell, Prosser says he sometimes designs a real wreath with artificial accents -- so when the door opens, the evergreen smell comes in. This display took 1 1/2 to 2 hours to design.

[Times photos: Thomas M. Goethe]

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