Style & Stage Through New Year’s Day

[Trever Hill Design]

Story by Trever Hill with Tracy Nicholson
Photography by Dan Francis Photography

With holiday and new year parties nearing, I decided to stage and style a photo shoot using locally-sourced finds, with the idea that it can then be recreated in your own home. The White House Co.’s downtown warehouse provided the perfect backdrop with a bonus – my pick from hundreds of vintage furnishings in a rainbow of rich colors and textures. This setting will show you a fun fusion of local art as well as vintage and modern decor that you can rent or buy to host your holidays. Since furnishing trends tend to emulate fashion trends, I made sure to include a few model friends to show off some bold party looks from my friends at Downtown Fargo’s Others and Proper & Prim.

Borrowing Beauty

In the midst of planning a party but don’t think your furnishings are festive enough? Most people don’t realize that if they want to spruce up their space, it’s as easy as hiring a local designer for a consult or renting a couple of items for a day or weekend. You can really make a huge impact by adding in just a few fun pieces in interesting colors or textures.

Lovely Lounging

Our festive lounge scene is focused on the velvet settee from The White House Co. along with a coordinating large-scale art piece from my friend, Jessica Wachter. To add a vintage-mod dimension, I included a vintage area rug over the sisal rug, modern coffee table and fun, velvet side chairs. The majority of these items can be rented or purchased in Fargo-Moorhead with the exception of the sisal rug – this was an online find.

Embrace your Inner Bookworm

Vintage, hardcover books are not just for reading. They also make great decor when you coordinate the colors in rows or stacks on shelves, side tables or tablescapes. The White House Co. sells these and often accents the colorful rows with rustic items like deer antlers. For this shoot, I added in a reflective disco ball which can carry the design from Christmas to New Year’s Eve.

Dine in Style

To create the dining area, I first found the dining table and tree at Eco Chic Home, then added some color with rustic wood chairs from O’Day Cache. On the tabletop, I strayed away from traditional holiday colors, yet still kept the look festive with floral from Love Always Floral and gorgeous place settings from McNeal & Friends.

Entertaining but Indecisive?

Sometimes you need a fresh pair of eyes, so whether you’re working with a designer like myself or a place that rents furnishings, make sure to keep an open mind. Bring a picture and The White House Co. can quickly help you choose from hundreds of rental options and colors. A consult with a designer in your home can help you to see outside of the traditional ideas of holiday decor and seamlessly fuse it with your existing style and furnishings.

Dress to Impress

Once I’d set the stage, our models had to be equally adorned, courtesy of two fantastic boutiques in Downtown Fargo. To dress the ladies, Myranda Ingram, Sydney Fritz and Cassandra Colling, we visited my friend Teresa O’Day at Proper & Prim and they were quickly outfitted in glitz, glam and fun materials that played into our vintage-mod vibe. Our lone male model, Atati Mita was dressed in clothing from Others.

Shop the Look

• Sequined romper – $88, Proper & Prim
• Black sequin dress – $84, Proper & Prim
• Maroon glimmer dress – $60, Proper & Prim
• Men’s dress shirt – $48, Others

Find the Finishes

• Art – $2,200, Jessica Wachter
• Dining table – $915, Eco Chic Home
• Tree – $299, Eco Chic Home
• Dining chairs – $65, O’Day Cache
• Sofa rental – $100 daily, The White House Co.
• Books – $3 each, The White House Co.
• Place setting & stemware – $562, McNeal & Friends
• Pillows – $29, The White House Co.
• Sisal Rug – $279, Wayfair
• Blue side chairs – $258 at Target/ Also available for rent at The White House Co.
• Floral – $149, Love Always Floral

Roses grown/sourced from – Alexandra Farms
(Find them at Alexandrafarms.com & on Instagram at alexandrafarms)
Fun fact: Alexandra Farms specializes in boutique roses and grow over 60 different types!

Gift the Host

During the holidays, parties are plentiful, so make sure you’re prepared to pamper the host. Here are two fun gift ideas that will spark conversation and spice up the festivities.

Hot Ruby

Hot Ruby was created in 1950 in the kitchen of Ruby Faye in Mabelle, Texas. Faye’s cranberry cider recipe, infused with cinnamon and clove, was famous among friends and family and always served up simmering hot. For family-friendly functions, try it with sparkling water, ginger ale or club soda. If you prefer spicy and spiked, there are endless ways to serve it up cold with champagne, tequila or ginger beer or make it hot the way Faye intended with vodka, spiced whiskey or bourbon.
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Get the full story and list of recipes at DrinkHotRuby.com.

Where to Buy in Fargo-Moorhead:

Shotwell Floral & Greenhouses
4000 40th Street South, Fargo
shotwellflorist.com

BĒT Vodka 

In 2016, BĒT (pronounced ‘beet’) VODKA came to life in Minneapolis. From generations of Midwest family farmers to the cooperative where the harvest is gathered, BĒT distills the bounty of sugar beets from the Red River Valley, down to its simplest and purest essence. The result is a sophisticated premium-pour meant be sipped and savored — unlike traditional vodka. Similar to Midwestern culture, BĒT is served best alongside good company. BĒT Vodka comes in mini bottles and 750 ml. bottles.
Check out their full story at betvodka.com.

Where to Buy in Fargo-Moorhead: 

Royal Liquors | Happy Harry’s Bottle Shop | Bottle Barn
Crown Liquors | 99 Bottles

For more information, contact:

Trever Hill Design
trever@treverhilldesign.com
treverhilldesign.com