Last year, I shared the news that our home was being featured in Better Homes and Gardens Christmas Ideas Magazine 2013. I still can't believe it happened, but they really did come to my house in suburban Detroit for a photo shoot. No, really. My superstitious mind caused me to wait to blog about the experience until the ink was dry.
BHG contacted me last summer about the opportunity and asked me to have my home prepared for them to photograph at the beginning of November. My neighbors are used to me decorating early, but I was officially declared nuts when the Christmas tree went up before Halloween.
{It got around to me that a comparison was made to the crazy target lady. I put us side by side to prove there is absolutely no resemblance}.
The trickiest part about decorating this early was getting ahold of fresh greens. Prior to BHG traveling to Detroit, they asked me to send photos of our completed decorations so they could plan the shoot. I use lots of fresh greens, and this meant I needed two sets, one for the "scouting shots" (that's what the editor's refer to the preview photos as) and a fresh set for the actual photo shoot.
My solution was to gather greens from my yard for the scouting shots. Then as the day of the photo shoot neared, I replaced them with the real deal from my favorite local nursery. To insure I had the best greens available for the day of the shoot, I bought them early and kept them rolled up and bound in bundles under the deck. Everyday I sprayed them with a water bottle to keep them fresh. It was a labor of BHG love.
Since it was early, I had only bought a few gifts. The tree looked bare without presents so my amazing cousin, Alissa, stayed up late with me one night to wrap faux presents. I have to say, she can wrap a mean box of cereal.
Prior to the day of the shoot, a BHG stylist (Jan) came to my home to check lighting and make any necessary tweaks. She was an absolute pleasure to work with. Her sweet nature put me at ease right away. It was so much fun having someone else play with my house, especially a BHG stylist!
I'm usually pretty calm during big life events, but there is a moment…slightly before that I have a complete meltdown. That moment came the day before Jan arrived. BHG gave me a simple mission to provide fresh tulips. When they were delivered, they were small, green and tightly closed. Mission failed! My local florist came to the rescue with an amazing alternate floral arrangement. When the magazine hits newsstands, be sure to check out what they helped us create. :)
Our fingers were crossed for a dusting of snow and a nice sunny day. However, the day of the photo shoot was the grayest Michigan day ever. It was literally like night almost all day. The photographer was amazing. She was able to create light that appeared to be natural. I pretty much stalked her the entire day taking notes.
Just before our family photo was taken, Jan asked if we could change my hubbies shirt. It blended in with our wall color. My closet is my dirty secret. It's the one place in the house that I'm all like, "Thank God no one will ever see this".
Low and behold, Mike, Jan and I ended up in the closet together.
And, it wasn't weird.
That's how sweet and professional she was.
{Murpie put on his red sweater for the photo shoot, but unfortunately didn't make the final cut}.
The photos in this post were either spaces that were not photographed by BHG or from previous years. Our decor last year has been kept under wraps only to be viewed in the magazine. Thanks for letting me share this experience with you. Christmas Ideas Magazine usually prints in August and is available in newsstands through the end of December.
Stop by and let me know if you see the article!
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