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Frosted Christmas: colour trends in blue and green create a breath of fresh air

Cool, modern and easily combined. The decorative trends for Christmas 2013 are very clearly taking their cue from current fashion. As far back as January, exhibitors at Christmasworld, the world's largest dedicated trade fair for festive and seasonal decorations, had already presented its latest product ideas to the trade. And now the season is finally almost upon us. A good point in time, perhaps, to ask what our homes are going to look like this Christmas.

Blue-green fresh air
The new 'must' for trend aficionados are expressive, cool shades such as turquoise, ice-blue, pistachio or, indeed, new creations such as the 'Caspian green' from the suppliers of home and gift items Casablanca-Design. In combination with silver, glitter and white and frosted surfaces, these cool shades bring a modern and invigorating breath of fresh air to Christmas decorations. In the 'Winterwalk' created by the Inge-Glas label, transparent glass baubles with filigree stars and glass berries complement the delicate grey tones of the frosted winter picture. There is a simple elegance to the effect of the almost metre-high wire tree from decoration suppliers Drescher Living, with a mix of trendy colours and delicately patterned baubles setting it off to perfection. Alongside this, intense colours of purple, plum and berries are still very much in vogue, as, for example, in the mystical elegance of the 'Winterberry' collection by Krebs & Sohn.

A new take on traditional red
The perennial favourite red-green has had a rejuvenating makeover in the hands of many suppliers. There is a freshness to the cheeky addition of frogs and garden gnomes that hang alongside the traditional gingerbread hearts on the Christmas tree at the Christborn company. Birgit Müller-Blech, Head of Product Development and Design at Inge-Glas, emphasises: "The life's blood of Christmas decoration is a healthy mix of influences from both new trends and tradition." And red remains the Christmas colour par excellence: "But, this year, it will also be combined with shades of orange and brown. Elegant, warm gold tones lend a festive note, " says Sandra Weigand, Marketing Director at Gala Kerzen, describing the trend. The candle manufacturer confronts the delicate balancing act between traditional and modern with a bold use of shiny metallic surfaces contrasted with natural materials and traditional Christmas motifs.

Gold, copper and moss-green fairy tales
Earthy tones such as mocha and brown, as well as deep aubergine, create an air of exclusive elegance. Gold is deliberately used in the background, for instance, to provide indirect lighting. In that way, the warmth of the intense natural colours is underlined – as, for instance, at candle makers, Kopschitz Kerzen, or accessory specialists, Gilde Handwerk. With 'Spicy & Orange', Inge-Glas introduce a sumptuous oriental style in warm copper-brown, with elaborate patterns and painted designs. 'Fairytale Forest' again enchants us with orange, saffron-yellow and moss-green, together with elegant glass pine-cones, acorns and owls.

Owls, owls everywhere
As befits the season, natural materials such as wool, felt and wood ensure a cosy winter atmosphere. Inspiration from nature seems almost inexhaustible. Above all, it is wood – oiled, finely sanded or painted – that finds multifarious uses. The Gilde Handwerk label, for instance, offers large wooden angels that will create a relaxed Christmas mood inside as well as outside. When it comes to figures, the ever-present stags and reindeers find themselves in the company of other woodland creatures. Whilst the squirrel remains something of a newcomer and still lingers in the background, the owl is to be seen everywhere; in delicate porcelain, course-carved wood or as cuddly cushions. At Krebs Glas Lauscha, these popular night-lovers are as individual as they are in nature: each of these elegant one-offs is made from the purest glass, individually blown and then hand painted.

Back to the future
The creative crafts appear rejuvenated and innovative. The electronic musical box from manufacturers of small hand-finished craft items from the Erzgebirge (Ore Mountains) - Müller GmbH - for instance, is a world first. It skilfully combines tradition with the latest modern technology. This enables the discs that turn the figures to be swapped over – something that has hitherto been unthinkable. This has been made possible by an elaborate electronic mechanism developed in conjunction with the Technical University of Chemnitz. Naturally enough, each of the 14 discs has its own musical accompaniment. The "Weihnachtsbäckerei" song (Christmas Bakery) by and with Rolf Zuckowski promises to be a great success for Christmas 2013. Company CEO Ringo Müller is pleased: "The courage to try out new things pays for itself; be it a new fresh design or technical innovation: our reward is the growing enthusiasm show by the young for our products."

Orchids in frosted enchantment
Whilst the poinsettia and the amaryllis remain a must during Advent, it is the frosted and snow-covered silk and artificial flowers with a hint of jade that, above all, conjure that elegant winter ambience. White snowballs, too, give a quality effect, as do wild clematis and large English baroque roses. Even delicate orchids are subject to a touch of frosting. And when it comes to the avant-garde section, then things get exotic – as Markus A. Reinhold, Designer and Product Developer at floral specialists Flor & Decor from Hamburg knows well: "Alienation and strangeness are major topics here: gloriosa (flame lily) and strelitzia (crane flower) in copper, gold and silver create impressive and scintillating effects against a dark blue or violet background." Be they flamboyant, or natural and fresh, accessories in cheap plastic are pretty well out. Reinhold stresses that "people don't want imitations any more that just look like concrete or wood. Cracks, discoloration, worn patches – anything goes. Natural materials are in and can breathe free."

Not real – just really beautiful!
Nevertheless, artificial alternatives do find some justifications. Accordingly, for instance, LED lights, which are very safe, are establishing themselves more and more. But, even here, it is all about the most natural effect possible. Marc Bergherr from Best Season, the specialists in Christmas lighting from Sarstedt, is very aware of this: "Real wax candles with an LED wick, particularly, are gaining greatly in popularity at the moment. With their warm light, they can hardly be distinguished from their traditional forebears. Because they are very safe, they are, of course, used where, say, there are large groups of people, children or animals involved – but also in public buildings such as schools." They are economical in their consumption of electricity and very practical: many of the candles are fitted with a timer, which automatically switches the candle on and off. When it comes to lighting in the window, such as nativity scenes and candle arches, then an unstuffy 'shabby chic' is particularly acceptable. Nor have artificial Christmas trees needed to hide from their originals for a long time now, either. At the Dutch label 'Black Box Tree' from the Edelman company, they are banking on the success of the 'Shake2shape Tree', a Christmas tree with integrated LED lighting. When you shake it, it unfolds and plumps up freely, so that it is ready to be decorated in just two minutes.

Not only for Christmas
A modern feel with clean lines and style will, in any case, also create a suitable ambience for winter before and after the Christmas holiday: "The young and the young at heart tend to decorate less and less. Often neutral elements such as, say, an aluminium bowl or a stainless steel tray, will be cleverly integrated and decorated for Christmas – with, for example, festive candles and figures. Instead of being spread throughout the house, deliberately staged items like these serve as specific, high-quality eye catchers, " says Heinz-Jürgen Saller, Managing Director of Casablanca. That is why extravagant Christmas decorations that fit in with individual philosophies of life are also in demand. These currently include individual items in XXL sizes, where price plays a relatively subsidiary role. Alexander Kopschitz, CEO of candle manufacturers, Kopschitz Kerzen, is also aware of this trend towards seasonally independent decoration, but adds: "Christmas is a festival where atmosphere is very important, where we want to lose ourselves in that very special festive mood. We, therefore, place even greater value on a harmonious overall effect in terms of decoration. So, whilst candles have a role to play all year round, at Christmas we are looking for something special with unusual colour accents too." In 2013 that means, for him too, principally very good quality, deeply coloured candles in trendy blues and berry tones.

At New Year, just light the blue touch paper - and enjoy
Fire-crackers to celebrate by all means – but for New Year's Eve in 2013 it may well have to be just that little bit more. These days, there is a palpable blurring of the lines between professional and layman's fireworks. Peipei Zhou, Managing Director of firework manufacturers, Panda Feuerwerk, explains: "The motto is: light once – and enjoy. For the new European rules allow fireworks for end consumers to contain up to 600 grams of filling material. With that you can achieve a good many impressive effects." For all the power, it is safety that remains the number one priority. So his new products with resonant names like 'Amboss' (The Detonator) and 'Kraftwerk' (The Power Plant) have not only been patented, but have also been certificated by the federal German institute for materials research and testing. These combinat



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