A fruitful season

HOLD the tinsel, and easy on the glitter dust. Celebrated florist Stephen Woodhams' striking Christmas table and room decorations show that zingy citrus shades - think lemon, acid green, bright orange, tempered with hot pink - generate just as much sparkle as gold or silver, and look refreshingly original. The technique is simple, the results are spectacular.

"These colours are a contemporary mix, yet they could work equally well in a classic interior," says Stephen. "Just imagine all these bright, rich colours in a very traditional, darkpanelled room; they would give it a really welcoming zest." The decorations at the window are space-age cascades of Perspex mobiles, the tablemats are orange acrylic, sharply edged to give a futuristic neon glow, but the base for wreaths, mantelpiece and display shelves is ubiquitous blue pine. "All you need do to make the mantelpiece look magical is to cover it with branches of blue pine, and on it nestle groups of large and small glass baubles in the same colour scheme, but with different finishes: matt, lacquered or reflective," Stephen says.

"The key is to use them in drifts, not insignificant dots. Repeat the chunky, round shape of the baubles with circular orange candles, and, instead of using white pea lights, try them in a warm-toned orange."

The plain blue pine wreath is studded with chunky ornaments; not the more usual cones, cinnamon sticks or apples, but groups of lemons and clusters of preserved orange slices, contrasting in texture with shiny baubles, large and small. But what makes the wreath spring to life is not 500 fairy lights, but several curving twists of birch twigs, painted lime green or vibrant orange.

Stephen also uses them, to give the festive floral arrangements a relaxed, modern look.

For the table centrepiece, birch twigs encircle the bowl of a low glass vase, making a green nest for massed amaryllis flowers of red, orange and yellow, and echoing the limegreen charger plates. To make a stunning amaryllis tree set into a low glass cylinder, Stephen grouped together the stems, wrapped and tied them just under the blooms and pushed them into a block of florist's foam. "Push twigs around the foam to line the vase, top with a piece of moss, and add a garland of pink baubles around the top of the vase; it is simple to do, but effective." Even simpler is tying birchwood stems around the top of a vase to form a flower-framing collar. And even the most ham- fisted could throw a few hot pink baubles into a clear glass bowl of satsumas, and come up with a fruit bowl with a visual sizzle.

In fact, the secret of success, says Stephen, is to go for the colour scheme full-tilt, so that everything pulls together, from charger plates to choice of flowers. "Keep the whole identity buzzing from front door to mantelpiece to dining table. Changing the cushions on the sofa to carry the colour through is a simple thing, and needn't cost a lot of money, but it helps co-ordinate your Christmas, making it memorable."

Where to get the look .

Baubles, candles, acrylic mats and orange perspex cascades from Woodhams, 45 Elizabeth St, SW1 (020 7730 3353) and at One Aldwych, WC1 (020 7300 0777).

. Painted birch twigs to buy or order from Woodhams and good florist shops.

Orange crush: to make a contemporary Christmas look work, you must maintain your nerve and commit to the colour scheme; use it for everything, from mantlepiece and window decorations to the table setting, so that it all hangs together

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