No place like decorated homes for the holidays
By Vickie Jurkowski
If parental warnings of “Don’t
use the hair dryer while your brother’s running the microwave!” were a normal
part of your childhood, you know all about the interior hazards of oodles of
outdoor lights during the holidays.
Two things may have happened
since: You got enough of the lights and ensuing fiascos as a kid and now leave
the extreme decorating to others; or you caught the family bug for the
Christmas crazies and spend October and November lining the perimeter with
soldiers and candy canes, dotting the rooftop, gutters and trees with lights,
and filling the yard with a party of penguins, snowmen, elves, Santa, his
sleigh and nine reindeer to rival the North Pole.
Whether you fall into category
A or B, looking at the lights and other holiday décor likely is an undeniable
treat for you and your family year after year.
Those who take on the task of
keeping the tradition alive say LED lights have made their “fun hobby” more
simple and economical. Technology enabling displays to be synchronized to music
and showcased on YouTube has brought the tradition a long way, too.
But for many, the classics are
still keepers.
Nostalgic plastic blow molds –
those hollow snowmen, Santas, elves and penguins you see on folks’ front lawns
– and handmade designs are popular as ever this holiday season.
“I’d say I have one of
everything,” said Rick Tarulis, whose home at 827 Morven Court in Naperville
has been featured on HGTV and the Naperville Trolley Holiday Lights Tour since
it started 17 years ago. “If I see a new Santa or elf or candy cane, I buy it.”
 |
| Original ideas shine at the Tarulis residence (top and above) in Naperville. Rick Tarulis designed the 17-foot steel snowman on side of house on a piece of notebook paper and had it fabricated at a welding shop. He sawed, drilled and painted pegboard and incorporated drop-ceiling light covers to make stockings and candy canes for the front of the house, located at 827 Morven Court. (Photo courtesy Rick Tarulis) |
Plastic Santas, elves and
candy canes are joined on his lawn by Mickey, Minnie and Snoopy.
“The nostalgic blow molds are still one of our most
popular items,” said Rick Septoski, marketing manager for Tinley Park-based
retailer American Sale, where the plastic figures range from $14 to $200.
An animatronic plastic blow-mold Santa in a handmade
chimney has been the centerpiece of Bill Christoffel’s display for 25 years,
from Des Plaines to his current residence at 1622 Clarence Ave. in Arlington
Heights.
“Santa comes out of the
chimney whenever a car goes by and music comes on,” said Christoffel, who is
also slowly converting some 6,000 lights to LEDs. He used his electrical
engineering skills to create a chain-driven assembly and also hid a motion
sensor and FM radio transmitter inside the chimney.
The Pop-Up Santa action triggers
a nearby blow-mold snowman to spin on its saucer sled. Tarulis, an attorney and
grandfather, also incorporates homespun ingenuity into his holiday décor. He
designed the 17-foot steel snowman on the side of his house on a piece of
notebook paper and had it fabricated at a welding shop. He sawed, drilled and
painted pegboard and incorporated drop ceiling light covers to make four-foot
stockings and candy canes for the front of the house.
LED lights have improved his
30-year decorating tradition.
“About four years ago I maxed
out all the power” and an electrician recommended a new meter, subpanels,
etc.,” Tarulis said. “Instead I switched to all LED. They use one-tenth of the
power and last forever. It’s very economical.”
Modern also meets nostalgic
and handmade at the Frohn residence in Bolingbrook.
The house itself is almost invisible amid 52,000 lights
and 20 plastic soldiers outlining the corner property at 1443 W. Briarcliff
Road.
Jack Frohn, a letter carrier,
and his wife Laura Frohn, a former letter carrier now in management, add plenty
of homespun ideas to the store-bought décor. They designed their own flashing
14-inch snowflakes, which used to be sold at grocery and hardware stores, and
110 snowflakes are on display from the rooftop down.
 |
| The Frohn residence at 1443 W. Briarcliff Road in Bolingbrook features 52,000 lights, 100 flashing snowflakes, 20 blow-mold soldiers, 30 ball ornaments made from Solo cups and filled with 100 lights, four large inflatables, a wooden sleigh and reindeer, candy cane tree, a train and an airplane. (Photo Courtesy of Jack Frohn) |
The couple modified a friend’s
idea for ball ornaments made from Solo cups and filled with 100 lights, and
gave him some snowflakes in exchange.
“It’s quite a task” to make
30-plus ball ornaments, Jack Frohn said, “and each year our trees get bigger so
we have to make more and add more lights.”
Family members and friends
also have contributed handmade décor. Hanging in trees and on the North Pole
are elves created by the Frohns’ nephew, Garret Popek, who also made a video of
the display (www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldj4YAtxbFE). His late father Bart Popek
made a wooden sleigh and reindeer for the Frohns’ front lawn.
Neighbor Peggy McMillan did the elves’ hair and clothed
them thanks to Goodwill.
The handmade décor has another
way of bringing people together. Laura Frohn has a tradition of hiding small
elves in the snowflakes for kids to find.
The couple handed out 1,600
candy canes to onlookers last year. Santa even makes an appearance at the Frohn
residence, with this year’s visit set for 6 to 9 p.m. Dec. 8.
“It’s … um … big,” Jack Frohn
said about their holiday display, which Annette Wehrli of Naperville Trolley
& Tours Ltd. (
www.napervilletrolley.com) calls “the largest of them all.”
While it’s a given that the
Frohn and Tarulis homes will be featured on the tours, Wehrli said residents
call her to request being on the tour and don’t always make the cut, even with
four trolleys operating every single night in December.
 |
| Neighbor Peggy McMillan (from left), Laura Frohn and Frohn’s nephew Garret Popek ready the elves, which he created and McMillan dressed with clothes from Goodwill. Many residents incorporate décor into an annual tradition, from trimming the tree to touring the lights. Frohn has a tradition of hiding small elves in the snowflakes for kids to find. (Photo Courtesy of Jack Frohn) |
“More and more people are
decorating and synchronizing displays to music and LED lights,” said Wehrli,
also known as the Trolley Chick. “Now there are enough homes that we do a north
tour and a south tour. Going around looking at lights brings friends and family
together.”
“We used to do it for them,”
Jack Frohn said of decorating for the couple’s three children, who have grown
up and moved away. “Now it’s a tradition for the trolleys and literally
thousands of people who come by and we get to meet them. There’s a group of au
pairs from all over the world who come and it’s amazing to see the shock on
their faces as they take pictures and send them instantly to their (native)
homes.”
What’s inside?
For those of us content to
just spruce up the inside of our homes, here are some of the hot items this
season.
At American Sale, big sellers
include a revolving tree stand and the Carrington Color Changing Tree, which is
pre-lit and can be set to clear lights, multi-color or both.
“It gives the customer flexibility year after year,”
Septoski said.
For indoors and out, LED
battery-operated wreaths, garland and candles “are becoming popular because of
the brightness of the LED, the low energy of LED, which makes the batteries
last all season, and the flexibility to put them anywhere in your house or
outside your house,” he said. “They also have convenient timers that can help
them light only when you want them lit.”
Beyond the trees and LEDs, mirrors and floral mesh wrap
are popular products at Michaels, the nation’s largest arts and crafts
retailer.
“Floral mesh wrap is a new
product that has a huge impact on decorating,” said Michaels Creative Expert Jo
Pearson. “It can easily transform a Christmas tree or a wreath and Michaels
carries a wide variety of colors.
“Mirrored items have also
become very popular, which is a theme throughout our Crystal Elegance holiday
line,” she said. “Michaels even has a mirrored glass molding in our custom
framing department which is great for adding holiday sparkle to family photos
or prints.”
Holiday Decorating: A Family Tradition
Whether you have a family of
two or 20, decorating the house for the holidays can be a family affair, year
after year.
Here are a few suggestions for starting your own traditions.
Take a tour! Gather the family for a tour of decorated
homes to start a new tradition or inspire your own décor. Pack the minivan or
leave the driving to a professional so you can focus on the sights.
For starters, call your local
village or city hall for possible tours. In Darien, for example, the city
provides free bus tours of winning displays. Tours will be Dec. 20 and 26, with
reservations on a first come, first serve basis. Call (630) 852-5000 for other
details.
Elsewhere, tours are by
trolleys for hire. Naperville Trolley & Tours Ltd. offers public and
private trolley tours; call (630) 420-2223 or visit
www.napervilletrolley.com.
For double-decker trolley tours of the lights in downtown Chicago, visit
http://www.coachusa.com/chicagotrolley/custom-group-tours/holiday-lights.asp or
call (773) 648-5000.
Don’t feel like leaving the
comfort of home? Take a virtual tour of homes throughout Illinois (counties
including Cook, DuPage, Grundy, Iroquois, Kane, Kankakee, Lake, McHenry, Will
and Winnebago) by visiting
www.k3lights.com.
Climb a tree! Seriously, do kids even know how to climb a
tree these days? Motivate the kids to take a break from technology and get
outside by seeing who can create the most unusual lighting design amid the
branches.
Get crafty! Store-bought decor looks magical, but
homemade stuff might mean so much more. Spend an afternoon creating holiday
décor - and memories - with the kids. Make it up on your own, take a class, buy
a project kit or watch a video or in-store demo.
“Michaels has lots of free and
low-cost holiday events throughout the month of December,” said Michaels
Creative Expert Jo Pearson. Check
www.michaels.com for local schedules.
“One holiday tradition that I
love sharing with my family is making new ornaments every year and looking back
on what the kids create each year,” she said. “Whether it’s using plastic
ornaments to decorate with stickers or wooden ornaments that you can easily
paint, michaels.com has tons of different do-it-yourself ornament ideas.”
Endless DIY projects can be
jumpstarted with a quick Internet search.
Felt, ribbon and glue are all about that’s needed to make
this Hanukkah banner:
http://www.bhg.com/holidays/hanukkah/crafts/traditional-hanukkah-handcrafts/
For pointers on decorating a room for Karamu, the Kwanzaa
feast, visit:
http://www.ehow.com/how_11125_decorate-room-kwanzaa.html
Throw a party! Invite family, friends and neighbors to
help decorate your tree and return the favor. Make it a daylong affair or
progressive dinner. Gift one another with memorable ornaments. Make popcorn and
show kids how to string it for garland.
Pick a theme! If turning tree-trimming into a big party
sounds daunting, keep it simple with your own immediate family and decorate the
tree together. Get the kids involved by choosing a theme for the tree each
year. Purple and silver this year? Why not?! Birds and big feathers next year?
Sure!
