I DECORATE FOR MILLIONAIRES.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 3, Issue 259, 24 December 1914, Page 1 (Supplement)

I DECORATE FOR MILLIONAIRES.

■\ WELL-KNOWN LONDON FLOW ST TU.KS AHOI'T SOME HI (J OKDEKS J?'OK HOLLY AM) MISTLETOE.

Every year I carry out tlie hnstnu's decorations for London's millionaire*--said tlie Covent Garden Hor'st—and I can honestly say that there was never s > much money spent by very wealthy 011 tloral decorations at (Jinotnia« as there is to-day. One millionaire hanker spends if least C'J.OOU on floral decorations for Jiisc >untry mansion at Christmas. The w .ills of the dining-room, which is a very largo apartment, aro covered from floor to ceiling with white chrysanthemums. T'le pictures on the walls, of course, are lift exposed to view. The flowers and the fixing of them costs ahout lour hundred guineas. The huge hall is literally embowered in pure white roses, with which red-ber-ried holly is entwined, and the staircases aro similarly decorated. I have another client who spends about three hundred pounds in having his billiard-room elaborately decorate 1 with red-berried holly.

Facing tho entrance to th<> room he has th~> words "Wishing you all a /cry merry Christmas" designed entirely in red berries on a background of holly. Last year I decorated the ballroom at the country hous 0 of an American millionaire who was then living in this country. Tho d 'corat'on of this room was one of tho most elaborate and expensive pieces of work 1 ever carried out.

The walls and ceiling of tbc room were

ntirely covered with holly leaves in Mich a way as to create the effect tnat they were growing 011 them. The holly was heavily " flecked" with white roses. Hundreds of tiny electric lights w re cuninglv arranged lietween tho holly leaves and when these were lighted »,) at night, the effect produced was extraordinarily weird and beautiful. Tho decor»tion of the ballroom cost the American millionaire in question about £' .500.

People who hare their houses very elaborately decorated at Christmas give their orders a long while in advance. La.st year I had several orders booked in SeptemlxT for the decoration of some large country mansions. Usually on receiving a big order I go down to tho house which is to bo decorated, on'! make a plan of the decorations, and then submit an estimate of the cost of carving it out . Often, however, a customer will write and say that lie. is prepared to spend so much money on floral decorations in his house- The sum may b<> anything from a few hundred to a thousand pounds and be w ill leave it to me to do what I can for the monev. One of my customers, the wife of a wealth'" peer, sends me every Christmas a scheme for the decoration of her country house. which I have to be car.fill to carry out very exactly in accordance with her directions. She has every fitting and reception room in the house, which is an extremely hug-> one- beautifully decorated, and lias a different scheme of decoration for each room. Usually sb 0 spends about a thousand pounds on these decorations. Red-berried holly, of course, is largdv used in these decorations, and so is mistletoe. but it is thi> flowers, all of winch are forced anil out of season, that run awav with the money, and. of course, the labour involved in putting tlpm up costs a good deal. T have bad 11s nmnv as ion men. specially trained hi this • ort of task, at work for a week in carrying out some very larg* order*.

Fnnnv (W: "Say. Poulter. what's the ditferoiH* IvotwtMMi a with olio win'T and one with two Pouhfir: "I'm mho 1 doit t know. sir.'' , .... Funnv Cuss: "Why. ttv roly a dilhr- < -nee of a pinion!"