Winter Luxe: Styling Your Home For The Festive Season

Winter invites us to slow down, gather, and surround ourselves with beauty. As the days shorten, the air crisps, and the festive season begins its gentle hush, there’s no better moment to transform your home into a haven of warmth, style, and timeless luxury. At Dara Maison, we see the colder months as an opportunity to elevate everyday living into something extraordinary, embracing warmth, tactility and quiet glamour - creating rooms that glow with welcome. 

Interiors this year lean into earthy neutrals, deep reds, olive greens and butter-soft yellows, offset by jewel tones and warm metallics. Heritage patterns, velvet, bouclé, natural woods and layered lighting give depth and dimension. Think understated opulence, not overstatement. Here's our guide to incorporating this year’s trends into your home to create a warm and inviting atmosphere this winter.

Living Room: A Luxe Retreat

The living room is the heart of winter evenings - fireside chats, curling up with books, family gatherings.  Anchor your living space with a warm neutral or olive-green backdrop, then add depth with velvet armchairs such as the Livius Armchair in sage green velvet, and add tactile throws.  Add deep red accents such as the Little Monster Stool in Bordeaux velvet, or oxblood scatter cushions.  

Create ambience by layering lighting - a statement chandelier or sleek pendant, side lamps with warm bulbs, candles for flicker. Choosing metallic light fixtures with brushed gold or bronze accents will help reflect warmth and turn evenings into an experience.  

Finishing touches such as dried foliage, evergreen garlands, pine cones and holly will bring nature indoors with quiet elegance. Utilise mirrors and reflective surfaces such as gold or bronze picture frames, and metallic decorative bowls to bounce the winter light.

Dining Room: A Festive Theatre for Elegant Entertaining

Festive dinners deserve a dining room that feels special, inviting, thoughtful. Choose a table with personality - a solid wood or stone table top with visible natural features and softened edges, such as the Ragne Rectangular Dining Table, will provide the perfect, elegant backdrop for your masterpiece. Envelop your table with velvet chairs, such as the Elephant Chair in sage green velvet to add comfort and elegance.

Dress your table with deep red linen runners, cut crystal glassware, and layered place settings - fine china together with textured charger plates (think wood or metal), and cloth napkins in warm, rich tones. Add style with candles of varying heights and add metallic touches to bounce the light around and add sparkle to your set up.  Finish with a centrepiece incorporating mixed foliage, seasonal berries and pine cones.

Statement lighting over the table, such as a chandelier or cluster of pendants, will draw your guests’ attention to your carefully curated display and help get the conversation flowing. If you have them, utilise dimmer switches to help move from dinner to after-dinner linger.

Communal Spaces: First Impressions Count

Your guests might not spend as much time in these areas but first impressions count, setting the tone for the rest of your home.  For entries and hallways consider wallpaper or textured wall treatment, mirrors with ornate or metallic frames, soft rugs or runners with rich patterns.  On staircases and landings, add garlands, festive lanterns and lighting pieces that are sculptural or eye-catching.

If space allows, add deep armchairs such as the Mallow Armchair in Bordeaux velvet, cosy throws, and elegant sideboards or side tables such as the Column Side Table. Layer lighting with floor lamps. Use accent colour cushions in jewel tones.

Ensure that the colours and textures from living and dining spaces are carried into these areas so that when people move through your home, they feel a cohesive sense of warmth and style.

Putting It All Together: Practical Tips

1. Start small, layer in: If you're not ready for full walls in bold tones, begin with cushions, throws, a statement armchair.
2. Balance drama & calm: Use one bold accent (colour or piece) per room, then keep the rest more subdued so the room feels cohesive.
3. Mix old & new: Incorporate heritage pieces or heirlooms (mirrors, frames, sideboards) with modern light fixtures or furniture to give depth and character.
4. Mind lighting schedule: Winter’s short days mean lighting becomes central - use dimmers, warm LED bulbs, candles to extend the evening ambience.
5. Sustainability & longevity: Choose durable fabrics, timeless pieces. Seasonal décor is wonderful, but invest in items you’ll reuse such as good quality metallic candle holders and timeless garlands, rather than purely throwaway décor.

Luxury in winter isn’t about excess, it’s about intention. Layer textures, balance bold colour with calm neutrals, and choose quality décor you’ll love beyond one season. With thoughtful curation, every room becomes a warm, luminous sanctuary.