Sandra Dickie wanders the festival looking to eavesdrop.
“You know there’s comments like, ‘Wow that’s really different.’ ‘Oh I’m not sure about that.’ ‘I like it.’ ‘I don’t like it.’ ‘You know it’s art,’ ” said the co-chair of the trees committee.
Co-chair of the Festival of Trees committee Sandra Dickie marvels at the design tips available by wandering around the Shaw Conference Centre. (Adrienne Lamb/CBC)
What you get for your admission is access to some of the hottest decorating tips, tricks and trends of the season, according to Dickie.
A tree deck out in llamas at this year’s Festival of Trees. (Adrienne Lamb/CBC)
Highly-refined decor trends include mix metals.
“Instead of your tree having to be all gold or all silver, we’re seeing coloured trees with a mix of gold and silver and champagne,” Dickie explained. “Lot of people adding in blush pink.”
Another huge trend is making a tree from recycled or reclaimed materials such as old skis, reclaimed wood, or a medley of decorations from the shelves of Value Village. Merry Thriftmas!
“This tree cost less than a hundred dollars, with the decorations, and the tree, and the skirt, all of it together,” said store manager Corrine Nguyen.
As Nguyen decorates her tree with mismatched bulbs, butterflies and ribbon, she’s thinking of her family.
Both her father, who died in 2008, and her sister were afflicted with a brain aneurysms.
Corrine Nguyen with Value Village decorates the Merry Thriftmas tree at the festival. (Adrienne Lamb/CBC)
CT scans is life-saving technology, one the brain centre relies on.
“We have a few CT scanners on site at the University of Alberta hospital right now but we didn’t have one available 24/7 to the brain centre and that’s critical,” said Dr. Patricia Allewell Nieberding, festival chair.
The Festival of Trees runs until Sunday.
Designer Shawn Moore created a tree from wood recycled from the University of Alberta Botanic Garden. (Adrienne Lamb/CBC)