Anita Yoder launched Heritage Design Interiors (HDI) in a bedroom of her home 35 years ago. Today, it’s located in a former 19th-century inn that features six fireplaces, which are perfect for decking the halls at this time of the year. 

 “It started as a hobby and grew from there,” Anita says of her design business that has been at its present location for the past 23 years. The former rental property that dates to the 1830s, “spoke” to Anita. “When I saw it for the first time, I fell in love with it,” she says of envisioning a glass-enclosed front porch and using the individual rooms to create vignettes for her accessory- and décor-driven business. Fortunately, the building hadn’t been “modernized” and retained quite a few design and decorative aspects from the era in which it was built. 

Christmas Past 

Once upon a time, Christmas decorating was a rather low-key affair. The tree would get decorated a week before Christmas and come down New Year’s Day (or earlier). A Nativity would be given its place of honor. A wreath would decorate the front door, while lights would illuminate a tree or two. That was about it. “My mother is always amazed at the extent I go to decorate for Christmas,” Anita says. 

How did we become so obsessed with holiday décor? Anita traces it back to about 35 years ago. She names Martha Stewart as being a spark plug, thanks to her dream-inspiring magazine, which debuted in 1990, and her Christmas-decorating specials that aired in prime time and were considered to be “must-see TV.” Her devoted baby boomer fans, who love “stuff,” jumped on the sleigh and vowed to replicate Martha’s holiday décor. 

It can also be traced to HGTV, which began airing its own Christmas specials, namely a tour of the White House that is always decorated to the hilt for the holidays. Then, as Anita points out, the king of ornaments, Christopher Radko, came along. He almost singlehandedly created a craze for ornaments that spoke of Old-World artistry. The 21st century has brought us inspiration via social media and sites such as Pinterest. We also can’t forget Hallmark, whose trademark holiday movies keep upping the ante where set décor is concerned (thanks to a partnership with Balsam Hill).     

Christmas Future 

Home-related businesses such as HDI took notice. “Our first year here, we decorated one mantel and one tree,” Anita recalls. “Now, we do five mantels and eight themed trees.” In addition, tabletops, shelves and other surfaces are laden with accessories. 

Christmas has become a year-long endeavor for businesses such as HDI, which begins contemplating the upcoming holiday season soon after the New Year arrives. Gift shows that are held in Dallas, Atlanta, Las Vegas and New York take place from early January through March (and again in July). Anita explains that it’s critical to attend the early shows, as product is often sold out by the time the later shows are held. She still has nightmares about the 2020 holiday season. “Only one-third of our shipments arrived,” she recalls of the pandemic playing havoc with holiday-focused manufacturing and deliveries. 

For HDI, Christmas in July signifies more than a promo; product begins to arrive just as the Fourth of July fireworks fade. Decorating begins in earnest in mid-September, when the rooms on the upper floor of the shop begin their transformation. 

Christmas Present

Of course, Anita does her homework ahead of the shows and shops with the knowledge of what her customers were attracted to the previous year and what is predicted to be on trend for the upcoming season. “I’m always looking for unique, quality items,” she says. 

With that said, Anita shares the various directions holiday décor will take in 2025. In a philosophical nutshell, it’s individualism paired with social consciousness. Throw in cocooning and you have the look and feel of Christmas 2025. “Last year, people just loved the fact that they were seeing color during our Open House event,” Anita recalls. “I think people are tired of the white-on-white-on-white modern farmhouse look. They are craving color!”   

Castlecore:Think opulence, grandeur and Old World. “The look is defined by colors such as gold and burgundy, as well as velvet and bejeweled items,” Anita says, adding that no doubt it’s being inspired by tufted furniture and color drenching.   

Bows: The choice is yours … oversized and dramatic or petite and sweet. “I like to tuck bows into trees,” Anita says of the trend that was first spied on fashion runways and seems to have struck a chord with younger generations. 

Multi-colored Lights: Those who love vintage will welcome this return to color. Even faux trees are offering the option of white or multi-colored lights. “You’re going to see multi-colored lights everywhere,” Anita predicts.

Get Personal: Whether you like whimsical, traditional or glam décor, this is your year to indulge! “Buy what you like,” says Anita. 

Bold, Nontraditional Colors: Think pink, turquoise, orange, blue, purple, buttery yellow … 
“Orange is the hot new color,” says Anita. “It’s made the transition from the runway to home décor, including holiday,” she explains of how color trends emerge. “I understand the new iPhone with the orange case is backordered for weeks.” 

Antique and Vintage: The look is both old (nostalgia) and new (sustainability). 

Memory Trees: “This is huge,” says Anita of mixing ornaments you’ve collected (or inherited), with homemade items and even souvenirs of your travels on one tree. “It makes for a very personal tree. I like to see this theme used in a family room,” she says. 

Metallics:“Anything gold” will be a recurring theme this holiday season. “I love the look of combining gold and bronze,” Anita notes, adding that metallics bring the glow factor to décor. 

Trees in Every Room: No, not floor-to-ceiling specimens; table-top trees of all sizes and made of metal, glass and other materials can bring a subtle holiday touch to any room. 

Garland Goes Big:Fluff up a garland with ornaments, picks, lights, tinsel (it’s back) and natural elements to create a wow factor for staircases, mantels, doorways, etc. 

Animals: While deer still rule, Anita reports that bears have staged a comeback. You’ll be seeing both of these forces of nature depicted in ornaments, accessories, dinnerware and outdoor décor. “Bears are perfect for a lodge look,” Anita points out. 

Christmas Creep

Indeed, Christmas décor is big business. Billions of dollars are spent every year. It’s been a boon for businesses such as HDI, which once spent the last two months of the year spinning its wheels, waiting for the holidays to be over and spring redecorating projects to get underway. Now such businesses are kept busy decorating clients’ homes for the holidays. “The requests for dates are getting earlier and earlier each year,” Anita says. “Now, people want to be decorated by mid-November. Outside of a few last-minute items, we’re finished by early December. I think people go all out to decorate because entertaining at home continues to be popular. For a lot of them, the holidays start with Thanksgiving.” 

Anita also finds that people want their homes to stay decorated well into January. “They go to the expense of decorating and want to enjoy it for as long as they can,” she theorizes. She counts herself among them. “I leave my tree up until late in January,” she admits. She also engages in what she calls an “accessory shuffle” and gradually removes decorative items that definitely harken to Christmas and replaces them with seasonal items. “Taking everything down in one swoop makes the house feel so empty,” she says. “So, I gradually remove things. The poinsettias are the first to go,” she says. “I like to replace them with magnolia blooms.”   

Heritage Design Interior’s annual Holiday Open House will be held November 6-15 (closed Sundays). HDI will also be part of the Best Kept Secrets Holiday Tour, December 4-13. Address is 1064 E. Main St., New Holland. Information: Heritagedesigninteriors.com