Madeline Weinrib is one of my absolute favorite textile designers. I just adore her globally influenced collections which are full of ethnic prints and patterns in fresh, vibrant color palettes. I recently checked in with Madeline to get the scoop on how she plans to celebrate New Year’s. Unlike Vicente Wolf and Laura Kirar who are jetting off to exotic places, Madeline plans to keep it low key this New Year’s Eve. She revealed her plans exclusively with So Haute and here’s the scoop…

“For New Yorkers, life is so frenetic that most prefer to see the New Year holiday as a time for rejuvenation and reflection and spend it quietly rather than partake in the traditional New Year’s festivities. I’ll be celebrating the New Year at my home in Bridgehampton and have invited friends to come out to stay with me. My house has a wonderful atmosphere in the wintertime. My dining room is all glass and last year it snowed so furiously  it felt as though we were in a snow globe. This year I would like to keep my dinner simple, but special so I am buying some fresh white truffles to shave over pasta. It is perfect with a glass of champagne. The house also has a fireplace and I have to say that it’s so cozy and lovely to just sit around the fire with my friends, watch movies and read. For me, it’s the ideal way to ring in the New Year.”

Thanks Madeline for sharing your holiday plans with So Haute! To see more of Madeline’s beautiful designs, you can visit her website here.

_{Photo: Simon Upton for Elle Decor}

Before the holiday I was too busy running around to post pictures of my decorations but I wanted to share so here you go…a little peek at my holiday decor! The scheme consisted of greens, whites, splashes of bright pink for a punch of color and lots of sparkle and shine achieved with silver accessories, candles and lights. The result was unfussy yet very chic and sophisticated.

Here’s my dining area. On the right is a faux topiary in a silver pot with tiny silver ornaments purchased at HomeGoods for a steal. I added a mini string of Christmas lights for the sparkle factor. On the left is a vase of eucalyptus leaves which were spray painted silver. To create this arrangement I simply jumbled some lights around the stems which resulted in a soft, radiant glow inside the vase. I never have the time or patience for projects that are too complicated or cumbersome and this arrangement was so easy to do! In front of the mirror are two pairs of elegant ivory tapers in crystal candlesticks. Between the candlesticks are a pair of silver faux bois votives and at the center is a faux fir candle holder decorated with holly and silver ornaments.

I hit up the flower district for many of my holiday decorative items. One of my first stops was United Wholesale Florist where I purchased white roses and magnolia leaves which I arranged in a silver pot I had lying around the house. Above is the finished product. Green and white floral arrangements are my absolute favorite and fit in well with any holiday decor.

One of the best things about Christmas in New York is that you can buy fresh holiday greenery like trees, wreaths and garland on just about every street corner in Manhattan. I bought my live wreath above from a street vendor near my apartment and hung it on my living room wall in the place of my starburst mirror. It fills my apartment with the most amazing, wintery scent. I took a few acorns and hand painted the tips so they looked as if they had been dipped in gold then attached them to the wreath with wire. For a pop of color, I decorated the wreath with a hand tied bow made from pink ribbon I purchased at B & J Florist Supply in the flower district. The pink picks up the color of my table lamps.

Here’s another chic green and white arrangement I made for my coffee table.

I don’t have a fireplace so I treated my skirted TV console sort of like a mantle and decorated it with garland. I knew I needed to go faux because my TV console is very close to a heat source which would dry out real greenery very quickly. And in the interest of keeping things simple, I didn’t want to be left with a mess of needles to have to sweep up! I wanted top quality faux so I went to Pany Silk, also in the flower district, which has a beautiful selection of silk flowers and fake greenery. They had the perfect 9 foot strand of fir garland that you would never know was fake by looking at it. I enhanced the garland by adding a string of Christmas lights, a string of sparkly silver glitter “berries” and more of the pretty pink ribbon from B & J. The silver ornament “tree” on the left was a find from Target a couple of years ago.

Decorating with books is an easy trick you can use to change things up in your own home. I’m always rearranging my book displays around the house to keep things fresh and here, I stacked a few green and pink books on top of my console to play nicely off the colors in the garland. I topped the books with a silver hammered metal bowl from West Elm filled with potpourri made of dried fruits, flowers and silver painted natural accents.

Since I didn’t do a for real tree, I stacked my gifts on top of my x-base stools that I got from the Brimfield Antique show last year.

I wrapped all of my presents in silver paper which I think is so festive for the holidays and then hand tied bows on each package with various green and white ribbon. How pretty is that! As much as I enjoy wrapping pretty presents, watching them get unwrapped is even more fun. And seeing the happiness and excitement I bring to others through my thoughtfully chosen gifts, gives me an extreme sense of joy that reflects what the spirit of the holiday season is all about. Hope you had a wonderful Christmas!

Celebrated interior designer Benjamin Noriega-Ortiz has had a busy year. Among his many high profile projects, he completed a residence for Sean “Diddy” Combs (a project that has been 5 years in the making!), a very chic lobby for 160 Wooster which is a new luxury apartment building in downtown Manhattan, as well as the redesign of the showroom and studio for ABYU, the bespoke lighting company he owns with his partner Steve Wine. And that’s just a small sampling of what he’s been up to so it’s no surprise that a little R&R is in order this holiday season! I caught up with Benjamin recently to hear all about his holiday plans which, of course, includes plenty of afternoon naps! Here’s the scoop:

What are you planning for the holidays this year?

I’m staying in fabulous New York City for the holidays…it’s the first time in three years. I plan to exercise, take naps in the afternoon, go out for brunch and dinners, visit museums, go to the movies, go shopping, and above all, spend time with my partner at home by the fire watching old movies…

What’s your favorite gift to give others for the holidays?

Experiences! A great dinner, theater or dance performance, a great trip,  a surprise party…anything you can remember later on in life which requires no other storage than your mind.

What’s on your own holiday wish list?

Maybe a new laptop. I might upgrade my iPhone and for sure book a few more trips for 2010.