A Season to Celebrate

If there were ever a place where the excitement and wonder of the Christmas season extends beyond any traditional dates on the calendar, it is the holiday-transformed home of Bill and Jennifer Kinner. For the couple and their three children, Katelyn, Kyle and Allie, Christmas is a time for sharing their home and the season with family and friends.

Bill worked with designer Diane LaneSmith in the home’s earliest planning stages to create a design plan that would allow the house to easily transition from season to season. Selecting a warm, luxurious and comfortable décor with an Old World ambience, the couple’s first home together offers a welcome retreat at the end of a busy day. “We started with a blank canvas, from scratch. Then Diane started layering the palette,” says Bill. 

“I wanted to create a home that Bill and Jennifer wouldn’t believe was theirs – a retreat where every day would feel like a vacation – and each room would be a haven,” says Diane.

Working closely with the builder and architect to completely redesign the whole house, even the smallest details – such as well-placed electrical outlets to allow for a sparkling Christmas – were considered.

As the design of the home evolved, Bill, the owner of Josef Mykel Fine Accessories, asked the interior design studio’s senior designers, Josef  DiMercurio and Mykel Shreves, to work their “magic” and embellish the home’s spacious central rooms by using the well-thought-out  interior design as a springboard for their fresh, one-of-a-kind holiday design plan. “From the moment you walk into the house, you’re captivated,” says Bill.

The Kinners' extraordinary suburban home, with its Tuscan charm and decidedly “villa” elegance, begins its transformation to a “Christmas house” in early November. With its open design and spaces that flow graciously from one to another, the home converts seamlessly to a holiday-inspired space. “We wanted to be able to go from the hearth room to the bar to the terrace – or gather around the fire pit – and still be cozy,” says Bill.

The transformation from an everyday living experience to a magnificent Christmas wonderland evokes a reminiscent holiday spirit. “We wanted a place where we can have multiple Christmas gatherings, from the most intimate family event to a grander Christmas party; and with the extraordinary talent of our intuitive design team – we have it. Creativity spurred creativity,” says Bill.

“We give homeowners something that exceeds their imagination,” says Mykel.

“I have to say that the anticipation – seeing what ‘unwrapped' at every turn throughout the entire transformation process – was as exciting as the outcome. We really enjoyed watching it unfold before our eyes,” says Jennifer. The dazzling holiday decorations – layered in unique, imaginative vignettes – spark an immediate “wow” from adults and kids alike, and capture the essence of the season.

Both Josef and Mykel agree that the transformation to Christmas can take place with anyone's furnishings and within any space. “We try to find unique Christmas items that create a magical flair and a burst of energy, and can be passed down from generation to generation,” says Josef. For Bill, Jennifer and their children, they are already filled with anticipation at the prospect of every Christmas being more exciting than the last. “We look forward to the element of surprise and the gift of the unexpected,” says Jennifer.