It’s the holidays. Have you visited the Holiday Hearth at the Classique Floors + Tile showroom?
When you do, you’ll be greeted with a stunning hearth display created by our very own artist-in-residence, and tile specialist, Kristina McClanahan.
We caught up with Kristina to ask her a few questions.
The Holiday Hearth at Classique Floors + Tile By Kristina McClanahan
Kristina, what’s your background?
I love doing the displays. I’m a mixed media artist and I have a background in Floral Design and Merchandising. I’ve been doing large- and small-scale window/store displays for about 35 years now. For many years I was a prop maker for events.
How long have you been creating holiday installations in the showroom?
For Classique, I’ve been doing these installs since we moved to this location… so early 2020?
Do you name your holiday hearth displays?
I don’t name them really. I just come up with a theme.
What inspired this year’s Holiday Hearth theme?
This year’s theme is book-inspired.
My primary medium art-wise is paper and I repurpose vintage book pages so making a giant book seemed natural.
I also have a huge crush on mushrooms right now.
What inspired last year’s woodland theme?
I was trying to create more of a wintery scene than a traditional Christmas visual. My favorite part of living here in Oregon is the foliage and moss-covered branches. Most of the elements came from my yard and I collect woodland animal figures.
All came together pretty well.
What goes into bringing the installation to life?
I usually start with a vague idea/element and measure the space I’m working on. Then I do a rough sketch.
I had already done a trial run of the glowing mushrooms on a smaller scale so I knew that would work out and be the focus. Then it is hours and hours of true crime documentary watching while I work until it’s done, ha.
Do you make each of the elements?
Last year, I repurposed most of the display from my own collections. This year, about 95% of the installation is handmade.
What are some of your favorite reactions to them?
I love the reactions to the mushrooms…especially when I tell them it’s hot glue and fairy lights. They are pretty magical.
I had someone ask if the giant book was an actual book which is awesome!
How can people learn more about your art?
I’m just coming out of an art hiatus as far as posting on social media goes, but I usually post about my art on Instagram under 30Papercuts.
I also have a little side business, making art and home décor from vintage fabrics I screen print on called Vintage Dolores. I will start posting about those items soon.
Holiday Hearth Installation From 2022
Here is the 2022 installation which featured a woodland theme, as Kristina explained above.
Visit the Holiday Hearth at Classique Floors + Tile
We invite you to tour the showroom anytime, especially during the Holidays, so you can experience firsthand the stunning holiday hearth that Kristina has created.
The Classique team looks forward to welcoming you and answering your questions so you can find the perfect product – whether it be tile, waterproof flooring, hardwood, carpet, cork, or countertops – for your home or simply a dose of design creativity and inspiration.
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Thanks for reading!
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Image credit: Our talented photographer-in-residence and sales expert, Greg Larsen.