![Bar_David_Cara_278 portrait of homeowners](https://flowermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Bar_David_Cara_278.jpg)
Cara’s husband, David, kicks off the season with a signature cranberry cocktail named after their home, Harvest Field, a reference from the Bible verse Matthew 9:38.
![Bar-Horizontal_346 a bar set up with silver and stainless serving pieces](https://flowermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Bar-Horizontal_346.jpg)
The windowsill behind the bar displays a sculpture by English artist Ann Carrington. Using silver plate and stainless serving pieces, she fashions bouquets out of cast-off utensils.
Being surrounded by design at a young age propelled Cara’s own creative stirring. After she graduated from Vanderbilt with a degree in marketing and returned to her home state of Texas, a friend introduced her to the thrill of hunting for vintage beads and old jewelry. Together, the duo bought and repurposed their finds by disassembling the baubles and reimaging them as intricate Christmas ornaments. Eventually, they showed them to buyers at Neiman Marcus, and the company immediately placed an order for 200.
![Front Gate 03 A_1908 entrance gate decorated with holiday wreaths](https://flowermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Front-Gate-03-A_1908.jpg)
The property’s gate, built by Amish carpenters, visually relates to the clapboard dormers on the stucco-and-stone farmhouse. Pinecone-studded wreaths are tied to garland with chocolate-brown ribbon.
![Side Exterior 01_2141 side door decorated with garland](https://flowermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Side-Exterior-01_2141.jpg)
The mudroom door is dressed with a garland of balsam, cypress, and hemlock.
![Living Room 01_527 Cara Brown's farmhouse living room decorated for Christmas with garland on mantel and homemade ornaments and arrangement of amaryllis on table.](https://flowermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Living-Room-01_527.jpg)
Cara commissioned the large, cheerful, contemporary painting in the living room from local artist Elizabeth Endres. A Picasso print hangs above the fireplace.
Without compromising the integrity of the original structure, Cara and David contributed elements from their own aesthetic lexicon. Additions include a hand-painted mural that extends from the entry to the dining room and up the staircase. Paint colors are from the Williamsburg Paint Color Collection by Benjamin Moore, and rooms are filled with antiques, some purchased together as a couple and others passed down from family members. Pieces include a 1920s English chest used as a bar in the dining room, an 1880s Welsh dresser, and an 1890s French dining table and chairs. The bureau in the enclosed porch belonged to David’s grandmother. “We wanted everything to look like it belonged here,” Cara says. “Our goal was to dress up what was otherwise a fairly fundamental home and property.”
![Ornament Detail 03_2246 close up shot of handmade ornaments](https://flowermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Ornament-Detail-03_2246.jpg)
Some of Cara’s earliest ornaments were created in tandem with a friend from Texas. “We used about 1,500 pins per ball to hold the beads in place,” Cara says.
![Living Room 05_2226 mantel decorated with garland](https://flowermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Living-Room-05_2226.jpg)
The mantel’s garland is studded with amaryllis blooms, gold-dipped pinecones, French tulips, and branches of faux red berries. “The berries are the only faux thing I use,” Jennifer says. “Unlike real ones, they don’t fall off and make a mess.”
![Christmas-tree-01_083 golden retriever laying in front of christmas tree](https://flowermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Christmas-tree-01_083.jpg)
Lois Lane, the family’s Golden Retriever, is no doubt the best gift under the tree. Floral designer Jennifer Figge filled the tree with antique bells and a combo of fresh and dried florals. Flowers and greenery include Queen Anne’s lace, tulips, bay leaf, eucalyptus, and English ivy. The circa 1800s antique angel crowns the tree.
![Dessert Table Details_2196 photo of cake](https://flowermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Dessert-Table-Details_2196.jpg)
Cara serves up a woodsy-themed cake dressed with meringue mushrooms and dried apples that resemble lichens.
![Dining Detail 03_198 dining table set for guests](https://flowermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Dining-Detail-03_198.jpg)
The antique Imari china cued the colors in the floral arrangements and in the monogrammed napkins from Leontine Linens.
—Cara Brown
![Dining-room-01B_096 dining room full of antiques](https://flowermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Dining-room-01B_096.jpg)
Antiques fill the Browns’ dining room, creating a warm, cozy scene. Painted by artist Carol Nagel, the mural brings the fields, trees, and barns from the property’s bucolic setting to the interiors.
Read “What’s Old Is New for Cara Brown Designs”
To see more of Cara Brown’s designs, visit her website and follow her on Instagram. Phone: 609.730.0506