We cannot believe the time has arrived for our annual Holiday Tastemaker series! Each year we have the privilege to partner with some of our favorite creatives to help them design their own customized holiday card collection. You can find our previous tastemaker collections here. Our first Tastemaker for the 2020 holiday season is Heather Chadduck Hillegas, an interior decorator, textile designer, and photo stylist.
Heather’s work has been widely published in national magazines, books, and catalogs for more than 20 years. Her sprawling portfolio encapsulates everything from residential designs, lake houses, historic homes, a luxury yacht in the Bahamas, as well as the 2019 Southern Living Idea House. She lives in Birmingham, Alabama with her husband in a newly renovated 1920s clapboard colonial that was featured in the October 2018 issue of House Beautiful. Before launching Heather Chadduck Interiors, she inspired millions through her editorial work at Cottage Living and Coastal Living, and most recently as the Style Director of Southern Living. Her botanical-inspired fabrics are now sold in trade showrooms across the country.
Heather worked with Dogwood Hill artist Holly Hollon who created the artwork for her Tastemaker Collection. As you will read below, Heather features her dog, Eloise, on her holiday card every year. So this year, she requested that Holly create a fun design that someone would be able to add the face of a pet or child wearing the reindeer antlers (pictured near the end of this post). Heather also asked Holly to incorporate her favorite Lillieberrie fabric from her own textile collection for the tastemaker suite. Pictured below is the fabric used in Heather’s home as well as Holly’s take on the pattern in her finished Tastemaker Collection.
We have included some of our favorite projects by Heather as well as our Q&A with her below. Continue scrolling for the rest of her beautiful Holiday Collection which can be shopped here.
What is your favorite holiday tradition?
Christmas morning we all wear pajamas until at least noon!
What is your most memorable holiday and why?
Growing up in Virginia, we loved visits to the Greenbrier. Waking up in this colorful historical hotel is a treat! I love the formality that surrounds the dining rooms and event spaces. And the smell of cinnamon and clove in the lobby from the afternoon offering of mulled wine.
Which cards (from your Tastemaker Suite) will you be sending out to family and friends this holiday?
We will be sending out holiday cards this year with the face of our beloved German Shorthaired Pointer Rescue dog, Eloise. Complete with reindeer antlers and accents of Lillieberrie sprigs, this is a favorite fabric pattern from our textiles line.
For Holiday cards, how do you compile your list?
I love to address the cards by hand so I still have a printed master list that I work with to be sure everyone is included. This way I can include a small personal note while I’m filling in the addresses!
Do you have a consistent go-to gift for family? friends? work acquaintances?
Anything to promote festiveness! Pretty cocktail napkins, a cocktail kit, anything to promote effortless entertaining!
What is your go-to holiday hostess gift?
It’s hard to beat the gift of a chilled bottle of fine champagne, tied with a giant satin red ribbon. And a tag from our collection.
What is your favorite last-minute holiday gift idea?
When last minute gift giving is in order, I compile a cheese and charcuterie spread on a vintage cutting board, with pretty little bowls and sprigs of flowering citrus as a gift!
What keeps you inspired during the busy holiday season?
A to do list. We have family all of the country so getting the gifts wrapped and in the mail is quite a challenge.
What brings you a sense of calm during the busy holiday season?
A moment to enjoy the season; a fire in the fireplace, a hot bath or a Saturday morning to sleep in late.
What is your favorite holiday dessert?
I love Peppermint Ice Cream topped with my mom’s homemade hot fudge sauce. I think it’s an old junior league recipe!
What is your go-to favorite holiday scent?
The sweet smell of blooming paperwhites is hard to beat.
Who is on your dream holiday party guest? If applicable, please share their Instagram handles.
I would love to sit at the table with a few chic people;
Where are you daydreaming of traveling to in 2021?
We’ve been planning a trip to Sicily with friends, I’m hoping we can visit this Italian island in 2021!
What are you most thankful for this year? And what are you most looking forward to in the New Year? 2020 has been such a strange year!
The force to slow down and take a step back has been a nice break. While realizing what’s important, we’ve taken many roadtrips, something we have come to love as a mode of travel!
Dogwood Hill Photography by Mary Margaret Smith.