Gold Coast (Chicago) Holidays, 2011

Another holiday in the Gold Coast means another competition to out-do your neighbor, honestly, the private homes are so detailed and festive, they can only be competing. 

This fenced area, below, is in front of a high-rise and although still planted for fall, it looks great, having survived some cold nights and long rains.  The trees are just being strung with lights.  High-rises typically do not go "all out" in decorations--budgetary or Scrooge, I'm not sure.

The homes on State Street really set the standard:

What is this section of the sidewalk called? I like how they've laid evergreen branches to cover the bare earth:

Competing bows, each from a different home:

This home reminded me of the decorator tradition of displaying wealth by having an excess of drapery puddled on the floor--here there is an excess of almost everything:

This building is usually ivy-covered, now it's adorned with a wreath.

We've worked our way over to Astor Street, which frankly with few exceptions is a disappointment in the decoration department.  This urn in front of an art deco masterwork though is large and appropriate to the scale of the corner lot.  I love it.

This is the entry way lantern with a similar urn:

The home next door has beautifully cared for boxwoods but no holiday decorations:

A well done urn, vivid red berries and a nice lay of greens atop a rope design:

I think this post is too big, so I'll save some others for tomorrow.  And yes, I know, I've promised couture from the auction, but today was so beautiful out, I had to mosey my neighborhood for shots.