At Fashion Accents on Main Street in Starkville, red dominated the front windows Thursday in the form of ornaments and clothing. A stuffed snowman sat in a wicker and wrought iron sleigh amidst flows of cottony snow in one window; the floor of the opposite display was covered in what looked like gold cloth dotted with strands of shiny, red beads. Snowflakes and Christmas ornaments hung from the ceiling over the snowman. A wreath hung in one window while a Christmas tree dominated the other.
Inside, the theme is the same: gift-wrapped boxes and miniature Christmas trees hang from the ceiling, adding to the interior that was already bright and shiny from the clothing sold at the boutique.
The decorations at Fashion Accents and other stores on Main Street are preparations for the holiday open house.
The event has been held for 25 years, Steve Langston, head of the Downtown Business Association, said. It is open to businesses across Starkville, not only ones located on Main Street.
“It just kind of gets people in the mood for decorating their homes and buying gifts for people,” Langston said. He works at Sullivan‹¨s Office Supply, one of the 27 to 30 businesses across the city participating.
The event has grown since it began, Langston said. More businesses participate, he said, and crowds enjoy the event more.
He said he expects this year‹¨s event to be the biggest so far. “This is the first time we‹¨ve done it that there was a home football game,” he said.
Fashion Accents is not the only business that has decorated for the event. At the Book Mart, greenery outlines an opening from the bookstore side of the establishment to the side that sells MSU clothing and related items. A Christmas tree dominates the big window on this side of the store, towering over the stuffed bulldogs, a golden paper machܬ reindeer, miniature Santa Clauses and wrapped gift boxes underneath.
Many of the ornaments hanging from the tree appeared to feature Bully himself. A string of Christmas lights, maroon Bullyscovering the bulbs, wraps around a large stuffed bulldog toy wearing a Christmas hat.
“We do it every year,” Marcia Jackson, a Book Mart employee, said. “We‹¨re usually very busy.”
The Book Mart, like many participating businesses, will serve refreshments, including punch, cookies, cheeses and dips, she said.
One restaurant popular with students, Mugshots Bar and Grill, is using the even t to see how business is on Sundays. “It‹¨s our first Sunday to be open since we opened two Augusts ago,” manager Derek Howard said.
Mugshots wants to see how customers respond to a Sunday opening because the restaurant is considering being open on Sundays beginning in 2006, he said.
The restaurant also participated in order to chip in on the open house, he said.
Occasions Gift Shop, another participating location, took an unusual twist on the traditional Christmas decorations.
Green ribbons spiral from the tree, and blue and pink dowels shoot outward toward the ceiling in addition to more traditional ornaments.
Shelby Jones, who works at the shop, said downtown businesses have tried to make sure they are in sync with one another.
“We started a lot earlier getting our Christmas out so we wouldn‹¨t have to be doing it the night before,” she said.
Jessica Wade, manager of Pretties Boutique, juggled a string of brighti bulb ornaments and a length of gold ribbon as she talked about the preparations the store has made for the open house.
This will be the first Christmas for the store, which opened in April, she said.
“We‹¨ve been working hard all week to get everything decorated, and we‹¨re anxious to see how it all works,” she said.