By Emma Knuckey
More than 50 Christmas decorations adorn Forest Lake local Nicole Ghilardi’s Renoir Crescent home and front garden.
Four years ago, Ms Ghilardi and her husband owned only a handful of Christmas decorations but thought they’d extend the Christmas cheer, usually reserved for inside their home, to the world outside.
“We’ve been right into decorating for Christmas, and then it just sort of escalated after the first year we decorated,” Ms Ghilardi said.
“Our fireplace is the latest addition, but we want to build an interactive train on a frame, which will be a project for next year.”
Ms Ghilardi and her husband, who is a carpenter and joiner by trade, spend three days setting up the decorations together each year in early November.
They often work until midnight each day, preferring to decorate the house in the evenings, so that the lights in their final form are visible.
“It’s a lot of work and you have to love it to do it every year,” she said.
Ms Ghilardi has six grandkids between her three children, who all love the display.
“They are always excited for the decorations; they just want to jump on everything and sit in Santa’s sleigh,” she said.
“We’ve just started the tradition of also handing out candy canes and lollipops. I think we went through about 6000 last year.
“It’s Christmas every day for them.”
There can be challenges in leaving decorations outside of your home for six weeks in south east Queensland spring and summer.
Ms Ghilardi said wild weather, sudden storms, and unforgiving heat can interfere with festivities, but so far her house has been lucky.
“We’ve been quite lucky, but we have lost decorations over the years. They get really dirty, and the inflatables can be quite high maintenance because they’re sitting in the sun all day.”
At the height of the Christmas season, Ms Ghilardi said those who visited her display often lined up for pictures with Santa and Mrs Claus, which is one of her personal favourite decorations.
She estimates the number of visitors the house receives every night at the end of November and all through December is easily in the hundreds.
“We had some people come over and visit us who had just picked up their relatives from the airport; they’d flown in from Sri Lanka for Christmas.
“And their family took them to our house to see the lights and decorations before they’d even dropped their luggage off.”
“That was really beautiful,” she said. “The last thing I would want to do is go to see Christmas lights, after getting off a plane, but clearly they thought it was worth it.”
If you’re looking for Christmas displays that dazzle, there are plenty to be seen in and around Forest Lake. Below is a list of locations, which can also be viewed on a map at the link here: https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/
55 Brushwood Circuit, Forest Lake
81 Centennial Way, Forest Lake
10 Cheltenham Place, Forest Lake
22 Hinchinbrook Circuit, Forest Lake
67 Leichhardt Circuit, Forest Lake
15 Paluna Place, Forest Lake
9 Renoir Crescent, Forest Lake
31 Solander Circuit, Forest Lake
15 Toomba Place, Forest Lake
6 Lee Rd, Darra
5 Peacock Street, Doolandella
St Mary’s Close, Doolandella
30 Brush Box Place, Heathwood
6 Rise Place, Heathwood
12 Rudd St, Oxley
32 Thornburgh St, Oxley
Woodgate St, Oxley
62 Brookbent Rd, Pallara
53 Pallara Avenue, Pallara
22 Vista Street, Pallara
