The Magloires' magical Christmas display

Christmas at the Magloires' Morne Bruce residence is truly a magical time.

It's when the family totally transforms their yard into a dazzling display of colorful lights strung on the house, on trees and on plants.

These lights illuminate a magnificent nativity set— a life-sized manger. Figurines are strategically placed on the ground and sometimes in trees.

It's a stunning sight that even Old Saint Nick would be proud of!

The driving force behind the beautiful transformation of the family home is Solange Magloire, who absolutely loves Christmas.

Some people splurge on food, some on clothes, and some on makeup or travel. Solange splurges on Christmas.

In fact, she loves Christmas so much that she sometimes begins playing carols in June!

When we caught up with Solange in early November, the interior decorating of her home had already begun and lights had already been strung on the main Christmas tree.

She remarked sorrowfully that these days many people do not decorate much for Christmas and tend to lose interest entirely when their children grow up.

"But to me, I always look at myself as the child. . . I always loved Christmas, so I just decorate for me," she said.

"The most special part of the year for me is Christmas. Nothing else can ever replace that… there must be something significant and special about that time of the year.

"The atmosphere changes . . . from the extreme heat to the nice cool season . . . there are the prettiest flowers; you get nice unique blooms. Everything unique and wonderful happens. . .

"So there must be something special about that time of the year that's worth celebrating . . . it's the birth of Christ so I just go with that flow."

"When I am decorating for Christmas every single item in the house has to change around, except if it is fixed," Solange declared enthusiastically.

Each year as Christmas approaches persons near and far look forward to the nativity setting and festival of lights at the Magloire residence.

Indeed, during the season many admirers go to Morne Bruce at night to see the Magloires' 'Christmas-scape', which is a breathtaking spectacle with the backdrop of the night sky.

"I have hundreds of lights," Solange said, noting that she started her collection over 25 years ago and adds to it every year.

"I always add new things…every year I add new things," Solange said. And she likes to be creative so she does things a bit differently every year.

"It's not just taking the lights and putting them like that," she explained. It's about using the placement, colours and intensity of various lights to create delightful designs and effects.

The splendid decorating for Christmas also includes the interior of the home, which means that Solange rearranges the house every year for the season.

In the early 2000s, Solange founded a group to decorate the entire Roseau area for Christmas. The group comprised CIMPEX, MARPIN, Kairi and DOMLEC.

Tropical Shipping and LIME were supportive and the Government gave the group duty-free concessions to bring in the decorations.

Companies were invited to sponsor decorated poles throughout the city and the Christmas season was heralded with a festival featuring carol singing by candlelight and a display of talents.

Sadly, the initiative died after about four years, but Solange kept on decorating her home and yard annually.

This doesn't mean her family has a lot of extra money lying around, Solange said, "It's just a question of what you prioritize spending for."

In her view, it is simply that she chooses to prioritize her spending on something she loves that also brings great joy to many other persons.

People look forward to viewing her nativity masterpieces and some even remind her that Christmas is coming and it's time to decorate— as if she needed reminding!

After Christmas, Solange carefully packs away her decorations in a special storeroom where they remain among others until the following year.

Solange's Christmases can also become creative in the kitchen because she often organises themed formal dinners for her family.

You won't find the run-of-the-mill dishes on her Christmas table; her Christmas treats are usually original concepts and ideas.

For instance, the theme one year was "spicy and spiky" and one of her ideas was black pepper-rice, which was almost totally black with a colourful array of peppers.

She recalled having a marshmallow vegetable dish once, and turkeys and hams are never basic fare; rather, they're prepared in unique ways with special sauces.

So, Christmas at the Magloire residence is special in many ways— for the family and also for all of us when we enjoy the amazing spectacle they create at Morne Bruce every year.