Next door, another guest room is simply, yet remarkably furnished and decorated. The tall tree in this room proudly stands in the corner, bedecked in tiny lights and a bold red ribbon that cascades from treetop to floor. The bed is simply made in white linens accented with a gold throw and red and gold patchwork pillows. What is now a headboard for the bed used to be an antique wrought-iron garden gate. The focal point in the room, however, is the minimalist art, created by Marianne. She painted two canvases red, then used gold leaf to form bold circles on each canvas. Beneath, the nutcrackers stand poised and ready for Santa ’s visit.

The tree in the baby’s room is whimsically decorated with real candy treats, including candy canes, gum drops, rock candy, chocolates and more. In fact, a Hershey kiss wreath hangs temptingly on the door, begging to be devoured. All the furniture in the room are family heirloom pieces, lovingly handed down to cradle this couple ’s firstborn. From the babybed to the antique hutch transformed into the changing table/dresser to the framed baby dress, shoes and bib from Marianne ’s baptism, every detail in this space speaks to the paramount importance Tim and Marianne place on familial ties. The circus tent-inspired art in this room is also Marianne ’s creation.

The spacious master bedroom allows for comfort and ease of movement and is also classically decorated with meaningful pieces of art. The Christmas tree in this room is decorated with old and new mercury glass ornaments collected from the couple ’s travels to Russia, France and Scotland. Also from Russia are a set of Matryoshka dolls, and hanging over the bed —and at this time of

The entire home, every room and every wall, is so elegantly appointed and beautifully decorated that one can ’t help but ask, “Who is your decorator?” Marianne shyly smiles and answers, “Me!” No surprise then that this former litigator traded in her law books for decorating manuals. She has recently begun doing business as M. Sulser Design (www.sulserdesign.com), and visitors from the Historic Holiday Home Tour, no doubt, were able to get lots of great ideas about how to bring a little something extra, a little lagniappe, from Louisiana, to the Heights, to their own homes.

The Sulser home was one of five featured homes on The Home Tour, both historic and new, each reflecting traditional Heights architecture. Each year in the Heights, Texas ’ oldest master-planned community, citizens of Houston have a chance to get up close and personal with the rich flavor that makes this neighborhood so special. In addition, proceeds from the Holiday Home Tour and Market go to fund various Houston Heights Association projects including maintaining, improving and beautifying parks, streets, walkways, public buildings, and vacant and underdeveloped areas.

For more information about the Heights or this year’s Holiday Home Tour and Market, visit www.houstonheights.com.l