RIGHT AROUND OCTOBER, when the pumpkins are orange-ing up store bins and spooky Halloween masks are lining the racks, there is some chatter, here and there, about the early introduction of Christmas decorations. A contingent of people claim that carols should wait for December, and anything that's plaid, pine-scented, or glittery shouldn't show up on shelves or in homes before Thanksgiving. To those people we wish a wonderful Halloween season, and autumn, too, before turning our attention to the festive fans of the yuletide, the lovers of ho, ho, ho, the carol-adoring obsessives that begin to sing seasonal songs in July. We know you, we know you're out there, and we know that, come October, you're already flirting with the idea of hanging some holly and wreaths. If this is your unapologetic approach, and you adore the whole early-starter thing ahead of the holidays, then celebrate it by wending your way to one of the biggest seasonal spectacles in Orange County, which is now open. We do speak of...
ROGER'S GARDENS... in Corona del Mar, the garden-and-more center that does it up, shop- and decoration-wise, for both Halloween and the yuletide. The Halloween shop has been eeking-it-up for a few weeks now, but, hot on its haunted heels is the Joyeux Noël boutique, which opened to the public on Thursday, Oct. 5. True, it is a store, meaning there are items to purchase, but stopping by just to peacefully wander among the 20 gussied-up trees and displays tributing a European Christmas is also a favorite among those who like to jump-start the joy. It's free to see, of course, and twinkling through Nov. 26, should you want to wait a bit to get your festive fun on. Oh, and those trees? So fancy are they that they each rock a name: Goldenlight, Pinecones & Ice, and Abalone are just three of the merry monikers.
