The halls are decked…

Take a leisurely holiday stroll down the Castle Quarter Arcades and the corridors, hallways and store windows are bound to leave you immersed in joy.

This season, the Castle Quarter Arcades has hand picked a cross section of local talent and expertise to help fulfil their Christmas wish of contributing to the home grown design industry.The decor in each of the hallways places emphasis on novelty, ingenuity and originality.

Glitzy and unique, the golden spheres which hang down from the Victorian ceilings were designed and lazer cut by Home by Kristy, Cardiff’s newest lighting, design and gift shop, based in the Cardiff Arcade.

Spheres of joy

sparkling spheres

These eye catching globes, which give the illusion of being suspended in mid air, had their sparkle added by Graham Sweet Studio, a company founded over forty years ago. They produce all their props, in house, right here in the UK.

Sparkling spheres

Sparking spheres

The 15 foot Norweigan spruce tree which is placed atop the balcony of the Castle Street Arcade was supplied by the Ty Cerrig Christmas Tree Farm. While the seeds for this tree came from Germany, the tree was grown on the farm in Maerdy Newydd Bonvilston in the Vale of Glamorgan.

According to Ty Cerrig  the British public have been decorating Norway Spruce since 1841, when Queen Victoria was pictured with her husband Prince Albert and their children, standing beside one at Windsor Castle.

Ty Cerrig’s Norweigian Spruce

Still on the subject of trees, the festive bay trees with fluffy golden shimmer ties and fairy lights that adorn the court were brought to life by the Dutch Garden Centre.This nursery is South Wales’ largest stockist of trees, shrubs, conifers and hedging and bedding plants. It’s a specialist importer of Dutch flowering shrubs and bulbs and renowned for decorative summer and winter gardens.

Festive Bay Trees

Visible Art, a Cardiff based printing company worked on printing the tote bags, Forbesfield is credited with providing the Christmas wreaths in High Steet and Duke Street Arcades and Vinyl Life lent a hand to print the large stag head.

Both ‘Home by Kirsty’ and ‘Forbesfield’ were responsible for delivering the entire installation to beautify the arcades.

These are just some of the fine artisan and bespoke craft teams that are giving the corridors a magical vibe this December.

Annalisa Jones, who manages public relations and events for the Castle Quarter Arcades explains this year’s design concept further: “At Castle Quarter Arcades, we have recruited the talents of local suppliers to help us realise our vision this Christmas. With an emphasis on innovation and originality, we have created a magical space for Cardiff shoppers unlike any other in the city.”

Oh, and while you’re there, keep an eye out for that electrifying polar bear.

Polar bear surprises