Every winter, the White House is decorated for the holiday season. This year, for the Obamas’ last December as POTUS and FLOTUS, the house was truly made over into a winter wonderland.
On the White House blog, White House Social Secretary Deesha Dyer, whose job it is to lead the transformation, wrote that this year’s theme was “The Gift of the Holidays,” mainly the gift of family and friends, reflection and remembrance and excitement and cheer.
The concept and creation began six months ago when Michelle Obama and a team of designers started dreaming up the plan. Together they created sketches for the entire White House, including the private residence and the West Wing.
Volunteers, who submitted fun and quirky letters to be chosen, began assembling the unique and oversized decorations (such as larger-than-life yarn replicas of the Obamas’ dogs Sunny and Bo and LEGO gingerbread houses) the day after Thanksgiving.
“It’s a team effort to bring it all together. We are so lucky that in addition to the tours and receptions to showcase the work, we are able to also bring the joyous experience of the holidays to those online,” wrote Dyer.
Her blog post included two photos of a “hint” of what’s to come, and now more images of the holiday makeover are finally online. The White House along with some of the decorators took to Instagram to post their photos. Flip through the slides above to see the latest decorations.