Decorations in your Kingdom Halls...do you have any?

[Junebaby]

Our local KH was remodeled a few years back.  And it is beautiful, but, we have NO decorations at ALL except a mural over our water fountain. I have seen some truly beautiful and tasteful decorations at several halls.  And my family just toured all three facilities in NY a couple months back.  All were so beautifully decorated!!!  Does a congregation have to go through the RBC and get approval for adding say a table, flower arrangement, mirror etc?  The sisters have talked many times about how our all is so bare...

 

Any thoughts?

[Qapla]

Our RBC has a decorating department and all new and remodeled Halls get decorations.

 

As for an existing Hall, since decorations are not structural and can be done "in house" - meaning there is no need to "call in" RBC members from another congregation to "install" decoration - there should not be a need to contact the RBC for decorations .... adding or removing them (we had to remove some of the decorations that the decorating committee put in our Hall)

 

Keep in mind that if you add a table it should not be placed in an area that would cause a fire hazard or tripping obstacle.

[LeslieDean]

We have such beautiful, simple decorations.  In the lobby a wooden love seat with a pillow settee.  A beautiful tall wicker frame with baskets to hold literature.  And a floral arrangement on a tall sofa table.  Two tables on the stage flanking either end with a huge floral arrangement on each.  I can't remember the scene but a polpular one from one of our books depicting paradise.  Bathrooms (women) beautiful glass bottles on sink with liquid soap and a wicker basket full of a variety of scented hand lotions.  One floral arrangement and a comfy rocking chair for mothers to set and soothe their young ones.  Just very relaxing and the colors are yellows, burgundy and greens.

[ava]

In our lobby we have a small settee as well.  We have some planters with plants in them (not real plants)  We also have a incredible curio cabinet in the lobby with old literature displayed as well as an old phonograph that was used by witnesses to play messages as well as one of the records.  Some other cool stuff from the super early days of Russell and Rutherford.  On the stage behind the speaker is a sofa table with a beautiful silk flower arrangement. In the mother's room is a beautiful painting of a woman nursing her baby, as well as some cute things like monkey's and elephants and other cute animals hanging on the walls in the mother's room..  In the women's bathroom, we have flowers, and some lotions and scented soaps.  Men's bathroom just has regular soap and no lotions. 

 

Also in the library, on top of the shelves are some decorative baskets and some other neat stuff, and on top of the literature cabinets behind the literature counter there are some stuff.  

 

Also have a few pictures in the lobby.  We use to have a real nice and large mirror in the lobby, but they had to take it down when we got the curio cabinet.

Edited January 7, 2014 by ava

[Lance]

Your going where angels fear to tread...LOL

My suggestion is get the RBC involved so if there are complaints (and there will be) that people can blame them...and they are not in your congregation...even better.

In our area the RBC have a couple of sisters that are designers and they bring in all the artwork ..tables.. leather chairs.. general little touches  to ... make the Kingdom  Hall more than just a meeting place .....

Do not cheap out and get furniture that can not take the wear  and tear of kids...babies and teenagers...

Because someone has decorated a nice home ...does not give them the qualifications to decorate a semi commercial  office style space.. totally different scale

 

You want more control....get a designer in ...and get a few people together to make a "donation" of said items...with the approval of the body of elders...

It is amazing how peoples tune changes when they are not paying for it.......

[Sheila]

Sisters Leslie and Ava, how welcoming both your halls sound.   Our entrance hall had a couple of OK prints in the lobby, along with a nice table (used for the Memorial) plus two tall vases matching with artificial arrangements either side of the entrance doors, but during the refurbishing of the lobby early last year everything disappeared and have never been replaced.   Its so bare and bland.  In the Hall, on either side of our platform we had two matching imitation trees (just awful) but thank goodness they've gone too and all we have left are two matching bunches of plastic grass either side of the stairs leading up to the platform.   We used to have two big Lazy-Boy type chairs in the library (which we used for the old book study and second school) and the older ones were grateful to have comfortable seats but even they were taken away.    The inside of a Kingdom Hall in the South of Brisbane is painted a brilliant bright blue that makes your eyes water, so I guess I shouldn't complain about my hall. 

[ava]

We have a fairly new KH, built in 2011, so it's super nice.  RBC did a nice job of decorating it.  The curio cabinet we have with displays of old literature is something we got last year.  All the old literature was donated, it is pretty awesome to view as some of the stuff is real, real old.

[Junebaby]

Oh wow...I wish I could see your Kingdom Halls!  We need some inspiration!  We have an older elder body that doesn't like change...but, if they could see pictures of how our Hall could look...maybe they would agree to getting a few items!  If anyone could get a pic or two of their Halls, that would be just lovely

[bohemian]

We take our decorations down by 6th January, doesn't everybody?   :lol:

 

Very few in our hall, yeartexts in 4 languages and that's about  it.

[Sylv]

We have a small table near the entrance with a small floral arrangement on and a nicely framed mirror above it. I actually can't think of any others, but I'm sure we have them

 

No scented lotions though - we have several people in the hall with environmental allergies.

[Miss Bea]

Mostly large scenes from our publications. Couple fake flower things. Nice narrow table out of beautiful wood as you come in the door. (We have a brother who does beautiful work in wood) rocking chairs in the nursing area. From way back when, we sisters have had no say in decorations. Good thing, we suffered the orange shag carpet era. In several halls in this area. We sisters, no blame.

Shag carpets gone. Now nice neutral tones. Ours is mauves. Nice.

Our hall is a modified quick build, and, we are just grateful. The old hall was, once, a church, basic, and 4x4's were keeping it from falling in on us.

We do not have anything dramatic as far as decorations are concerned. You walk out the door for that. And Jehovah is the decorator out there.

[normadenardo]

lobby pictures?

[Lance]

Well framed prints or paintings are good .. But I find you have the least amount of issues with well framed mirrors.. Everyone likes what they see then..lol