SALT LAKE CITY — A community staple of holiday spirit in Utah has been a longtime place for families across the state to visit and gaze at amazing artistry and skill.
The Grand America Hotel Holiday Window Stroll is a favorite celebration of the season for years and this year is no different. The hotel's 14 windows are themed to "Let it Snow," inspired by the massive snow storm that hit northern Utah earlier this year.
"So its all Utah-based activities that you can do right here in the snow," explained window designer Jonnie Heartman.
Imagination, creativity, and wonder are on full display in the windows.
"The Grand is really magnificent," said Heartman, "it always has this warm inviting feel."
To mark the holiday season, families are already showing up in droves to get a look at the hotel window stroll.
"It is so amazing that it has become a tradition for so many Utah families, and I love being a fly on the wall. I come down here and walk through and hear peoples reactions, and see the excitement and the happiness it brings," Heartman added.
Those families include Kerri White who brought her granddaughter to the hotel to gaze at the windows.
"Seeing each window, it kind of reminds you everything that Utah has, right?," she said. "We will be coming back, too. I’ve got a couple more grandkids that we need to bring back, so we are going to make this a tradition, for sure."
All of the designs and creativity starts with an idea in the mind of Heartman.
"I start back in the summer," the designer explained. "I am doing Christmas in the summer. and around July I start sketching, concepting, designing and theming."
Heartman then takes her design to her team and they are off to the races as a group of crafters help with all the handmade details.
It's Heartman's 12 year designing the windows. After a three-year hiatus, she returned last year and again this season.
"I love taking something that is just an idea and seeing it just come to life," she said.
This year's stroll includes an Easter egg in each window that families and little ones might have to look for. Snowball is author Jacqueline Frost’s kitten, and since he’s kind of adventurous, he appears in each window.
"Guests have to find Snowball, and when they do they enter a little scavenger hunt, and when they answer all the questions you’re entered into a special prize from the Grand," said Heartman.
The window stroll has been a labor of love for Heartman and her team.
"I would hope that people notice the handmade details and realize it isn’t just a commercialized window stroll," she said. "That there is a lot of thought and creativity that goes behind it and that there are a lot of hands that help make it special.
Those looking to see this year's holiday window stroll at the Grand America Hotel can visit during the following hours:
DEC. 14 - DEC. 20:
- Sunday-Thursday: 11 a.m - 8 p.m.
- Friday-Saturday: 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
DEC. 21 - JAN. 1: 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.
