"It's not unusual for people to call and ask for us to do the whole house," says Noada Carpenter, floral designer at Ruttle & Neltner in Fort Mitchell. "They want to see things flow."

Whether you want a tree decorated or your entire house trimmed and lit up - inside and out - designers, florists, party and event planners are waiting in the wings, extension cords and wreaths in hand.

Price depends on materials and workmanship required, but some, including Jennifer Coleman of Holidays by Jen in Walton, charge by the hour. (Coleman charges $25 per hour, plus materials.)

Many professionals have already gotten a start on the season.

• "We usually begin about Oct. 15," says Glenn Scherzinger of Christmas Decor by Showcase Turf in Sycamore Township. For eight years, he and his "elves" have been turning home exteriors into light shows.

They look at a home and come up with a shopping list of looks. Clients pay for the hardware and lights. He puts up the decorations, takes them down after Jan. 1, and will even store them until next year. The following year clients pay only for the labor.

"We have about 185 customers," Scherzinger says. "We've done some jobs (that cost) as high as $10,000. They can be pretty spectacular."

• Florists are an obvious source for help, handling everything from centerpieces and mantels to trees and whole-house holiday decor.

Holiday decorating has increased in the past few years, says Beth Durban of Adrian Durban florists in Clifton, Hyde Park and Blue Ash.

They'll even bring in the Christmas tree, depending on size.

"A lot of people want to incorporate Christmas greens in Thanksgiving arrangements, then they bring them back and we redesign (for Christmas) using the same greens," Carpenter says.

• Jami Gibson of Decorating Solutions in Mason acts as an inspiration to DIY-ers who want to do the work themselves but aren't quite sure what direction to take.

"I do everything from helping clients with new ideas for decor they already own or determining what new pieces to buy," she says.

Gibson has compiled a holiday idea file for clients to peruse. That helps "determine how to get the look they want within their budget," she says.

E-mail jkraft@enquirer.com