Rachel Ashwell doesn't do red and green.

"As anyone who's familiar with my palette knows, primary colors don't really fit too well into my work," said the queen of Shabby Chic.

But Ashwell has a collection of pale-pink Santas that annually pop up around her home, added to her artfully arranged embellishments.

"I've been collecting pink Santas for years," she said in a phone interview. "Christmas doesn't have to be bright red. It can be pink – or purple."

In her sun-washed living room, she'll also have a real Christmas tree, adorned in pink and silver. But that's only for starters.

Her advice for the holiday season: Repurpose, recycle, reuse – but do it with personal style.

"At its core, Shabby Chic style is very green," she said. "It's all about repurposing."

For a holiday store display, Ashwell and her staff transformed an old bike with scraps of vintage fabric wrapped over the handlebars, seat and frame. They packed its basket with shiny vintage ornaments.

For an alternative Christmas tree, she wrapped a large, bare tree limb with more fabric and hung glass baubles from its branches. Each orb contains bits of old lace and precious remnants left from other projects.

Traditional? Maybe not, but definitely packed with heart.

"The idea is they're handmade with love," she said of the decorations. "They're yours and you can keep them forever and pull them out year after year. They're not just decorations; they're memories."

Memory building – and keeping – form the cornerstone of Ashwell's appeal. She turns bulletin boards into "memory boards," crowded with things that inspire or trigger happy thoughts.

Little lovingly worn bits and pieces – found at flea markets or mined from closets – are part of her personal mosaic. Weathered wood and faded florals fit comfortably with that handmade, artsy-craftsy touch.

"I'm always saving scraps," she said. "I can't throw them out. My scrap bags have scrap bags. That's why I love the bauble ornaments; it's another way to use scraps. And they're pretty."

Just like her finds and furnishings, Ashwell has inner resilience. Now 52, she bounced back from a 2009 bankruptcy filing to reinvent her decorating empire amid the down economy.

"When you've had to overcome a big old hurdle – which I had to do – you can also take a step back and look ahead," she said. "You tend to hang on to things for nostalgic reasons – not always the right business decisions."

Ashwell reworked her Shabby Chic label to fit today's shoppers. Instead of 18 stores, she has four, rebranded as Rachel Ashwell Shabby Chic Couture (including her home base in Santa Monica). For her fans nationwide, she has Simple Shabby Chic bedding and bath linens at Target and her Treasures by Shabby Chic line at Michael's.

This fall, she also debuted a Shabby Chic line on the QVC shopping network and released a new book, "Shabby Chic Inspirations and Beautiful Spaces" (Ryland Peters & Small, 192 pages, $35).

"The economy is still shaky," she said. "The medium range is going away. People need bargains. That's what they look for.

"On the other end, there are other people with money to spend. They want things of quality. They want things really special. That's where the couture comes in."

Her corporate makeover mirrors one in her private life. She shed her Malibu mansion and moved into a rented beach "Shabby shack." Of course, it's decorated in lots of white, layered with a pale rainbow of pastels.

"My work is based on my life's inspiration," Ashwell said. "Shabby Chic is a lifestyle. I really do walk the walk."

Now, she's focused on making a Texas B&B into a mecca for Shabby Chic workshops so her fans can learn how to unleash their inner treasure hunter. Halfway between Houston and Austin, her B&B is in Round Top, Texas, site of Ashwell's favorite flea market.

"People visit the B&B and they want to take home their whole room," she said. "Many of my fans want to know: How do you start a business (like hers)? 'How do you do what you do?' This is a way I can share my experience."

They'll watch movies (such as one of her favorites, the 2006 version of "Marie Antoinette" starring Kirsten Dunst) and be inspired by the layering of rich detail. Then, they'll go shopping for their own flea market finds.

As her 2012 workshop schedule evolves, Ashwell will share details on her blog (find it at www.shabbychic.com).

"My fans have been amazingly supportive," she said. "It's been a rough time for me; not only with my business, but I lost my mother. The rest of the world was going through really hard times as well. …

"My blog gives me a place for personal perspective," she added. "It's a place for clarity, a central place for ideas. It's personal, so people can feel that touch."

And that personal touch is what decorating – for the holidays or year round – is all about.

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