MASON, Ohio — Thousands apply every year to help decorate the White House for Christmastime, but only 145 are selected.
This year, Mason interior designer and mother of two, Kate Ruge, was one of those chosen to put her personal touch on the people's house.
As a designer, Ruge said she always loved watching the specials on HGTV about decorating the White House, so she did some research and found all she had to do was apply on the website.
"Melania, the first lady, is very involved in the process," Ruge said. "'Home Is Where The Heart Is' was her theme, and we were all sort of divvied up into different teams ... I was on Team Frosty, and, uh, we were in charge of the East Room and the Green Room."
Watch: We spoke with Ruge about the experience here
One thing that surprised Ruge was that all 45 trees in the White House are real. This year's decorations included 51 real Christmas trees, 75 wreaths, more than 300,000 lights, 25,000 feet of ribbon and more than 700 feet of garland.
"I think I left after the first day covered in sap and pine needles," Ruge said. "It's definitely not the most glamorous ... the behind the scenes is truly you're on your hands and knees, you're stringing lights, which for crafters and decorators like myself, that's what I would prefer to be doing."
Per the White House, the East Room was decorated in America's signature red, white and blue ahead of the country's upcoming 250th anniversary. The Green Room also features two presidential portraits created from over 6,000 puzzle pieces.
After everything was done, designers and decorators attended a reception hosted by the first lady to celebrate their work.
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