Holly Jolly Christmas!

WHEW! I think I'm almost done the holiday decorating.  I've been working like a busy bee to get it all done.  Thanksgiving is next Thursday, and while the turkey is roasting in the oven, I will be putting the tree up and then decorating it.  One of the last things to do, besides my dining room table and my catwalk railings (my oldest daughter's job), and then the feeling of Christmas will embrace me.

  I move my Christmas decorations around from year to year, it makes me feel like they're all new again, does anyone else do this? Some things I have out all year, I reuse for Christmas by decorating them in a holiday theme, then incorporate them in to the Christmas decor .  It saves me money by not buying new Christmas themed decorations.  I'll move furniture too, not afraid to do that either.  As you can see, that black console table in the picture below, was my coffee bar table I had in the kitchen.  Be creative, don't be afraid to move your things, use what you have, your whole house will look beautiful!

This small Santa collection goes in the foyer, but I added a few things, like this big lantern with a cardinal perched inside and one perched outside on a burlap poinsettia.  You know I love the birds!

This table has a shelf on the bottom.  To bring light to the area below, I strung mini lights behind everything that is displayed, so it draws the eye down to see it.

The sled is my sister's, we have our own yard sale going on throughout the year, where we borrow each others household decor, to keep things fresh around our homes, and we don't have to buy anything new, it's great, she's great, it's all great!  

Jingle Bells Rock!  Jingle Bell canvas and silver jingle bell garland adorn my mother's grandfather clock, that my sister and I bought her in the very early 1980's.

 These are some of the wreaths throughout the house.  I bought this wreath last year, and added the plaid flannel bow and sparkly sign.

The feather wreath is a fav of mine.  The blue spruce wreath I purchased last year on clearance I added the crystal ice branches to it.  I can always find a way to improve things, sorry MS!

Vintage silver wreath, and the straw wreath my daughter made many years ago, and is another favorite of mine.

 Have to decorate the landing on the foyer steps too!

 My sister-in-law gave me two of these luminary cans as a gift, love them and they sparkle too!  The runner I purchased about ten years ago, goes perfect with the luminary.

What's not to like about a silver tree?  And look who I caught? Vintage grater with battery operated candles inside, some red rickrack and felt gingerbread man that my sister bought for me last year.

 The snow person couple and their baby in a papoose, decorate a glass door cabinet in the kitchen.

 And it's not Christmas without old Mr. Scrooge, love that movie.

 Teeny Mr.Snowman and tree in another glass door cabinet.

 Kitchen window decorated for Cookie Baking Party, coming soon!

 Gingerbread men, cookies, cookie cutters, bakers and lights among the greens.

 I added some things to the mantel that I found while emptying boxes, big red felt snowflakes and some glitter ones too.

 Dining room set is small this year, but still decorated with a musical note theme.

This sparkly musical note sign on a velvet cord says "Merry Christmas", it's tucked in with glittered snowflakes.

 

On the dining room light, I used two green wreaths wired together, made bows and tails and tucked them in the greens, added a few cardinals, a double bow at the top, added silver and gold, matte and shiny glittered balls to the bottom, hung with red fabric cords from the lights.  I covered the ugly pot of this red burlap poinsettia with some of the ribbon used throughout the room.

 Mr. Snowman's hat and stand are made from musical note paper.  Lantern with just a bow and clipon glittered poinsettia and a few greens.

 The basket I found at a thrift store for $1.00.  I started to build it with iced greens with berries and poinsettias I found on clearance last year.  The big branches, I used 3, were $1.50 each and the poinsettias were $.49 each.  Pretty inexpensive decor.  I also added a musical note bow to the basket.

 Father Christmas was my mother's from many years ago.  I put him out every year, it reminds me of her.

Now this scraggly little tree, I bought last year and decorated it with all the things that my kids, who are now adults, made for me throughout elementary school, it was so cute!  This year it's in the dining room decorated with musical notes, musical instruments, snowflakes, red Christmas balls, red bead garland and mini white lights.  Then topped off with a mixed musical note and red ribbon bow to match the light.

All Santa's reindeer.

 I added these vintage beads to my little scraggly tree in the living room, as well as the big snowman.

 As I said, the whole first floor gets decorated including the bathroom!  I did downsize this a bit, I had over 100 snowmen in there last year.

 Still working on the outside.  Found this old sled at a garage sale for $5.00 so I snatched it up.  I decorated it with some of the iced greens, rusty jingle bells, the skates (yard sale borrow from my sister) and red velvet bow.  The wreath I just redo every year.  Took a picture frame, printed out a "Merry Christmas" sign and framed it, wired it to the wreath.  The red and green sunbursts on clearance for $.25 each.  Now, the problem I always have on this front door, is the sun beats down and bleaches the color on every bow within days, it's hard to keep up with this, any ideas would be greatly appreciated.  I can't make new bows every other day!  If you haven't started decorating for the holidays, HAPPY DECORATING!

Crafty Snowmen

My youngest, who is in France for her Junior year of college, just informed me she is coming home for Christmas.  I am so happy, we were worried about the expense, but flights were relatively cheap for that time of year. I am so excited, I can hardly contain myself!  I thought I was not going to see her for a whole long year.  Now I can't wait to set eyes on her.  I was not even going to decorate for the holidays, but now I am ecstatic to do so.  She will walk into the house, when she comes home,  and it will scream "Welcome Home".  She is already planning her coming home meal too.  I have a lot of decorating to do, so to get in the mood for the upcoming Christmas season, I broke out some of my craft items and made some cute little snowmen ornaments, that can also be used as gift tags if you like.  I made some of these before (check out Crafty Crafter from 10/18/13 on this blog), these are a little different.

I set out a piece of foil, so nothing sticks to the counter top, and it also catches any messes.  I made a snowman stencil on my computer to use as a guide.  I recycle things in my house, so the cardboard I got from my cat food boxes, they layer these in between the cans of cat food, instead of throwing them out I save them and use them for crafts.  They are a perfect size for the snowmen, 7 1/2"  x  5 ", makes 2 snowmen cutouts.  I set the stencil on the cardboard and......

 Trace over it, then cut it out.  I also made little hats for snowmen.

 Two snowmen cutouts and two hats.  I also recycled old music books.  A few of my kids played a lot of different instruments so I have a lot of books.  I then trace the cardboard onto the music sheets. I traced these on the diagonal.

 I  used a pencil to trace them.  Use space on the music paper to your advantage to get more cuts out of one sheet.

 Two snowmen and hats ready to be glued together.

 I used a glue stick, but you can also use Mod Podge.   A popsicle stick run flat from end to end, helps the paper adhere to the cardboard.

 Two glued together.

 So when I am out and about and I see little inexpensive things like this, I pick them up.  This is a whole pack of 8 colored extra fine glitter for $4.99 at Marshall's.

 This is another pack of 5 colored extra fine glitter that I found on clearance for $1.00 at Marshall's

I used the glue stick and the black glitter for the hats.  I used a piece of waxed paper to catch excess glitter, so I could put it back into the tube, no waste that way.

 Hats covered in glitter, and I found snowman face rub ons at Michael's for the snowmen.  Just cut them out and rub on the snowmen, or you can draw the faces on. 

 Faces on, I then used the glue stick to cover the front of the snowmen, then sprinkled iridescent white glitter all over them so they glisten.  I used scrapbook paper for the scarves and glued them on.

 Embellished the scarves with sequins and used thin wired tinsel garland to embellish the hat and for the hanger.  I glued the hanger on with a glue gun.  I then cut the bottom of the scarf with decorative scissors to make it look like fringe.

 Cute little faces.......

Ready to be hung on the tree.  This is last year's Christmas tree, and yes it is a real tree, perfect 15 feet of the best smelling Fraser Fir!  All decorated in snowman.