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DIY: Pinecone Ornament
I cannot believe Christmas is nine days away. This month is flying by and I cannot seem to keep up with the various work and personal holiday parties. It does not help that my family was ravaged by a winter cold. I always try to make an ornament that I can give away with my gifts or as an extra trimming to the way the gifts are packaged. This year I found some really beautiful pine cones close to my home and I spray painted them silver. Then I dabbed a bit of hot glue to the top and attached a bit of bakers twine for them to be hung by. I…
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DIY: Winter in a Jar
Thanksgiving is over, the official time to fill your home with wintery sights and scents is here. Most of my friends have their acts together and have the house fully decorated and full of holiday cheer. I have the issue every year that we don’t spend Christmas at home. We usually spend it with the grandparents. I love any decorating ideas that will not get dried out after a week of neglect. This year I saw Anthropologie decorated their stores with Christmas scenes in mason jars. Here is a little DIY if you want to try it yourself. Materials Needed: 1. Fake Snow (I used baking sugar and clear glitter…
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DIY: Peacock Feather Ornament
{GIVEAWAY AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST!} I always make ornaments each year. I have several ideas to start off the season. Any time you can pick up the empty glass ornaments from Michael’s or JoAnn’s I would recomend it. They are inexpensive and can be reused each year if you decide to change out what is inside them. I had a few alabaster peacock feathers lying about so I put one inside this ornament to try it out. Trim your feather down so it will fit inside the ornament and then slide it in the opening at the top. With a pair of tweezers move it until it is…
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Origami Goodness
What is it about the holidays that makes me want to fold paper into tiny animals? I can’t say really. One year I made fifty origami cranes and hung them around my tree from fishing line. It looked so amazing! I had the idea this year to make ornaments out of paper. I though it would be a good way to re-use the Anthropologie catalogues (that I have read enough times and was finally willing to give up). Using an industrial paper cutter I cut the catalogues into origami size squares. I did 6 and 3 inch squares. So far I have only used the 3 inch squares but the…
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DIY: Wintery Terrarium
I have been slowly winterizing my home. Not in the actual mountain way but by slowly adding Christmas decorations when I have time. What with the first snow (already! eep!) and temperatures dropping rapidly…I have needed something to keep my attention. Today I worked on this Wintery Terrarium. It was fairly simple to do. I found the moss in my yard and had the dishes already. This vintage footed bowl (thrifting find) fit perfectly with the pattern on the plate I just purchased from Anthropologie. The cloche was one I purchased a few years ago from Pottery Barn. The silver trees are pinecones I collected and then sprayed with silver…
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DIY: Silvering Leaves
Because of how far away I live from civilization (approximately 2 hrs) I like to think about holiday decor and wrapping early. I had the idea this year to use mostly organic things to wrap gifts and decorate my house. It helps that I have a love affair with twine, pinecones, and everything else organic. I was really excited when I found these dried leaves at JoAnn’s Fabrics this year. I had the idea to make them silver to add a bit more holiday feel. I think I will use them both as natural and silver because they look so great either way. All you need is some…
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Hand Knit Brown Paper Tags
This year I am pushing myself a bit. I want to make as many things by hand as I can for the holidays. That of course means many of the gifts I will be giving are going to be knit. I always want some kind of unique piece in my wrapping and often a tag accentuates a gift perfectly…without being expensive or time consuming. I made these “hand knit” tags and thought I would share them. You will be surprised at how easy it is. Simply click on the image below to download the printable PDF file. Then simply follow the instructions on my Brown Paper Tag tutorial and you…
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DIY: Gift Wrapping (part 1)
Using this free download you can inexpensively (and easily) wrap gifts for the holidays. Check out this tutorial for how you can make these tags out of brown paper grocery bags. Also see below for a tutorial on how to tie up your gifts a little differently. I love twine! Wrapping like this is easy I used old paper from Anthropologie that was used to wrap up some bowls I purchased. Here is a little photo tutorial on how to tie your gifts like this. Wrap some twine around the front of your gift and then flip it over. Twist the twine together until it you have around two inches…
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Handmade Tags (bicycle)
I have already started prepping for all the gifts I will need to wrap in the next couple months. Most likely many of them will be knitted items but I thought I would start out with sharing these tags I designed. Click on the image below for a free PDF download. I have a small obsession currently with antique bicycles. I thought it would be fun to do a series of tags for all the handmade gifts I will be working on in this season. I will post them for download along with other gift wrap ideas as the weather gets chillier and we move towards the holidays.…
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DIY’s a Look Back
Feathers have been all the rage this last summer and they do not seem to be disapearing as fall enters the picture. As you enter this cooler season, that is full of costumes, gifts, and parties, here are a few DIY’s to get you all feathered up. DIY: Feather Extensions This tutorial makes putting feather extensions in easy and affordable. Check out this trend without having to drop a wad of cash at your local salon. DIY: Peacock Feather Earrings These alabaster peacock feather earrings are simple and inexpensive to make and so elegant looking. You can buy lots of feathers and make these as Christmas gifts as well…
