Creating Me

It’s only 5 months until Christmas! 😳 I know – it’s crazy to be thinking of Christmas already…but we all know how fast those 5 months are going to fly by! And if you are going to craft any of your decorations or gifts, well, it’s time to get started. 😀

Here’s a little Christmas tree that is fun to put together for a decoration or a little gift.

I picked up a 3.8-inch x 8.8-inch styrofoam cone (like this one) from the craft store. I wrapped it with bright green worsted weight cotton yarn, using a little glue at the beginning and end to make sure the ends were secured. Then I wrapped the tree with thin white satin ribbon to mimic garland. I secured each end of the ribbon with a straight pin.

I found great charms at Bohemian Findings to use on my tree. I wanted to make a cooking/baking themed tree and she had collections with several charms in a package as well as individual charms to choose from. You can find just about any theme you are looking for in her shop!

I simply used straight pins with a tiny white ball to attach the charms to the tree. To add a little color, I randomly added straight pins with red glass ball heads. I found them in the sewing section of Hobby Lobby. 

Every Christmas tree needs a star to top it off. I die cut 2 stars from thin chipboard using the 2nd to smallest star from this Nestabilities set from Spellbinders. I painted them with white acrylic paint and spread a thin layer of clear glitter glue on each star to add a little sparkle. Then I glued them together back to back with a flat toothpick between them, leaving enough of the toothpick out to stick into the top of the tree. I added a little glue to the toothpick for a little more stability.

I think I may have to make more of these in different sizes. A group of several together would make such a cute centerpiece or mantle decoration!

Merry Christmas in July! 🎄

Thanks for stopping by,

Anita

It’s about 852 degrees with 1000 percent humidity in Alabama right now! 😳 OK, maybe I’m exaggerating a bit, but it is hot!!! And I am incredibly thankful for air conditioning…

In an effort to make the heat a little more bearable, I’ve started thinking about the holiday season – it will be here before we know it! This is a fun and simple idea that is great for the holidays as well as the entire Winter season.

All you need are some smooth mason jars, Mod Podge, epsom salt, and embellishments.

Apply a generous coat of Mod Podge to the outside of the jar using a foam brush. I left the very top, threaded part clear to make it easier to add the ribbon and twine around the jar. Then sprinkle the epsom salt over the wet Mod Podge. I held the jar over a bowl and spooned the epsom salt onto the jar, shaking off the excess. Let it dry completely. I sealed the jars with a light coat of matte sealing spray. I added linen ribbon around the top of the jar and then wrapped it several times with natural colored twine, leaving long tails for making a bow.

The large snowflakes on the jars are thin chipboard die cuts from the scrapbooking section of my local craft store. I painted them with white acrylic paint and, while the paint was still wet, sprinkled them with extra fine glitter to add a little sparkle. I punched a small whole in the snowflake and, using turquoise twine, tied a silver snow flake charm to it. Then I threaded one end of the turquoise twine under the natural twine and tied the snowflake embellishment to the jar. Finish it off by tying both colors of twine together into a bow. 

I think the small jar would look so pretty with a votive candle in it! Maybe some greenery in the large jar…or fill a treat bag with some yummy treats and add it to either jar for a fun gift. Make several jars, add votives, and line your mantle with them…since they are Wintery and not Christmasy, you could leave them out from December 1st to Valentine’s Day. 🙂

Thanks for stopping by,

Anita