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Candy Cane Door Decor DIY

I love to craft and decorate for the holidays and I have found that making some of my own decorations is more fulfilling than just purchasing them.  Lets face it, somethings are out of my ability wheelhouse and I can recognize that fact, but sometimes just a little visual example and explanation can get you trying things you may have never thought to try before.

I have recently started watching some learning channel, You Tube “how to” channels and I find some amazing crafters and creators that are just phenomenal.  Their instructions are visual and understandable and totally enjoyable.  I recommend you take a look at something you may be interested in and give it a try.

I made this Candy cane door decoration  with five plastic candy cane sticks I purchased from Wal-mart, an evergreen pick, two ornaments, and three different kinds of ribbon.  The five candy cane sticks are zip tied together and before the final tightening are arranged in levels you find appealing and then tightened down.  Hot glue is used to attach the greens and ribbon bows, and then lastly the ornaments of your choice are glued down and it is done.  I used a pipe cleaner that I twisted to the back for hanging purposes. If you are bow challenged there are videos to take you step by step. Easy quick and results are better than expected.  These Candy cane door decorations also make great Christmas gifts.

If you would like to watch a video by Damon Oates of “Deco Exchange” www.decoexchange.com/ unfortunately  this project video is no longer posted at this time. But he has others you may be interested in.   Below are some of my recommendations.  Hope you find something that truly interests your creative energies and give it a try.  I like the feeling of accomplishment that I learned something new and I did it.  Happy Holidays and creating.

Deco Exchange

Southern Charm Wreaths

Kats creations777

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Pumpkin Snowman

Now that the  Christmas decorating season is upon us, all the fall decor has been tucked away or disposed.  Some of my larger pumpkins were never carved and just used for a nice fall harvest effect and in perfect condition after months of use.  The thought of just throwing them out made me look for a better alternative and so I decided to reuse them, but with a winter theme.  My final simple solution was to make them snowmen.   Everything I needed I had one hand so it was a free craft project as far as immediate cost outlay.  I hope you like them and will give them a try, it adds a bit of whimsy to my outdoor decor.

First I selected the two pumpkins that would be best suited for a balanced effect.  I used four 8″ dowel rods to attach the top pumpkin to the large bottom.  If I did this again I think I would use a center large dowel rod the height of the combined pumpkins to secure the head to the body.  The four dowel rods worked fine, but they tend to slide down into the body and I did angle them so they would not just slip into the cavity of the pumpkin and be of no use for securing them permanently.  The central rod would probably be the best choice.

Next I use a white Krylon spray paint in a white gloss finish to paint the entire head and body of the pumpkins.  After a few hours of drying time, I found a old derby hat that fit the  head of the now snowman snuggly, I did this to see where I will have to start the placement of the face. Another option could be a large stocking hat or earmuffs would work great.  I found some different selections of facial features for a pattern on Pinterest and just copied the one I liked best onto my snowman.  I used a permanent fabric paint I had on hand to paint the eyes nose and mouth.  I also painted on the 3 buttons on the front.  You could also glue on real buttons or pom poms if you choose,  all would work well for this.  Lastly I found some branches in the yard that I used for arms.  Ribbon was used for his hat band and tied around his neck.  I had first put a scarf around his neck which I really liked, but we get a lot of rain this time of the year and the waterproof ribbon would be a better choice for my location.  A sprig of fabric holly was set into the hatband and the snowman project was finished. This is a fairly simple and fast project I hope you will try.

 

Merry Christmas!

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Easy Christmas Ornament Wreath DIY Project

Easy Christmas Ornament Wreath DIY Project
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Easy Christmas Ornament Wreath DIY Project

This Christmas ornament wreath has been featured on Pinterest. I always admired the look of it, and decided I would give it a try myself.

I did have a few leftover non breakable balls  so I started with a color scheme that would match my decor.

To make this Christmas Ornament Wreath you only need three items:

  1. a 14 inch Straw Wreath Form
  2. about 80 Ornament Balls (See below for online bulk buying options in a variety of colors if you plan to make more than one wreath)
  3. Hot Glue and a Hot Glue Gun

Directions for Making Christmas Ornament Wreath:

You do not need to remove the plastic covering on the straw wreath. You can choose to make a wreath using only one size ornament balls, or make one with variable sizes like the one I made. There are many examples of Ornament Wreaths on Pinterest, if you’d like ideas.

The hardest part is color mixing and spacing of the assorted sized balls.  I wanted to add some smaller fill-in ornaments that I could not find at the dollar store, but Wal-Mart did have just what I wanted in multi shades of my theme.  The completed project including  six tubes of ornaments from the dollar store and the wreath base and smaller ornaments from Wal-Mart, excluding the hot glue sticks I had on hand. This Christmas ornament wreath DIY cost me about $16.00.   Not too bad for the look, and it does not weigh much, so it hangs easily on mirrors.  I am now thinking about trying it on a cone shape to see if I can make something with that.  If it is a success, I will post the finished result.

Finished Christmas Ornament Wreath DIY Project:

wreath
wreath


Follow Chris Roman’s board “Christmas” on Pinterest.

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Christmas Lantern Decorations: Fresh Holly and Pine Swag DIY

Re-purposed lantern with Christmas holly and pine swag.

Christmas lantern decorations are a favorite of mine during the holiday season. With all the artificial trees and wreathes for Christmas decor, I really miss the smell of pine and cedar. Luckily our property does have a variety of holly, cedar, boxwood and pine. Since retiring to Henry County, Tennessee area, I’ve developed an annual tradition of creating Christmas lantern decorations for my home using my own materials growing in my yard.

live holly and pine swag with wire mesh ribbon for christmas lantern decorations
Live holly and pine swag with wire mesh ribbon on this first of two original Christmas lantern decorations diy projects.

DIY Christmas Lantern Decorations:

Materials Needed:

  • Collect a variety of greens, both holly and pine branches
  • 18-24 inches of wire ribbon
  • about 12 inches of craft / floral wire (The wire should be long enough to be able to wrap around the neck of the lantern.)
  • lantern with battery powered candle (I prefer Luminara battery powered candles with flickering flames).

Directions:

  • Lay out the cedar branches to form the base , left side and right, with the stems overlapping in the middle.
  • Add some holly with berries, on both the left side and right, overlapping in the center.
  • Add the boxwood leaves on top.
  • Wrap the wire (you can also use twist ties) around the middle and tie securely.
  • Add the bow and wire it in place around the neck of the lantern.

To keep it fresh and fragrant, mist the greens occasionally.

christmas lantern decorations with fresh holly and pine
Re-purposed lantern with Christmas holly and pine swag.

You can use a variety of household decor items to create this look. Here is another project I made using fresh live holly and pine using a distressed wood lantern. This lantern also has a Luminara candle with a flickering wick.

If you’d like to switch it up, use two colorful ribbons instead of one and overlap them. You can also add pine cones with a hot glue gun.

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Ribbon mesh wrapped wreath project is Easy Project for Beginners

ribbon mesh wrapped wreath

Ribbon mesh wrapped wreath projects are an easy and fast DIY craft for beginners. This DIY ribbon mesh wrapped wreath project took only 15 minutes to make. I started this ribbon mesh wreath purchasing a pre-lit pine wreath that also had a timer and is battery operated, so there will be no hanging cords to operate it.   Continue reading “Ribbon mesh wrapped wreath project is Easy Project for Beginners”