by Sharon | Dec 9, 2014
I went for a little walk around the neighborhood last night to get a good look at all the light displays. Some were quite elaborate and others a bit subdued from previous years. It may be the economy or people hopefully are realizing that Christmas is not all about the commercial hoop-la. What I really enjoyed was the smell of wood burning in the fireplaces of various homes. Some may argue pollution, but it is an aroma that means family, snuggling up with a cup of hot chocolate watching television or a DVD together. Maybe some popcorn to munch on, too. It’s the family time that is so special and the crafts you make together or bring out year after year.
Yes, I do have a new craft. The picture tells it all.
It’s amazing what a bottle and a bit of imagination can do.
I love the vintage Santa’s and the calligraphy of an long ago era. Add a ribbon and some bling and you have a very impressive bottle to display.
I imagine this would work nicely with liter soda bottles, too. I recommend you go on over to http://thegraphicsfairy.com and print out some vintage Santa’s, Christmas bells and foliage, some old script or music, cut them out, place them to your taste and you’ll have a one-of-a-kind decoupage bottle.
by Sharon | Dec 8, 2014
The picture seems to tell it all. I do have my take on the best way to make this Christmas craft project work.
You’re going to need:
- vase of flowers
- a clean round container the vase of flowers would fit in
- candy canes
- two-sided tape
- large rubber band
- red or white ribbon
Let’s put it together:
- I’d put two strips of two-sided tape around the outer container: approximately halfway down the container and also about a half inch from the bottom of the container to make sure my candy canes will be securely placed.
- Attach the candy canes to the container.
- For added security, I’d slide a rubber band from the bottom of the candy canes and up under the crooks of the candy canes as in the picture where you see the ribbon.
- Next I’d tie a ribbon to hide the rubber band.
By having the vase of roses or flowers of your choice in a container placed in another container, watering will be easier and gives some space away from the candy cane decoration.
You can always do variations of this idea by using small glass or plastic containers and the mini candy canes to use as place setting cards or give as hostess gifts.
This is a festive idea that will dress up your dining table or wherever you choose to put it.
Thanks for stopping by!
by Sharon | Dec 7, 2014
Elf Shoe Paper Napkins
I find it amazing what can be done with paper and cloth napkins that will make your holiday dinner table interesting and exciting for family, friends and guests.
I believe napkin folding is an art form, not unlike origami, but a bit less complicated . . . so I tell myself.
Here’s a video tutorial that explains the process in 8 steps:
What’s great is that you can play it over and over again until you get it!
I hope this was fun and informative for you.
by Sharon | Dec 6, 2014
Do you believe it? Grinch Kabobs!!! I’m rolling on the floor laughing!!! And they’re healthy, too!!! Grinch and Healthy don’t seem in any way, shape or form to be healthy . . . but this is a definite exception!!!
You probably don’t need a recipe, but I have to give you one . . . just to feel important . . . please indulge me.
Let’s get the ingredients together:
- Strawberries
- Green Grapes
- Banana Slices
- Mini Marshmallows
- Lemon Juice
- Toothpicks
No surprises there 🙂
Now to put them together:
- Wash/Rinse the strawberries.
- Cut the tops off the strawberries. Do it like slicing off the top because this is Santa’s hat and it’s going to fit on top of a sliced banana, so you want the strawberries to have a flat surface.
- Slice the banana and brush on a little bit of lemon juice to coat them — you don’t want them turning brown.
- Wash/Rinse the grapes.
- Push a toothpick gently through the top of the strawberry, the banana slice and into the grape.
- You’ll probably need another toothpick to push down into the strawberry so you can add a mini marshmallow on top for the pompom fur-ball thing on top of Santa’s hat.
- Then repeat the assembly process.
There you go! Now that wasn’t so difficult, was it?
Oh, I forgot the sign! You have to have a “Grinch Kabobs” sign!
Enjoy and Thanks for stopping by!
by Sharon | Dec 5, 2014
Image Compliments of http://iheartnaptime.net
I absolutely fell in love with these Ruldolph pancakes. They’re a real hit with kids and adults, too. The thing with pancakes is that they’re not only for breakfast. They’re great for brunch, lunch and dinner. A friend of mine was watching her grandchildren one afternoon. It was snowing outside. Her daughter and son-in-law were doing their Christmas shopping . . . she watched the clock approaching the dinner hour. The children were getting hungry. She decided to make these great Ruldolph pancakes for the kids. By the time they were ready, her daughter and son-in-law arrived. She thought she’d make regular pancakes for them . . . wrong, they wanted Ruldolph pancakes! Even Grandpa wanted what the kids were eating.
Now, for the recipe, there are many techniques people use to create designs for their pancakes. It’s all about control and getting the right thickness. The condiment squeeze bottles seem to work nicely for this. Also a measuring cup with a pouring spout.
- Prepare the bacon of your choice either on the stove or in the microwave.
- Prepare your favorite pancake mix.
- In the pan make an elongated oval shape for the face.
- Make the oval ear shapes at the top.
- Cook to a nice golden color.
- Get it out of the pan, carefully and put it on a plate.
- You can either continue the process over and over again to have lots of these delicious pancakes or go to Step 8 to decorate Rudolph.
- You’re now ready to make Ruldolph come alive by adding a cherry for the nose, cut a large marshmallow in half for the eyes with a chocolate chip placed towards the bottom . . . You may be able to use banana slices for the “whites of the eyes” . . . then set the bacon antlers in place on top of the head between the ears.
It’s always fun to see the reaction of the “kids” when they’re brought to the table.
I know these are Rudolph, but you may have the other reindeer, too, with Whopper candies for the nose. And, instead of the cherry you could use a strawberry or red grape.
Have fun with these and come up with your own variations.
by Sharon | Dec 4, 2014
I like the rustic look of these stockings. At your favorite craft store you can get wooden letters to adorn them or put names on them using fabric paints. These letters have been “glitterized”. Glitter isn’t my thing, it gets all over everything, but for those of you who are into it — go to town!
As you’ve probably guessed these Christmas Stockings are made from burlap, but you can use whatever fabric you choose. I know of a woman who used leather and vintage fur and baubles to dress them up. She also got into a denim style with pockets. There are no limits to what you can do with stockings.
I think a “western” style might be nice with interesting handkerchiefs for adornment and use denim, too. I like the idea of having pockets on the outside where you can tuck in little goodies and also put in candy canes. They make such a nice variety of them in all color combinations and flavors.
Here’s another image showing off the mantle in a rustic style. It’s nice to bring the outdoors in with your decorating. I do like pine cones and the “southwestern” style this gives. It’s amazing what can be done with garden or artificial clippings, ribbon and imagination. It’s also nice to be able to bring in some family heirlooms or go to a thrift store to find just the right things. I know many from different cultures who like to bring that into their decorating, too. People who travel have some items they picked up and this is a perfect way to display them, too.
I know I moved away from stockings, but the whole mantle comes into play as you try to tie everything together to make an interesting focal point that attracts the eye of your visitors and guests.
I do have some free templates for you. They’re of the stockings in three sizes:
Large Stocking Template
Medium Stocking Template
Small Stockings Template
Now, for the cuff, you’ll need to work that out and the burlap loop. The loop is no big deal, just a strip of fabric and sew it on your stocking. I was thinking about the cuff. You could fold it down and then sew fabric on it. You can also add to the top of the template — if it doesn’t fit on the size paper you use in your printer, you can print out another one and tape the extra section on your template to make it longer or free hand it.
You may want to do some interesting decorating with bells, garland strips, fake fur and who knows what you’ll find that will make these stockings special. I do like giving you the basics and then you get your imagination and creativity into high gear.
I hope this Rustic Christmas Stocking images and the mantle were food for thought and the article was helpful. We always get ideas from seeing what others do and then make our own to fit our taste and preference.
I included three sizes of stocking templates. You may be able to re-size them to create the size you want. I thought the small ones would be nice to put silverware in for your Christmas dinner. There are lots of things people do for that purpose. They’d also make excellent hostess gifts filled with goodies.
Thanks for stopping by!
