Behind the glass door

If you follow my blog, you know that we have a new puppy.  I figured I was going to get out of putting up a tree this year and I could use the excuse that Windsor would knock it over.  Hubby had a different option in mind.  He thought we could put the tree up in our new porch.  I hate to admit it but it was a very good idea.  We have a sliding glass door between the dining room and the porch so Windsor can't get to the tree. 

The tricky part was the tree was 9 foot.  Solution, we just didn't put the top part on the tree.  I added a topper so you can't even tell that the tree is missing it's top.  It really was a great idea, because now you can see it if you are in the porch, the dining room or the living room.  My hubby is pretty smart!

I doubt that this will be it's permanent home for the coming years, but it worked out great for this year.  I keep asking how old do you have to be to just put up a table top Christmas tree.  My family doesn't find the humor in that, but they don't have to do all the work. 

Snowman made from wreaths

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas at my house. I wanted to change up my front door a little this year, so I started checking my favorite blogs and I found this over at East Coast Creative.

 
http://www.eastcoastcreativeblog.com/2012/11/seasonal-front-door-decor-diy-snowman.html

I decided to try my hand at this snowman.  I found two of my wreaths at The Dollar tree and the larger wreath I purchased at a yard sale.  I used an old fleece scarf that I had made when my son was playing high school football.  His name and number are embroidered on the end but I turned it so you couldn't see them.  I found the Santa hat at Walgreens for $2.99. 

I wired the 3 wreaths together.  I did add a little spray snow to the wreaths because Hubby said they were too shiny.  I added the scarf and hat and here is what my version looks like.

Pretty cheap and cute little snowman if I do say so myself. 

can of snow  $1.75

3 wreaths $1.00 each

Santa hat $2.99

Scarf (no charge)

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New swag for my mantle

I've been wanting to change my mantle decorations for the last couple years but didn't want to spend a lot of money.  I found this swag for $5.00 this summer at a yard sale.  It was still in the box.

Here she is on my mantle all light up.

I love it.  This is exactly what I have been wanting for this spot but was to cheap to pay the price.  Most yard sale purchases get flipped for my resale shop but every once in a while something gets to stay in my own house.  This one was a "keeper."

sheet music ornaments

I've been wanting to try my hand at some sheet music ornaments.  I didn't want the traditonal round ornaments that I've been seeing around blogland.  Looking around my craft room I found a large number of gingerbread people that were totally unfinished.  Not sure how long they've been buried in my craft room but there were about 30 of them.  

I bought an old book of sheet music a while back at an antique store.  It really was old and yellowed and was sold in a plastic shield because it was falling apart. 

Watch while I breath new life into these hymns.  Next step I traced the gingerbread people on to the sheet of music and cut it out.

One coat of modge podge to glue the sheet music to the gingerbread man and then one coat over the entire top to seal it.  After it dried I took a needle and poked thru the hole in the top of the head. (this hole was covered over with the paper in the previous step.)  Last I tied a little raffia to the top so that I could hang them.  I liked the rafia because it had the same yellowing color as the original sheet music.

The finished product looks like this.......

The two on the right were from different sheet music that I had leftover from another project.  

What do think about my version of the sheet music ornaments?

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Christmas Decorating yard sale style Take VII

If you are wondering, yes I do go to a lot of yard sales.  My girlfriend and I go every Saturday from May to October.  We start out at 7:45 each Saturday with the newspaper in hand and hit as many as we can.  We go rain or shine.  We laugh a lot and get a lot of bargains.

All I did to this is add some snow (Epsom salts) and a small votive candle.  I added a few peppermint candy ornaments and a bell to the side. 

Funny story: I caught hubby trying to unwrap one of the peppermint candy ornaments.  I let him struggle for a few minutes before I told him they were “fake” and he couldn’t eat them.  I got a good laugh out of that one. 

Christmas Decorating yard sale style Take VI

More yard sale deals.  I bought 3 of these apothecary jars last summer for a total of $5.  For the life of me I can’t find the 3^rd one.  (I’m thinking I may have given it to my daughter.)

I added some peppermint candy and a few red ornaments and I tied a large bell to the top. 

Pretty festive and very cheap.

 

Buona Natale everyone, that's Merry Christmas in italian.

Christmas Decorating yard sale style Take V

This may be the biggest centerpiece on earth but I love it.  I bought this basket at a yardsale for around $2.00 and my intention was to add it to my dining room table to house all my winecorks.  Hubby  axed that idea saying it was just too big.  So the compromise was I wouldn’t use it every day but I was definitely using it at Christmas time. 

This is the second year that I’ve added it to my Dining room table for my Holiday centerpiece.  It looks awesome and I get many many compliments.  All I did was add a bunch of ornaments that I purchased over the summer at yard sales and thrift stores. 

This baby holds a lot of ornaments. 

                     

Do you have a favorite Christmas Decoration?

Of all the Christmas decorations that I have had through the years I can honestly say this is my favorite.

I inherited this about 11 years ago when my father passed away.  He made this candle himself many years ago and I remember my parents always had it somewhere in their house during the Holidays.   

Now this light shines in my house during the Holiday Season every year and I just love it. 

Christmas decorating yard sale style-Take IV

This stool I bought for $5.00.  I am not doing anything creative to it.  I like it just like it is. 

View of the top of the stool

Thanks for stopping by.  Leave me a comment so I know you where here! 

Christmas decorating yard sale style-Take III

I purchased this sled at a yard sale this summer for $1.00.  I added the last of my uppercase living snowflakes  $.50 and some greenery to the top.  I glued on a few Christmas bulbs.  The greenery and bulbs were also yard sale finds. 

I'm thinking this costs a total of  $2.00.   Let me know what you think of my discount decorating.

Christmas decorating yard sale style-Take II

All of these ornaments were purchased this summer at various yard sales.  I never pay more than $1.00 for ornaments.  It is absolutely amazing how many beautiful ornaments are out there.

The vases came from the Dollar Tree.  Take one vase and one glass candle stick.  Each $1 at the Dollar Tree.  Use gorilla glue to glue them together.  I just added different size bulbs.

The dish was purchased from a thrift store for .99 and I just added more bulbs to coordinate with the vases. 

Very simple and cute.

My estimate on the cost of all this would be $7.00. 

Christmas decorating yard sale style-Take I

**Red square plate purchased this summer at a yard sale for 50 cents.  I added the Uppercase living snowflake also purchased for 50 cents at a yard sale. 


**Red candle purchased $1.00 at a yard sale.  I painted the candle with modge-podge and then rolled it in epson salts.  I glued a white snowflake with gorilla glue to the front.  I purchased the black candle vase from the Dollar Tree for $1.00.


**Double tea light I purchased for $1 at the Dollar Tree, painted the top with modge podge and rolled in epson salts. 

All this for under $5.00.  Not bad at all.  

Christmas Ornaments

You could make these ornaments for your favorite team.  Our favorite team happens to be the Pittsburgh Steelers.    I used wrapping paper, modge podge, wooden discs and snowflakes.

All these items were purchased at yard sales.  The wrapping paper I've had for about 3 years. I just keep cutting it up and using every bit of it.

Wooden discs I bought 12 for $1.00

Snowflake ornaments I purchased 40 for $1.00

Glass beads (not pictured) were from the dollar tree you get a bag for $1.00




I painted the wooden discs black.  I cut the circles out of the wrapping paper and then modge podged them on to the discs.  I then glued the discs on to the snowflakes

For the glass beads, I cut the circles out of the wrapping paper and modge podged to the back of the glass bead. 

When all were dry I used gorilla glue and glued the discs and the glass beads to the snowflake.  Here is the finished product.

Thanks for visiting.  I would  love to hear what you think of my ornaments.
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Christmas project #1

My first Christmas project done.  I have been seeing these ornament wreaths all over blogland so I decided to try one myself.  I purchased the styrofoam wreath from the dollar store and covered it with silver tinsel, also from the dollar store.  Then I just glued the ornaments to the wreath.  I really did use alot of ornaments.  

This is going to the shop for resale.  

Please leave me a comment, I'm curious if you like it or not.

Thanks for stopping by.  Keep checking back, many many more Christmas projects coming soon.