60 Days and counting

Wow, this year has zoomed by and so I know Christmas will be here before we know it!

What are you doing to get ready? 

Lots of people are talking about getting organized and planners, so with us all on board to get ourselves organized so that we can have a joyous, carefree season, thought I would share some budget friendly decorating/crafting  ideas.

Dress Up your child’s toy barn

Turn even the most prosaic scene into a winter wonderland.
A couple of smart touches — mini wreaths, coconut-flake "snow" — bring Christmas cheer to a nostalgic toy barnyard. 

 

Spin yarn into a wreath with pop appeal. {I think this is so adorable}

To craft this door wreath, wrap Styrofoam balls (in various sizes) and a Styrofoam wreath form with colored yarn. Then use a glue gun to affix the balls onto the form. I also think this would be pretty as a table centerpiece with a hurricane lantern in the center nestled around a big chunky candle.

Create  your own Winter Wonderland

Transform a ready-made, unadorned card-stock village by customizing the buildings with wrapping paper. Finish off the scene with tinsel wreaths, tabletop trees, and toy deer, sprinkled under a soft blanket of snow.

Cindy

♫♪That's the jingle bell,♫♪
♫♫♪That's the jingle bell,♫♪
♫♪That's the jingle bell rock.♫♪

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Gingerbread

Who doesn’t like Gingerbread houses at Christmas time?  Well I for one love them.  But I have NEVER had any luck creating one.  But Martha shares a NO BAKE VERSION, which I might just try.  Check it out here

 

This would be a great craft to do with your kids or grandkids, wouldn’t they think your were the greatest? 

 

I love the sugar cones as trees….m&m’s as lights or ornaments.  Hmmmmm there is a thought!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Look at the marshmallow snowman.  Cute!! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Merry Christmas,

 

Love,

Cindy

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A sneak peek at our Country Christmas

Thought I would share some of my holiday decorating in my family room today.  I hope you enjoy your little peek.

This is a little cabinet that I purchase last year at a Antique Shop in town, for Christmas I added some vintage tin toys and trees.  I wish I had a better shot of this cabinet because it is so adorable.  And I didn’t have to purchase one thing to put it together.

This cabinet is one of my favorite country pieces, and it’s alot of fun to decorate.  But since this picture I have made several changes to it. (Note: update this picture with the latest addition)

This is my grapevine tree that I purchased this summer.  I love it.  I have clear lights on it with my popcorn and cranberry garland.  It’s simple but so pretty.  The little snowman tree skirt, I won as a door prize at a antique shop Christmas open house, it is quilted in old tattered fabric and it’s adorable.  It couldn’t be more perfect since I collect snowmen…

 

This is one of my newest additions this year.  I usually have this window frame out in my herb garden throughout the year, but decided to bring it in and clean it up and add my wreath.  Just added a few of my rusty jingle bells and created a window sill scene and this sits atop my little cabinet with the vintage toys.

Sitting on my coffee table I have a tray nestled with some greenery and such.  Nothing fancy about it, but I have a “thing” for pitchers…..and love displaying them throughout the house.  Added a few candy kisses in a antique mason jar.

Wooden candy canes stuffed in another antique mason jar.

 

Atop my TV cabinet, I have sprinkled it with a few snowmen from my collection.  Don’t you love my Christmas sign with the snowman.  It was a gift from my son several years ago.  The frame is trimmed in a plaid fabric with a felt  tattered snowman appliquéd to it. Another favorite!

 

Now for my tree….I wish I had a better shot, to depict just how pretty it is….but I am not a photographer, I would like to get a shot at night when it is all light.  My tree is all aglow with gold lights, as they put the illusion of old-fashioned candles on the tree.  I get LOTS of compliments on it.  Buried deep in the limbs I have placed my handmade Santa Claus’ from my collection as well as my bears.  The ornaments on my tree are all hand sewn, or wooden, sprinkled with some old antique Brite balls.

Well these are a few of the vignettes' that I have sprinkled around the room.  What do you think?  If you missed the earlier post on my decorations in the kitchen, scross down a couple of post.

Warmest holiday

hugs,

Cindy

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Visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads

Christmas has come to my kitchen….it dances with candy canes, gumdrops, and gingerbread men…….and it just cozy to me. 

Just a few of the vignettes that I have throughout my kitchen….this isn’t a great picture, but I put my little four foot tree in a antique red wooden bucket.  My garland on this tree is a hard candy garland, and I have accented the tree with little gingerbread men, and little kitchen goodies.  Although it isn’t very visible it is sprinkled with multi colored lights and it is placed next to my sink. 

 

How cute is this next picture….my mom loved this while she was here.  It was so simple and you probably have everything you need to do it.  Note my tray, it is a yard sale find from this summer, a old cabinet door panel or something that they placed handles on.  Grabbed it for a whopping $1.  Don’t let anyone say I am NOT a big spender.  ( I digress) Anyway, added tons of color by adding a candy garland, candy canes, and glass balls into different style and types of clear jars.  Love them…and with my brown jar lamp shining on them it puts off the perfect effect.  I added my little gingerbread house that I have had for many years…would love to have a bigger one….guess I will be on the lookout during yard sale season for that.  Aren’t my little cinnamon candles the cutest thing you ever saw”?  Not to mention “Sprinkles” my bear.  Silly bear has batter on him…

This is what I look at when I clean my kitchen and do the dishes.  It makes washing up the kitchen not a bad thing.  I just tied some simple gingham/plaid fabric that I ripped to make pretty bows for my glass canisters.  So simple, but oh so country looking. 

Did you see my little prim tree with the gingerbread goodies on it with the rag bows.  It is placed in a ANTIQUE Maxwell house coffee can.   See you can use anything you already have to put together.

Next, we have my stove area,   I just have my bread board sitting on top with my dough tray filled with greens and cranberry  garland.  I have tucked some of my gingerbread men in the greens and added another antique green handled small hand sifter.  I think it looks sweet.  I decided to add my little Cookie Cutter sign that I bought from Gooseberry patch years ago.   Tied a ripped and ragged bow to my antique white pitcher.  One of my favorite pieces.  Last but not least, I added my Paula Deen candle on my little bread board.

Just a thought, I have found you can add a few springs to your shelves and  crocks, etc, and add a instant holiday touch.

 

Now for the centerpiece on my table in the kitchen.   I love old crates and have a ton of them….so I decided to fill one with greens and sprigs of snow-covered  pine,and sprigs with candy ,  accented with snowballs, and wooden candy canes.  And after everything was in the crate, I added “Ginger”, she is simply adorable with her little bow on her head.

So now you have gotten a peek into my kitchen.  What did you think?  

Christmas Hugs,

Cindy

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Do you have a holiday binder

I do, but unfortunately it is packed away this year due to a  upcoming move.  But never the less, I have a great place for you to check out one.  I wish I had mine to show you, but  Jill  over at Controlling my Clutter has a awesome tutorial on making your own. You can also find another one at My Sisters Jar. It’s a great way to keep yourself organized  during this hectic time of year.  Because I am a list maker, this really comes in handy.

Christmas Blessings

Me

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Christmas time is coming…..

To our house this weekend, and I am so excited.

I am really in the mood to get started on decorating for the holidays.  I don’t have as much time this year with all the family and traveling that we are doing, so I am going to break my own tradition of decorating the weekend after Thanksgiving. 

I hope to get lots of pictures to post to share with you, but until then I will share some that I got inspiration from, and I hope they inspire you to.  Courtesy  from Country Living.  (you will note the country flair)  I always do a primitive tree at Christmas.

 

This picture (below) is my favorite, something about the glow of the tree and the stocking hung….Love it!!  Just the simplicity of it.

Aren’t these packages fun.  They look to good to open.   This is something I do every year on my front porch. 

What are some of your decorating styles, tips, etc.  I would love to hear them. 

Don’t forget to follow me this holiday season, look for the follow button on the sidebar. 

Love and hugs,

Me

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One of my favorite things to do

in December is make a trip to Williamsburg Va.  If you can you should.  I simply love going down there and taking pictures of the doors all decked out for the holidays.  I haven't gotten to go the last several years but hope to make that trip this year.  I will show you some of the doors from previous years past.  Since I am intrigued with history, I love to scope out the colonial traditions for christmas.  If you would like to find out more click on "A Colonial Christmas".  I like to incorporate some of their traditions in ours.  We'll discuss some these later.

If you have a country christmas website, I hope you will let me know about it so I can visit. 

On to the doors.....

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