The countdown has started and Christmas is fast
approaching. My shopping is finished but
now I need to start wrapping the gifts.
There is a little bit of Christmas in every room and I’d like to share
with you the decorations I made this year with my inspiration coming from
Pinterest.
The first item I made came from the inspiration of 2 things I
saw on Pinterest. The first I found
at Page Maps and the second I found at Expressions Vinyl . What I ended up with is this:
I found two frames at a thrift shop for a total of $3 and I
spray painted them using antiqued brass paint.
Any color would work depending on what you want. I bought some sheet music scrapbook paper for
the background in the frames and scanned the design into my computer for making
the “O”. I ran a strip of burgundy and
gold ribbon down the middle of the 2 backgrounds and put them into the frame.
I bought the J and Y at Michael’s and used Mod Podge to add
gold glitter. I hot glued them onto the
center of the glass of the frames so the frames have more dimension and
texture.
I found inspiration for the “O” at Art is Beauty . I
printed the design I needed on both sides of the paper and cut each sheet into
4 equal parts. You could use old sheet
music. I bought an old music book at a
thrift shop and scanned a page into the computer also, but I liked the colors
on the other better. It may work for you
though.
I rolled and stapled each piece
and laid it out onto an old cd as shown at the above link. I bought a laser cut snowflake at Michael’s and covered it with gold glitter. After I made the sheet music wreath I thought
I needed something more substantial to hold the snowflake and the gold lid of a
small Bath & body Works candle glued in the middle of the wreath did the
trick. I glued the glittered snowflake onto
the lid. I glued a strip of ribbon onto
the back of the wreath leaving a few inches on each end. I hot glued the ribbon exactly where the
ribbon in the frames ends so it looks like one continuous ribbon. I also used a staple gun on the ribbon on the
back of the frame just to make sure it would all stay together.
I added bells and a bow at the bottom, and a picture hanger
at the top. It is new and different, and
I love it. I hope this help you when
making your own version of this idea.
Poly Deco Mesh
Wreaths
Have you used Poly Deco Mesh yet? After seeing the beautiful wreaths on
Pinterest I had to give it a try. This site has all kinds has all kinds of Deco Mesh along with instructions for making many
wonderful creations, so check it out: Mardi Gras Outlet . I bought my 21” Deco Mesh rolls at Hobby Lobby using a 40% off coupon
each time, although once all their ribbon was 50% off so that was even
better. The selection is pretty limited
this time of year but it can be found in Hobby Lobby’s Christmas ribbon
section, the bridal floral section, and on a display in the middle of nowhere
for no reason. The first roll I bought
was a white iridescent and this is how the wreath turned out:
I also used white iridescent ribbon, silver ribbon,
and a green and white wavy stripe ribbon.
The stocking is an old metal stocking I used to hang on my front
porch. It seems to work well with this
wreath.
I felt I needed to make my mother a wreath to hang
on her lamp post in front of her home.
She enjoys when I decorate the outside of her home too because people
are always starting conversations about the decorations. This is how hers turned out:
I used the red Deco Mesh, gold ribbon, plaid ribbon,
and large bells in the middle. I’m
pleased to say my mother loves it.
Then I wanted to give my boss a gift. She owns a B&B so I know her home is
beautifully decorated so I thought a nice gold wreath might go with her other
decorations. I came up with this:
I used the metallic gold Deco Mesh, a very wide white and
gold ribbon, a light green and gold ribbon, and a matching light green
snowflake in the middle. This time I
paid attention to the cost and it ran me about $25 to make it with all the
ribbon 50% off at Hobby Lobby. The
regular colors are about $10 a roll and the metallic is $13 a roll. I used one roll per wreath and used the whole
roll. The one thing I would do differently with this
one is to buy one of the larger laser cut snowflakes at Michael’s and use a
light green or gold glitter so the snowflake stands out more.
The base of each wreath is a plain artificial pine
wreath on a wire base like this one, probably 24” across, because the finished
size of the wreath is approximately 30”:
A pre-lit wreath would be a great idea to try
too. I straightened out the branches so
I knew which one originated from the outside wire ring and the inside wire
ring. I attached the end of the roll by
gathering it, twisting (3 times) two branches together over it, and tucking the
end through to the back of the wreath. I
later trimmed it from the back close to the wreath.
I measured 12” – 14” of the roll, gathered it at
that point, twisted (3 times) two branches together over it about 6” from the
last gather. I repeated this all along
the outside circle of artificial pine wreath then crossed over to the inside circle
when I completed the circle. I tried to
alternate the gathering points of the inside circle to be in the center of the “puff”
of the outside circle. When I completed
the inside circle I finished the roll as I had started it, tucking the end
through to the backside.
I took a wide ribbon and started filling in where
the pine was showing through the most. I
did different ways and each way was successful in the overall look of the
wreath so there is no right or wrong way.
I took the smaller ribbon (about 1” wide) and cut it into pieces 15”
long, put 2 pieces together face up, gathered it in the middle, twisted a piece
of florist wire around the gathered middle, and tied it to the frame. You can see how I “tucked & tied” it in
this close-up:
I cut the ends of the ribbon, and since I was using
ribbon with wired edges I was able to shape the ribbon easily. I filled all the empty spots with this ribbon
technique and it was finished. I added
something to the center of each one and it was ready to hang.
People have asked me if I sell these, and maybe
someone younger could crank them out easily, but I am content making a few as
gifts. The fun isn’t in making them; it
is in seeing the look on the person’s face when I give it to them as a gift.
Lucky me! I have my own personal Santa! My husband, Mickey, has played Santa for many years and still does. I get to sit on Santa's lap all year round.
