Less sparkle and glitter this year..........

This year I didn't do much in the way of decorating. I have Tristen and he is into everything and as I do NOT want everything broken or taken and hidden I decided to go less. I couldn't help it but I have bought 3 small trees. I figure next year I can use them in other rooms. I wanted them anyway so got them this year.

Simple but sparkly.......the balls I bought are plastic. Not like the nice old ones I have but still pretty. I have them all in dishes and glasses to just sit around and look cute.Some simple things to do is to put fake flowers, poinsettias and gold twigs in the plants you already have. Changes the look totally.

The small balls in a glass bowl instead of a candle

I used my cake stands and dishes to put the rest in.


Ah well its not my best effort. I admit it. I do have a couple of new Santas sitting around and a new snowman. I figure if I get too many the older not so cute ones will go on the front porch next year. You can decorate the house without a lot of involvement or expense. In the beginning I would go to thrift shops and pick up a lot of holly and ribbons. Wreaths too are great to replace pictures. Normally all my pictures come down and are replaced by Christmas things.

I have collected things over the years so that I can do that. For example, a couple of needlepoint pictures that are so pretty I don't know how people can get rid of things people put so much work into. Well they have a happy home with me now. I rescue cute things all summer. Next year I will go all out. This year, too much else to do. Maybe I better get the Christmas dishes out this year. I did at least change out the coffee mugs for Christmas ones.
I also have my Santa Crow from Magic Love Crows sitting in a prominant place on the bookshelves. Once I get the nuts and treats sitting around it will look like Christmas.

Window art,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Well maybe it's art? I am not sure, but it was fun. My friend Nancy asked me to go over and decorate windows with broken glass. She said she had made a couple with her daughter and had a lot of fun doing it. I am game .....so I took over my broken window that I got free last time we went on a shop hop (you quilters will know what I mean), we were leaving one shop and saw some old windows laying by the garbage at the building next door. We went and asked if we could have them. So.........free window and broken glass to play with, we set to it. I took over my glass that I got at a garage sale a long time ago along with my stained glass equipment. I figured I may as well use up the glass somehow. No point in keeping it all and never doing it. ITs hard to do in my house with animals and kids. Breaking up glass that is. This is the first attempt by me. You just glue the pieces to the glass in the window. The point is to break up glass, any glass. Old tumblers, bottles, plates .....anything glass. Glue the pieces on in any design pleasing to you. When you are done then hang it up. I wanted to put it by my garage to catch the light. It was hard to get a good picture but here it is. I think its pretty in the light, the sun catches it. I do want to do a couple more, maybe using more colour next time. I did like the white glass though. I added a few "jewels" on top of some of the pieces and liked the effect. I experimented at first using my stained glass and found one can make pictures with the broken pieces. Will do that next time. On the same day while waiting for the glue to dry, we went to a place that sold building supplies along with used furniture and stuff. I found these 3 lamp covers. I think if I stick some coloured "jewels" on them they will look nice in the garden next year. Could always put a candle inside. Linking with Make the Scene Monday At Alderberry Hill also linking with Wow Me Wednesday at Ginger Snap Crafts

Its Time to Get Ready for Christmas.............

I love to get the house ready for the Christmas season. It's so much work now though. I decorate the whole of downstairs and so that means putting away our every day things till January. I think this year I will paint some of the rooms to freshen up before putting things back out.
Anyway, we got the tree up and decorated on Sunday, Saturday was spent packing things and exploring the Christmas things again. Its lovely to go through it all and remember people and who made some of the things. I gave a lot of the hand made things to Laura and this year will give some to Danielle. Then the things I have will just be purchased things, and thats just fine by me. There are really cool things out there now.



Some of the ornaments on the tree, its always fun to rearrange after its all done



Then to decorate and redo all the surfaces in the house (smile) at least downstairs. There was a time when the granddaughters came home for Christmas from North Carolina, I would put a tree in each of their rooms, they didn't notice the effort though. I collect snowmen and santa's now and the older ones as they get ragged get to sit outside.



The living room needs a few more touches but this is what we have so far.......



I put holly and poinsettias in among my real flowers and replace the summer flowers to give everything a festive look.



I foumd a use for the little chair that I found this summer. Didn't know what to do with it and it's been sitting empty. So now Santa has a new place to sit. Seeing as how we don't have a chimney.



I had to bunch all my plants up basically in one spot, so I loaded them up with poinsettia and made them festive. It's the only place I could put them and not kill them



I am trying to put some sort of lighted tree in each room, so far I only have this one going on.


The stuffies I have had for years may not make it through this year with Mr Sticky Fingers in the picture.


One thing I found useful was old jars I found at resale/thrift shops. Other years I have put candy in them but glass balls look so sparkly and pretty.

Christmas may not be the real birthday of Jesus but it is His official birthday. I am sure He does not need to have a birthday but we need to remember why he was born into this world. Maybe we do need to remember that more than once a year, and I do, but the "world" does not. If nothing else it is a joyful season and people have the opportunity to wish people well and think of others. That too should be done more often. This though is the real world and people get busy and quite often just do not make the effort. Please do not say "Happy Holidays' it is Christmas!. otherwise why bother? I especially do not like Xmas. That is just lazy and it is also taking Christ out of Christmas. Not everyone is a Christian, I do understand that but the "holiday" IS Christmas no matter what people think. No one HAS to celebrate it. Let us all make an effort especially Christians, to put the whole meaning back into this Christmas season. All the miracles of His birth, His life and His gift to us of eternal life and the whole reason for his coming. Think how those shepherds felt when they saw the heavenly choirs announce His birth. Think of the priviledge and the fact they came to the lowly ones and not the Kings of the earth to give their message of hope. Have a wonderful Christmas.