Getting in the Christmas Spirit

As you probably already know, I really enjoy getting creative especially at Christmas. But at the same time I also have a budget so I like to find ways to reuse things or create something from what I already have. So in the spirit of both creativity and the holidays I thought I would share some of the things that I've done. Mostly they're just little things to add a bit more "Christmas" to our home.

Here are a few of those creative ideas

1. Taking a picture frame I already had and adding a card, wrapping paper, gift bag, gift tag or even my own artwork.  I look online for ideas and inspiration and then draw my own version to add to my own picture frames.

Wrapping paper in a simple white frame.

A sketch in pencil that I went over with a black sharpie pen.

These gnomes were another fun art project. Again first in pencil, then in ink.

 

2. I use gift bags and boxes to decorate. The below picture is actually the top of a gift box that came from the Dollar Store.

The back of this gift box can be folded or taped so that it stays in place.

 A little leftover paper inside this gift bag helps to fill it out.

3. We have a smaller artificial Christmas tree that's seen over ten years so far. Like many with allergies a real tree just isn't an option and a smaller artificial tree saves a lot of space. If you have pets (especially cats) placing a smaller tree up on a table or stool can help prevent those messy nock overs. 

We've used a short stool covered with large scarf for years.

That said, some of our ornaments are a bit big for the size of the tree but I still want to display them. So  I like to group them together to make them a little more special.

These three birds are all ornaments.

4. And finally I made these ornaments from left over twine, wooden beads, Christmas tree cutouts (from the dollar store) and left over white trim with mini wood clothespins glued to the back of the trees.

Simple and easy to make ornaments.