Christmas DIY Projects...

Although the holidays are always crazy busy, I often get a creative-kick-in-the-ass to make something festive.  This usually results in a temporary procrastination of laundry, healthy meals, attention paid to the kiddos (or all of the above).  Yet, these creative projects are food for the soul and, ironically, keep me sane.  Plus, they are a fun way to get into the holiday spirit.  Most often, I pull an idea (from the endless creative types on Pinterest) of a craft project for the kids, but once in a while I stumble on something that provides inspiration elsewhere (Target, local holiday market, etc.)  For example...

(1) The other day walking into Target, I spotted these $3 foot-tall gold tin pails that I thought would make festive centerpieces.  When I returned home, I found these little faux boxwood balls I already had, made some red bows and put them together (as a set of 3) on our dining room table.  I think they turned out pretty cute!  I just scattered some gold pinecones and candles around and our table is done!  I also think this would be cute with a black and white canopy striped runner....

(2) The second picture is a DIY holiday sign I made after seeing something similar (but in all neutral colors) at a local holiday market.  I bought a burlap canvas and wood letters, spray painted them gold and glued them to the canvas.  Then, I glued some red polka dot ribbon and attached a red velvet bow for hanging.  The only tricky part was the canvas's lack of hardware, so I just hammered two saw-tooth metal pieces from Michaels to the back and tied the ribbon to each.

(3) The bottom photo of the Advent Calendar is the project I just completed.  I was pretty happy with the outcome. See my prior blog post, 10 Favorite Advent Calendar Ideas... for more inspiration.


What are your favorite holiday projects?

(1) $3 pails from Target dollar section make festive centerpieces

(2) Burlap canvas, wood letters, gold paint,
and ribbon from craft store make festive sign

(3) Cork board, gold paint, twine, push pins, envelopes,
and Pinterest inspiration lead to this festive Advent calendar...