DIY Christmas Ideas 2015

Christmas is my favorite holiday. I absolutely love all the parties, laughter, decorations, food, and spending time with family and friends. This year is going to be extra special with our little one being 16 months and actually having an idea of what is happening this year. I cannot wait to see her reaction opening presents and enjoying all the events. We did try taking her to Santa…that was not a success. Walking up to the strange man in the red suit, I could feel her little fingers dig into my shoulder, then the passing of the baby came, and she gripped on to dear life and started to cry. So I kept her and Santa offered for me to sit on his lap…uhhh no thanks Santa. I did hover just enough to get a photo of her with her arms up in the air reaching for Dada taking the photo with this awful look of horror. We made it up to her and got her a snowman sugar cookie and let her tour us around the store for the rest of the evening. Ahhh the joys of having an independent toddler. You just have to giggle, they are so determined!

Anyways, here are some of my favorite DIYs and party accents for your very Merry Christmas! 

A burlap wreath is always a classic and beautiful accessory to a decked out mantle. This one is especially beautiful with the string of lights behind it. I got to enjoy this lovely home with the best friends, great food and of course my new favorite drink…peppermint patty!! Yummmmm!

Remember my wooden wreath post, well how about this transformation from a spring wreath to a beautiful winter one?!?! All you need are the FREE tree trimmings you can get from your local hardware store and some accents from the dollar store. The Merry Christmas sign and bow were $1 each and the 4 gold accents were 2 for a $1, so for under $5 this wreath is just AMAZING!



Do NOT throw away your old spaghetti jars, they are the perfect mason jars for gifts! I made this one for my friend in South Korea (which was probably not the smartest decision as the weight made my package $30 to ship!). She has been super good about exercising and working really hard on her diet, so the very popular mason jar cookie version was OUT and the NEW healthy mason jar gift was IN.

Last but not least…How about this stunning easy holiday centerpiece! I found this long cream colored cabinet door at the Habitat of Humanity for $3.00! I then used the rest of my FREE tree trimmings and simply just broke the branches and layered them in a way where they laid nice for the candles and ornaments. I did not glue them because I want to reuse the cabinet door, but you can if you want a more permanent decoration to use again. Willie found these great birch candles at Homegoods on clearance for $6.50/each and then just used some old jam jars I had with votive candles. I finished it off with a few ornaments just to bring in some color. This is super simple and customizable  to you and a great way to recycle old cabinet doors.