Christmas Decor Details

In addition to styling families for professional photographs, helping people with their wardrobes and "themeing out" (aka styling) parties, I love to craft and decorate for holidays... especially Christmas!

I thought I'd show you a little of what was in my home this holiday season...

BULBS

I recently saw a pin with glittered bulbs and HAD to try it! It just so happened that I had a handful of  burnt out light bulbs this year from the strands we use on our home. Not quite sure why I kept them... I must have known I'd be recycling them for something fabulous! Then, while at Hobby Lobby after Christmas I noticed 4pks of red light bulb replacements were under $1, so I bought a bunch. I liked that they were a bit larger than the ones I already had. Having two different sizes made the end result more interesting.

This is a simple & easy way to dress up an area of your home for the holiday season. Keep them in a little dish set out on a coffee table, an entry table or wet bar. Here you'll need glitter glue (I like to use the Martha Stewart brand) and your favorite glitter colors. I love to mix gold and silver in my home, so I went with these. Coat the bulbs with glue and sprinkle the glitter, set on a piece of wax paper & spray with a little aerosol hair spray to set (you won't want glitter everywhere).

VOTIVES

More glitter! Another idea I took from Pinterest were glittered mason jars. I had only seen the drink size  on Pinterest, but also had small ones from an event I styled last year. Yes, yet one more simple way to dress up an inexpensive mason jar and you'll have a spectacular votive! 

First, I took painters tape and taped off the section I wanted glitter. I used the glitter glue on the bottom half, then glittered & sprayed with a little aerosol hair spray. Let it dry for about an hour & remove the tape. I chose to wrap a little raffia around the top as it complimented my little boys manger with baby Jesus he made at school. A festive ribbon or just as is would be beautiful as well. The smaller jars were even easier. No need to tape off, I just glued up to the ridge of the jar. The smaller jars would be gorgeous lined up on a mantel!

Here's my dining room table. I've had the tree candles for years & this year decided to incorporate them in a table scape with the wooden deer & trees. I like the mix of wood, wax & glass here. I think it worked well. Clean & simple.

VASES
Have you ever re-purposed tin cans? Soup cans or vegetable cans? Here I cleaned out a soup can, peeled off the label, glued with my Martha Stewart glitter glue and glittered by mixing my silver & gold glitter. I let it dry & added a check bow. My home has A LOT of black & white check accents because I just love MacKenzie Childs goodies!

For these vases below I used mason jars wrapped with burlap & ribbon. My bolt of burlap is very wide so I cut a long strand, then cut that in half, then cut again to get the frayed edges. I have geraniums in my front yard so I just snipped a few for these vases. Pretty romantic looking, right? I'll be keeping this  through February! I placed the vases & votive candles in a way that's not symmetrical here to add more interest.

UNIQUE "ORNAMENT"

I picked up a few cute Christmas decor items at a craft & vintage market here in November. I fell in love with adorable little cards & clothes pins that when strung together read "SANTA," "CHRISTMAS" & "CHEERS." I thought they'd make cute additions to packages. "SANTA" looked great on the tree...

FAVORS

I have been making these wrappers for a few years for many holidays and special occasions and people always rave about them. It's a great way to dress up a little chocolate for a party favor, a treat on a dessert buffet, or just to have out in a special dish for family and friends who stop by.

Just pick out your favorite holiday or special occasion scrapbook paper. Cut a rectangle & make sure the paper is cut so the candy bar wrapper peeks through on both ends. I like to buy the Hershey's chocolate bar with almonds. Use a little double sided tape or a glue stick to secure the paper around the candy bar. Embellishing is key! I like to use ribbon, stickers, "Stickles" (glitter in a bottle found at the craft store), small punch out shapes & rhinestones. 

Hopefully you'll find something that inspires you for next year!
Happy New Year from my little family to yours,
Angela