In the Christmas spirit

I love Christmas. I really look forward to decorating. This year, I tried to take the crafty approach, the natural approach. My decorating style is very organic in the sense that I take a lot of inspiration from the outdoors. I also reuse EVERYTHING. I use a lot of pine cones that I've picked up over the years. They're free! I have a lot of potpourri and candles that I bring out for display each year, but always in a different container or arrangement. I certainly didn't want to spend too much money this year on decorating. However, you always have to add a few things.


This year, I added two new displays to the Christmas decorations. The first one came with a little inspiration from Family Circle Magazine. I bought plastic ornaments from Wal-Mart and The Dollar Store (green and gold to match my living room) and displayed them in a big glass container. All those ornaments were less than $10. The container was my Nan's and I used it on the candy buffet at my wedding, so it was free. You can find all kinds of cool containers at any thrift store.

The second one was even less expensive and the idea really just popped into my head. I have a million beads and buttons in my craft closet. I bought a button collection at an auction for really cheap, maybe $1, so I will never run out of buttons. I sorted out the red and green ones for the center container and mixed it with green glass stones for more volume (also something I already had.) The candle and plate were things I had in my house that I know I got for a gift or bargain, I am sure. The center glass container was $1 at Goodwill and each side container was 47 cents. I bought the small red candles at Wal-Mart for 88 cents each and again, had the beads around the house. I did light the candles, but am afraid to let them burn too long. The wax is going to run down into the beads and make it really hard to get them out!
And of course, I want to be able to reuse the beads if it's ever necessary!