Christmas Wish List 2016

It's about that time! ...Actually pretty sure it's past that time, but better late than never, right?! Here's what I put on my Christmas List this year.  I'll admit, shopping for me has become hard, because whatever I REALLY want, I usually just buy.  But here are some things that I've been needing or wanting for a while now.

1. A new bag! It doesn't even have to be from Fossil...head to TJ Maxx, they've got all the good brands anyway.  But being a Mom, I always try to find one that has handles AND a should strap, can I get an amen from all my mothers out there?!

2. Jeans. I love the best girlfriend fit from GAP in a 4/27 size.

3. Heated Eyelash Curler. Where have I been?! This sounds amazing & like the perfect stocking stuffer for you girlfriend (or yourself!)

4. TomBow Brush Pens. I feel like this one might be obvious from me, right?!

5. Leather Skirt.  Granted, only wearable for 4 months out of the year here in Arizona, but how gorgeous?!  Perfect Fall/Winter skirt for church.

6. A watch. I'm partial to Fossil watches, and if you're not, you should be.  Try their outlet stores if you're near one, totally worth the price!

Confetti Bottles for Neighbor Gifts

MORE CONFETTI! Because if there was ever a time to overuse confetti, it's during the holidays!  I love this idea because you can also use it for New Years neighbor gifts. So gather the supplies...

Remove the top paper of the bottled drink of your choice, then coat the bottom in glue & sprinkle, roll & press on that confetti. Be sure to shake off any extra.

 Start by tying on knot with your fabric ribbon.  Then string on 2 bells of different sizes onto bakers twine and loosely knot around the ribbon.

Slip your choice of tag onto the ribbon and tie into bow.

Ta-Da! A festive & fancy neighbor gift. 

(Just beware of shedding confetti & grab from the neck of the bottle.) 

Teacher & Aide Christmas Gifts

I love to give gifts and I believe the best kind of gifts involve sweets! For our Christmas gifts for my son's teachers, aides & bus drivers I decided to make some of those awesome "candy-sampler" boxes. 

I picked up some bead boxes from Michaels and grabbed packs of candy from the dollar store & Target then started filling them up! Here are some candy I included:
-vanilla caramels-forrer roche- mini candy canes-russell stover chocolates-peach rings-cinnamon bears-swedish fish-chocolate covered cherries-peppermint almond roca-andes mints-chocolate covered pretzels-chcolate snowmen-junior mints-peppermint marshmallows-whoopers-chocolate covered graham cracker

Wrap with fabric ribbon, twine & tie on a tag.  So easy, so fun, and so impressive! And they totally loved them! 

Confetti Ornament

I promised you there'd be more ornament DIYs coming atcha, and I'm not one to tell a lie!  Equally fun and almost as easy as the felt ball ornaments, these confetti "dipped" ornaments are just the thing your Christmas tree never knew it was missing.

After gathering your supplies, try your best to tape off a straight line around your ornament (mine are white porcelain from Hobby Lobby) and paint the bottom half with glue. Then shake, press or roll in the confetti.  Personally I like a mixture of the 3, but it's your ornament, do what you want.

Let it dry and shake off anymore excess and enjoy that awesome party-ready ornament!

Dear Santa,

Here's what my letter to Santa looks like this year, big & small items that I'm crossing my fingers the jolly saint nick stashes under my tree this year!

1. Nikon D5300 2. a new phone because I drop and shattered half my screen! 3. COACH swagger in colorblock exotic embossed leather  4. White Converse  5. Kate Spade earrings  6. PMD Pro 7. Nike Roshes  8. Pure Barre Classes (pst! Currently on groupon!)  9. Workout leggings (to go with my classes, of course!)  10. Or to quote Sally, "If it seems too complicated, make it easy on yourself: just send money. How about tens and twenties?"

Felt Ball Ornaments

HAPPY DECEMBER FRIENDS!!! I'm just a little bit excited for my most favorite time of the year.  And to kick off this spectacular month, I'm sharing the first a few fun ornament DIY ideas.  This one could not be more simple or less time consuming.  It'll take you longer to get the supplies than to assemble. Sound like your kind of craft? Awesome. Let's get started.

Take your clear sphere ornaments, mine are plastic from Hobby Lobby because my toddler still plays with our tree....better safe than sorry. 

Pop off the tops of those ornaments and pop in some mini felt balls. Then pop the top back on and if you're feeling extra crafty, tie some ribbon to the top. I love the contrast of the black and white stripes to the colorful balls.

That's it.  You're done. And look how adorable it looks!  Happy Decorating!

Be Merry Printable

Here's a printable to help your get decorated for Christmas since Thanksgiving is almost here & it will finally be acceptable to go full-blown holiday festive!  Download below as a 5x7 or an 8x10.  (for personal use only please)

Be Merry 8x10 Printable download

Be Merry 5x7 Printable download

Nutcracker Placecards

Last week when I shared a post about making your holiday dinner parties easier, putting together the table settings may have been my favorite part!

The tablecloth was made from some buffalo check print fabric that I stumbled on at Walmart by some miracle.  I only regret not getting more of it!

Clear plates, gold dipped silverware & emerald green napkins set the perfect background for the adorable place cards I used!

These little wooden nutcrackers came in a set of 6 from Hobby Lobby.  I purchased them FOREVER ago because as soon as I saw them I knew I could use them for so many things. 

I spray painted them white and cut some plaid paper about 1 1/2" thick to fit on their legs.  After writing the names, I used some glue tape to secure the paper and then trimmed in the triangle end.  While your guests are eating, the nutcrackers can stand guard by their drinks. 

My Advent Calendar

Here is everything you ever wanted to, and maybe never wanted to know about how I do out advent calendar. So over the past few years, I've shared a few shots of my advent calendar on social media. And this year I'm finally on top of my game enough to share this in time for you to make & enjoy your own!

A few years ago, I stumbled upon this image on Pinterest, and for the life of me, I could not find any actual post with this picture in it. After the search consumed me, (for like a few days), I gave up and just went right to work making my own.  This year I finally had to replace the bag after loosing & the accidental wrinkling of a few over the years required new ones. (I apologize for the lighting, hallways don't provide for the best natural lighting.)

I started with a roll of kraft paper (from the dollar store), white paper bags, and mini clothespins.  I used my cricut to cut out the numbers in kraft paper & glues onto the bag.  Measure & mark your kraft paper then hot glue the clothes pins on.  Keep in mind you'll need enough room vertically and horizontally. I hung mine by gluing a long skinny dowel to the top of the paper & then tying bakers twine on either end.

So now that the hard part is over, let's talking about the fun stuff! The fillings.  Keep in mind I only have 1 chid, so for some items I only have to buy one of.  I stock up on small crafts, treats, books, coloring books, and as well factor in activities like looking at lights or going to a christmas party. 

For those days or other things like "popcorn & a Christmas movie" I just slip in a cute card with instructions.  Be sure to make a sheet of everyday's item, so you can keep your sanity and know what day you have to mentally prepare to make cookies with a toddler.

Great places to look are obviously the dollar store, but Michaels and Hobby Lobby also has lots of little craft kits that you can buy for around a dollar as well. 

For things that don't fit in the bags, I again slip a note inside and wrap up the item and store in a closet.  Or if you're kids are older, you could give them a clue where you hid the item!

Here are a few items that are in our advent calendar every year:

-Christmas Jammies

-a Family ornament

-Go look at lights

-Watch a christmas movie

-Decorate cookies

-Make & send a Christmas card

-The Night Before Christmas book

-Read the story of Christ's birth

And my last and final tip, is to remember every day doesn't need something big.  After gathering items, if I ever find myself missing a few days, I pop in a small treat like a piece of chocolate or a candy cane.  Because it's still festive & kids love candy!

Feather Christmas Wreath

I have a photo saved in the depths of my phone albums of a feathery wreath amongst gorgeous Christmas decor.  I loved it so much it was one of the things I was so excited to make this year!

I re-used an old wreath form and just gave it a coat of white spray paint so nothing peaks through.

For the feathers I grabbed some of these feathers from the Christmas craft section at Hobby Lobby.  It was cheaper than buy 3 or 4 boas large & were the exact same thing...they're like mini boas!

Using floral pins, pin in one end, then wrap around & pin the end.  Repeat!  I used 6 of the mini-boas.

Add a little bit of this amazing plaid ribbon (Target dollar spot for the win again!), hang up and then marvel in the gorgeous-ness of your feather Christmas wreath.