Smoke & Candles {Elements of the Season}

Two of our favorite things, small simple treasures, we love to bring out each Christmas season, both involve smoke & candles: our tiny tin smoker house and our candle pyramid…both made in Germany…both deemed photo-shoot worthy. :) The smoker house is made of metal and oh so tiny and sweet. The burning of one little incense cone doesn’t last very long, but the subtle, lingering smoky scent reminds me of all things woodsy, cozy, and Christmas-y.
Although I’m fascinated by the intricate details and moving parts that make up our candle pyramid, its depiction of the manger scene and placement at the center of our table is our ever-present, very central reminder of the purpose behind this season for us.
My in-laws have a very elaborate pyramid with 3 or 4 tiers of hand-carved wooden Wintry, Christmas scenes. I love to "ooh and aah" over theirs, but I’m also quite smitten with our little version too!
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While there are so many things that I feel need to be done at this time of year, I find myself wanting to slow down and enjoy the simple things too…like photographing some holiday treasures and fiddling on the computer! And wanting to take in & enjoy the goodness and fullness of life at this time too...the decorations, the gatherings, even the friendly (and now-familiar) mailman's face as he is frequently bringing packages to the door (since both Hub & I did a good chunk of our shopping online this year). And most importantly thinking on the Gift we've already been given.
So now, to get going on baking some Christmas goodies…that’s a “need to do” kind of thing, right? ;)
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P.S. There are so many neat places online if you google "German Smokers" or "Christmas Pyramids" to see more and learn about their origin...I really love the little wooden figurine smokers too!

P.P.S. No, I'm not a smoker myself, in case you were wondering...

Snowed In

The terrain was enveloped in the first major snowstorm of the season, causing the entire day to be thoroughly cast in sepia tones and chalky whites. And while the snow and wind were relentless, building snowdrifts upon the windows, we heeded the advice to stay in and off the roads today, allowing me sufficient time to work on some Christmas-y tasks and make my "from scratch" chicken noodle soup. A lone deer even came to settle in our back woods and hunkered down to wait out the harsh elements of the day…sustained winds ranging from 30 to 40 miles per hour and what seemed like endless snow! I was wishing I had a better camera that could capture his snowy features that I could see looking through our binoculars. He held his head to the wind as his body gradually was buried under layers of snow.

Then, later this evening, perhaps feeling a bit "cabin fever-y", Hub and I decided to venture out to see what the day had brought us in terms of white matter. Under the darkness of evening, we trekked through our woods, across parts of our property that had yet to be explored by us. While I was a bit reticent, Hub pushed onward and I declared that I must hold onto his gloved hand as I fretted about stepping upon some hibernating family of creatures. The white, snow-covered land, trees adorned with Christmas lights, and occasional truck passing by, provided just enough light for us to find our way. We ended our outdoor adventures by grabbing an old snowboard and riding it down a hilly slope in our yard, landing in precarious positions all the while getting snow up my back and in my sleeves, reminding me of the "kids" we really still are.

{above, our snow-covered deck railing at night}

The Tree Story...

The weekend was full to the brim of the prettiest snowfall, Christmas tree/house-decorating, hot apple cider, homemade chex mix, games, laughter, and a very snowy Sunday afternoon walk. And it ended with happy tears as we watched the Hallmark movie on Sunday night. (I almost always tear up during Hallmark movies…and sometimes the commercials too, yes. I can’t help it.) But before all of this could ensue, we had to start the weekend by running a few errands on Friday afternoon…

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We'd planned to just stop by while on our way headed out to run our errands and ask how much for the spindly, spare-branched, Charlie Brown-type trees. Next thing we know we’re in their house, hearing tales from their life history. Married 58 years. 9 children. 39 grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Wars fought. Triumphs and trials along the way. Heartwarming “Christmas tree-buying” stories throughout the years. And mysteriously, every character in every story he told looked like either Hub or I. We laughed so hard. And we even cried. Or at least Pappy and I did. Pappy is such a sweet man. 78 years old (if I recall correctly) and he started planting trees when he was just 6. There’s something sort of meaningful and irresistible about buying a tree from him…our neighbor a mile or so down the road...his front yard full of Balsam trees and strung with those big, old-fashioned Christmas lights. We bought our tree from him last year too…our 1st Christmas here in our new home, new town...and it never dropped a needle. It was a beautiful, full tree. But this year we had other tree-buying plans...we were going to drive out to some land that Hub’s work owns on Saturday. On this day, you could cut down your own tree for $8 and be treated to warm drinks afterwards. It sounded so ideal, so picturesque. But we really couldn’t resist Pappy and his offer of any Charlie Brown tree we wanted for $10.

A whole hour later, tree in hand, Hub decides that since we live so close and the tree is rather dainty, I should drive home and he should just hang onto the tree out the car window. Seriously. It was about this time that it started to snow too. And I laughed harder than I have in a very long time the entire mile home. I think he got this idea from my Dad who's told us about the time he drove home while holding onto a Christmas tree out the car window at the same time. I reminded Hub of this minor detail that my Dad also drove while holding onto his tree. He replied with something like…"I know, he’s one up on me there…Just. Get. Home!” Yet he still has a pretty good story to pass on to our children someday too!

I’m so happy to finally have a little, spindly tree. Since it’s sort of in the center of our living/family room, I wanted it sparse so you could see through it. Hub always prefers a very full, healthy-looking tree and I’ve always wanted one like this...a little bit sad and tender-looking, and now I couldn’t be more pleased! With fewer branches there’s far more room to dangle ornaments. I’ve decided this is my favorite tree we’ve ever had...and I think Hub is now starting to come around to my side of thinking too!

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P.S. Below are some pics from today...the trees are entirely full of snow, clinging to every little branch and looking precisely like the definition of a "winter wonderland"...brightness & whiteness, every which way I look!

Sparkly Pinecone Garland {project 4}

Sparkly Pinecone Garland {project 4}
This is something I came up with last winter while gathering up pinecones on a walk to add a little cheer to my windows. It reminds me of that sweet trim made of pom-poms spaced evenly on wire…but this is more of a cross between woodsy & whimsy. When the wind blows they create a soft rattle against the window that I came to find very cozy and soothing last winter. And on a long, cold winter afternoon, the sun glistens off the pinecones, enhancing the glittery effect and adding some much needed sparkly light during this darker time of the year.

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{gather}
~pinecones
~fishing line, ribbon, or twine

(I like the durability of fishing line for outside use & the invisibility of it.)
~glitter
~glitter glue/craft glue
~scissors

{make}
Tie the pinecones onto the fishing line, near the top, spacing them evenly apart…about 5 inches or so. Then, working with one pinecone at a time, glue and shake on glitter to coat, shaking off any excess. Let dry thoroughly before hanging. Enjoy the sparkle!

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This is my last little craft project of the week and I assure you it's the easiest one of them all (if you can't already tell that from the instructions and if you don't mind being covered in glitter). And truthfully it had to be because I’m running out of steam…posting once a day, especially at this time of the year, is proving to be a bit challenging for me, although I do love it and regard this as another creative outlet! But the house is in disarray, there are homemade gifts to make, cards to send, baking to do, a tree to decorate (we just got ours today!)…and we have guests coming tomorrow evening. Yikes! It’s safe to say I’m a bit stressed right now…so I apologize if this last "project" is anything but inventive and more so conventional. I had intended to share a few other projects, but I’ll save those for another time. I hope you’ve enjoyed my week of Christmas projects…do let me know if you give any of them a try…I’d love to hear how it goes. Have a wonderful weekend!

Dear Reindeer {project 3}

Dear Reindeer {project 3}

These are super sweet deer and pretty effortless to make. I think they'd be cute tied upon a gift or sitting sweetly upon the mantle.
I spied these here last winter while tooling around on Martha’s website in search of something but came across these, got distracted, and had to try making one right away. It should be noted that lately, for some reason, I have a problem following "Martha instructions" whether it be online or in her magazine so I ended up sort of improvising my own method…which explains why when you click on the link mine aren’t quite like hers, but I think they're still pretty cute anyway.

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{gather}
~pipe cleaners

(I used skinny chenille pipe cleaners)
~seed beads
~craft glue
~pliers
~scissors

{make}
Visit the link above to Martha’s site to follow the original directions or see my version below: (I’m not sure if mine are any better!)

Note: You will need two 12” pipe cleaners of the same color plus one 6” piece of a different color pipe cleaner to make 1 reindeer.

For the head:
Bend in cloverleaf shape at one end of one 12” pipe cleaner, starting first with an ear, then the face, then another ear…about ½” of pipe cleaner for face and ¼” for each ear. Then, leaving about 1 ½” length of pipe cleaner for the neck and the body, make a loop for the tail after this length of pipe cleaner, about ¼” high. Wrap pipe cleaner around in front of tail and over body once or twice and cut pipe cleaner off.

For the legs:
Cut the remaining pipe cleaner in half for front legs and back legs. This will leave you with about 2 ½” per set of legs. For each set of legs, bend up wire just a bit on each end (about ¼”) to form the hooves, twisting with pliers to form. Using pliers, pinch both legs on over the body, one where the neck meets the back and the other just before the tail.

For the body:
Using the second pipe cleaner, coil around pencil first or wrap directly around the body of the reindeer, starting at the tail and working up to the neck. (This will help secure the legs better by wrapping over and under them.) Note: At this point I also add a little loop of pipe cleaner to the face, wrapping it on top of and below the cloverleaf loop to make the face a bit fuller, squeezing with pliers to secure.

For the antlers:
Using a different colored pipe cleaner, cut about a 5 to 6” long piece, twist antler shapes at each end, in cloverleaf-style again. Then twist this piece around the neck to join.

Finally...
Glue on a seed bead for a nose. Finish up by bending the legs and hooves as necessary so that it can stand up on its own.

Merry Matchboxes {project 2}

Merry Matchboxes {project 2}

Dolling up little matchboxes is so simple and fun. Plus, they make nice hostess gifts along with a pretty candle…or add a sweet handmade touch to any gift really. Tie one onto your next gift.{gather}
1) matchboxes
2) 1/8” hole punch
3) scraps of pretty paper or old Christmas cards
4) embellishments (buttons, stickers, velvet ribbon, rick rack, glitter)
5) ribbon, about 5 inches long (I like to use a sheer organza ribbon)
6) craft glue (not pictured)
7) scissors (not pictured)

{make}
Cut paper to the correct size of matchbox’s top & bottom. Glue paper to cover both top and bottom. Embellish top as you wish with glitter, buttons, rick rack, etc. Next, punch a hole in the center of one end of the matchbox “drawer”. Fold the 5 inch piece of ribbon in half and tie the ends together in a firm knot or double knot if needed.
Slide top (folded part) of ribbon through the hole in the inside of “drawer” and pull through just to knot. Snip off any excess ribbon at end of knot. Add a dot of glue inside where ribbon knot meets the hole to secure.
(Note: For the top "angel" matchbox, I scanned a vintage Christmas card, scaled it down to fit a matchbox top, and printed out on cardstock.)

Starry Starry Wreath {project 1}

Starry Starry Wreath {project 1}

This will be the most involved project of the week but so worthwhile. Each Winter I love to hang this wreath from silky ribbon upon a pretty mirror or above a little village of my vintage paper mache homes.

{gather}

1) chipboard stars or lightweight cardboard to cut your own stars (about 13 or so)
2) floral wire (heavier gauge for attaching the stars and a lighter gauge to add curly wires)
3) paper covered floral wire, 18” long
4) metallic silver acrylic paint
5) paintbrush
6) glitter (silver or clear)
7) glitter glue (or other craft glue)
8) pliers
9) old scissors or wire cutters (not pictured)
10) hot glue gun (or very sticky tape) (not pictured)

{make}
To start, paint stars and paper covered floral wire with silver acrylic paint. Glitter the front side of the stars and set aside to dry. Next, form wire into a circle and twist heavier gauge wire around both ends to connect. Then, wrap lighter gauge wire around the entire wreath circle. Using wire cutters or old scissors, cut pieces of heavier guage wire in desired lengths (about 2 - 3 inches), and twist ends onto wreath, spaced every so often around the wreath, bending them or twisting them in varying directions. Add small springs of wire in random lengths (formed using lighter gauge wire wrapped around the end of a paintbrush) in between these wires already on wreath to fill in spaces. Using a hot glue gun or strong tape, adhere the backs of the stars to the heavier gauge wire. Let dry thoroughly. Then rearrange the wire springs and stars as necessary to finish your wreath. Enjoy!

Effortless, right? ;) I promise tomorrow’s project will be more so.

One Week {of crafts from my past}

As the days grow shorter, the nights a bit quieter...my thoughts often turn to simple, homespun projects to adorn my home or give as gifts at this festive time of year.

Before we moved last year, I used to host a little Christmas Craft party each December. I loved dreaming up ideas and being inspired by others. Some of these ideas will be from my past parties and others are projects I’ve done on my own. I'll be revisiting a few things I really liked making and enjoy bringing out each and every season.

So gather your glitter & glue and please join me for a week of posts starting tomorrow...a new craft each day...tried & true, crafts from my past!