Celebrate the season with sparkling candles that cost hardly anything to make. Pick up dollar-store candles, some painters tape, and a can of metallic spray paint for quick candle transformations that make for special — and economical — holiday gifts or lovely festive decorations.
My passion for decorative papers has gotten a bit out of hand lately, and I realized that my stack of patterned sheets needed to make a debut somewhere besides giftboxes this holiday. So, I whipped up these paper bulb ornaments with just a few supplies. It's a great last-minute project. You can hang them on your tree, drizzle them around your tabletop, or pile a bunch of them in a hurricane vase.
Supplies:
To learn the steps, read more
Since I didn't want to forget our feathered friends this holiday season, I thought I'd make a pretty, edible bird feeder as part of my 12 DIYs of Christmas series.
This orange-and-cranberry feeder will attract birds such as orioles, red-bellied woodpeckers, finches, thrashers, mockingbirds, and tanagers. It also makes a pretty holiday table chandelier, too. This is a fun project for crafty teens, and you can keep them busy making this bird chandelier before serving Christmas dinner, and then send them out into the snow afterwards for a hike to select the perfect tree from which to hang the chandelier from.
Here's What You'll Need
Get the directions when you read more
When it comes to holiday crafting, unless you started back in August, it's always best to stick with easy, less time-consuming projects — especially when you're in the homestretch of Christmas crafting! I made two of these pillows in less than an hour. They are easy for even beginning seamstresses, and the small, calla lily floral detail on the pillows adds a fun visual element that helps to make them more unique. For a more lifelike look, you could make these pillows in white linen and use a yellow piece of linen for the stamen.
Here's What You'll Need
Find out how to make these pillows when you read more
Welcome to the ninth project in my 12 DIYs of Christmas series! When I spotted these beautiful gold-trimmed antique tea cups at a flea market, I knew that I had to take them home. But how to use them? Instead of using them for a tea party, I decided to transform them into eco-friendly soy wax candles. These teacup candles make inexpensive, pretty holiday gifts. You can give someone a set of three, or divvy them up between a number of friends or family members.
Making the candles was super easy, and the most time-consuming part of the entire process was waiting for the layers of soy wax to dry. You can find all of the candle-making supplies at a craft store or candle/soapmaking supply store (such as Juniper Tree Supplies).
What You'll Need
To find out how to make it, read more
Welcome to the eighth project in my 12 DIYs of Christmas series! My cranberry candle wraps are kind of a no-brainer. But they're also a great way to add a little Christmas color to your décor without going over the top or spending too much money. This project uses fresh cranberries, which may go bad in a week or two, so this weekend is a great time to make them.
Supplies:
To learn the steps, read more
Welcome to the seventh project in my 12 DIYs of Christmas series! I decided to make hand-painted monogrammed tea towels as a gift for a friend that has everything this year. I think taking the extra step to hand-paint this everyday item gives it a personal touch, and shows more effort than any store-bought item. I decided to paint the monogram in my own handwriting and made my own stencil, so it definitely took more time. But beyond that, it's a pretty straightforward project.
Supplies:
To learn the steps, read more
Welcome to the sixth project in my 12 DIYs of Christmas series! We all go through that mental checklist (keys, wallet, phone?) before we set foot out of the door each morning. Thus, having a place to stash your must haves is a big help in the tardiness (and sanity!) department. So I made this découpage key bowl as a gift for a friend. With patience and a few supplies, it's an easy project that makes a great holiday gift!
I actually got the antique key images from a book about corkscrews (they're corkscrews!), but any pretty images will do. If you also want to use images from a book, just make a photocopy of the page onto standard printer paper.
Supplies:
To learn the steps, read more
Welcome to the fifth project in my 12 DIYs of Christmas series! I'm a staunch candle enthusiast; no light bulb can ever re-create that ambient atmosphere. From tealights to tapers and pillars to Diptyques, I've got 'em all and I don't discriminate. I also own plenty of candlesticks and votives, but sometimes they just need an extra something something to dress them up. So for the holidays, I thought I'd give my white pillar candles a lift by creating a cuff for them made from candy canes! This year, I've been a bit nontraditional with my Christmas colors, so I went with Spree candy canes and a green polka-dot ribbon. But you can choose any palette you like.
Supplies:
To learn the steps, read more
Welcome to the fourth project in my 12 DIYs of Christmas series! You know me: I love DIY projects. But I'm such a homebody that I try to avoid driving to the crafts store at all costs. So I decided to be eco-friendly and make my Christmas wreath this year from things I already own — one of them primarily being the wire numbers from a dartboard. In secret, I'm a bit of a dart shark and I found these white wire numbers headed for a landfill, so I decided to make them my own. As it turns out, they do a great job of keeping the ornaments in place. This project requires practically no craft skills, so if you have an hour (tops), it's an easy project for anyone! Obviously, you can personalize the palette to fit your tastes.
Supplies:
To learn the steps, read more
