The Glue Sticks are Out of the Attic: Crafting for the Holidays

For several weeks now I have been saving pins on Pinterest, gathering materials, and pulling out my glue gun from a box in the attic where it has been since we moved over 9 years ago.  With the youngest four children in school, I feel like I finally have a wee bit of time to myself to actually do some crafting again.  Since I decided to have a "primitive preppy" Christmas throughout our farmhouse this year, I put together a number of ornaments and decorations that hopefully embody that theme.

It all started with a trip to Michael's back in early November where I purchased plaid and burlap balls, ribbons, pinecones, and more.

I was all prepared to make my own plaid balls with fabric and styrofoam, but Michael's carried these plaid balls with burlap ribbons around them.  All I had to do was attach twine or ribbon so I could hang them on our trees.  Fortunately, this old glue gun still works, and I even found a package of glue sticks in the attic as well.  It's like a rummage sale up there; I really need to shop in my attic more often.

About thirty minutes and two packages of plaid balls later, that craft was finished.

I started out using a bag of regular pinecones for some other tree ornaments.  The children thought I should use the ones in our yard that are free, but they just don't look as nice as the ones purchased at Michael's.  Then all I had to do was glue ribbon on the top and attach a plaid bow to each pinecone.

These would later be hung on our two Christmas trees along with the plaid balls.  I eventually purchased cinnamon pinecones too and attached plain red bows at the top and hung them from the windows downstairs.  The smell of cinnamon and fresh pine just can't be beat at Christmas.

Cross-stitching is a hobby I picked up when I was twenty, and the first piece I made was a Christmas decoration.  I haven't done much of it for many years, but I decided to stitch a new ornament this year.  For some reason, my children find it fascinating to watch me do this.  I think it would be like watching the hands move on a clock.  You'll notice that I did purchase a plaid fleece throw---actually two.  This one is seven feet long and has a special pocket at the bottom to keep your feet warm.  We found them at the BonTon and got a great deal during Community Days.  Sorry for the rather scary photo of me.  No makeup worn or hair styled that day.  Yikes!

I'm not quite finished with this yet, but almost.  I'm hoping the rabbit fits a sort of rustic, natural theme going on here.

If you read my last post, you'll remember I had my husband saw off a sliver of the Christmas tree trunk so I could try a Pinterest inspiration.

We happened to have a can of unused chalkboard paint in the basement (not like a rummage sale down there unless you're shopping for spiders.)  After sanding the one side as best I could, I painted the center of the wood with the black paint.  After drying, I glued a few small pine boughs from our Christmas tree to the top, along with a red bow.

We ended up with this sitting on our kitchen windowsill above the sink so we can count down the days till Christmas.  Since it's erasable, I can always draw a simple winter design on it once Christmas day has come and gone.  But I don't want to think about that yet because this is the most wonderful time of the year.

Happy Holiday Crafting, Everyone!