Alternatives Ideas to Traditional Christmas Wreaths

The traditional Christmas wreath has me bored to tears. There are plenty of fun wreaths out there made of everything from oranges to birdseed to ornaments, but those tend to be expensive. I started wondering...what kinds of door decorations are out there for those of us who want a wreath alternative?

Here's what I dug up:


I love the idea of vinyl decals on your door for some Christmas Spirit! This one says "Welcome Santa" but there are plenty of others out there that say other things or are pictoral.
Urban Expressions via Etsy

This is a fun DIY take on a wreath: a giant homemade snowflake!
Supersnowflake via Family Fun

I also like the idea of hanging a wooden sign like the snowman below.
Via Squidoo

This one is what I actually did to MY front door this year--wrap it up like a present! My ribbon is candy-cane striped and I think its absolutely adorable. I did this for windows too years ago at my parents house.
via Hubpages

I think this one is the most creative. If you did it on your front door, you would have to have a clear storm door or something to keep the cards from blowing away. I never know what to do with Christmas cards, and this is a great idea. Just pin them onto some ribbons and hang them from your door to display!
via Country Living


Does anyone else out there have any ideas for those of us who have had it with boring old wreaths? Please share! Even send me a picture of your beautifully-decked-out house and I will post it!

I'm Here!

So with all of the holiday hullabuloo blogging has fallen by the wayside lately. We had Brett's whole family at our house over the Thanksgiving weekend, which made for some happy chaos and much dog walking. I made the cranberry sauce, sweet potato pie *with gingersnap crust*, and mini cornbread muffins *with whipped honey butter.* We have had leftovers. We have rebelled from leftovers and ordered in Chinese.

We have put up our brand new Christmas tree and decorated it with home made popcorn garlands and not home made candy canes (we spent the money on the tree and have nothing left for ornaments!). We have decorated our house with garlands and lights and bows. We even started a Christmas puzzle which I spent FOUR HOURS unable to step away from last night.

We have not so much cleaned up...

But I'm here and I'm being artsycraftsy!

Upcoming posts for December include:

1.) Microwave Peanut Brittle!
2.) The Unveiling of the Upholstered Ugly Pink Chairs
3.) Adventures in Sewing Holiday Placemats
4.) Holiday Wreath Alternative Door Decorations

Stay tuned...

Sad Vanity Bench Makeover--Part II

Just to refresh your memory, here is the poor little vanity bench's "before" shot:


..and here she is after I sanded her and painted her gray:

For the seat, I got a yard of Amy Butler's yellow fabric, some batting, some high density foam, and the seat my dad made to fit on the bench.

The first step is to line the foam up with the seat, and then cover it with the batting.

I doubled up the batting, stapled it down, and then laid out the fabric so that it was oriented on the top in the right direction.

Then I stapled the fabric around the cushion using the around-the-clock method I have described before in the Brooch Display and the Footstool Makeover. This one was a little bit tougher than usual because the foam extended a little beyond the edges of the seat because I had to be extra careful when I stretched the fabric.

Then I stapled on some firm interfacing to hide the ugly underside and tuck in all of the edges.

Finally, I found some screws that fit in the old holes under the frame and screwed them into the bench...

...and then flipped over and admired my new bubble bath caddy/ vanity stool!

Like I said before, I'm not sure about the gray color on the wood and would love some suggestions for a frame color that would really make the yellow fabric pop! Anyone? Bueller??

Sad Vanity Bench Makeover--Part I

Here is the "Before" photo of the vanity bench, one of the pieces that I dug out of our barn last summer. I needed a bench of some sort in my bathroom to sit on while I put on makeup and to put magazines and stuff on during bubble baths, so I decided to try this one out.

I took it outside and sanded it (with a foam sanding block...what a fabulous invention!) and then wiped it down to get it ready for painting.


I had my dad cut out a new seat for it and reinforce it with some scraps he had laying around.


Here it is with the new seat--fits in perfectly!
I wanted to use the yellow Amy Butler fabric I have had lying around which has a gray and cream design on it. I couldn't find any gray paint (WHAT? its such a hot color right now! see, How to Decorate with Gray), so I decided to use primer and then cover it with a high gloss clear. Doesn't matter so much now since I want to change the color anyway, but at least its primed!
Here she is, all primed and ready to go. She looks SO MUCH better already, and you can see the pretty channel designs on the side whereas you didn't even notice them before because she was so scuffed up.

Check out Part II tomorrow for the upholstery and the finished product!

Before and After--Sad Vanity Bench

This is the before picture of a very sad vanity bench from our barn. It could probably have been refinished, but I am waaaaaaay too lazy to do that!

Before...

After...This is the after picture, and I think I am going to put it in my bathroom so I will have somewhere to sit my book and wine glass during bubble baths! I don't know if I like the gray on the bottom--any suggestions for another color? I was kind of thinking of a peacock blue or maybe a rich indigo. Thoughts?

Stay tuned this week for details on the vanity bench's transformation...

I've been kind of mentally MIA for the last week or so...I started a new attorney contract position last week and am trying to figure out how I feel about it. I definitely miss being at home with Lolly all day, but this opportunity is something that might let me work part of the year and have some more time to devote to my art. Keeping my fingers crossed!

Beautifully Recycled Glass Bottles

Via Beautiful Rust's Photostream on Flikr

I have noticed that some very creative people are doing really gorgeous things with old glass bottles! From wine bottles to mineral water, they are ending up as everything from stained glass windows (my favorite) to drinking glasses. I have always loved the colors of sea glass and wine bottles (hence my collection of 100+ white wine bottles saved up during law school...RIP!). It seems like such a shame sometimes when you have to get rid of them. I applaud these people for taking the initiative to reinvent those beautiful everyday objects!

Here is a round-up of some of the more impressive results I have run into for your viewing pleasure:

My first and favorite is this "stained" glass window by Daniel Maher. Check out his other beautiful work on his website here. Aren't those bottle bottoms beautiful?

Daniel Maher via Apartment Therapy Re-Nest

Pendant lamps, with a tutorial on how to cut your own bottles on Apartment Therapy's Unplugged.
Via Apartment Therapy Unplugged

I have seen these slumped bottles before at the Neptune Festival in Virginia Beach and Arts in Park here in Richmond. They can be used as wind chimes, incense burners, cheese plates, etc. However, I really love the photography in this shot, so here one is as a spoon rest!

Minty Fresh Fusion via Etsy

I love the colors on these Rolling Rock drinking glasses. I must say that I haven't ever had a Rolling Rock, but that's beside the point. You can find sets similar to these made out of everything from sake bottles to IBC cream soda. I think its a great idea, especially if the bottles are from a favorite microbrewery or kitschy old fashioned drink.

YAVA Glass via Etsy

A pretty mobile takes advantage of the fact that glass looks best when the sun is shining through it!

CD Childs via Etsy

The obvious thing to do with an old glass bottle is to use it as a vase right? Well, only after sending said glass bottle through a particle accelerator with some uranium apparently...

Twice Baked Art via Etsy

I like this necklace because of its simplicity. Most of the glass pendants out there are highly manipulated and showy...this one highlights the beauty of something that most of us probably never look at twice.
Minty Fresh Fusion via Etsy

Does anyone own any recycled glass bottle products, or have you made any of your own? Please share!

I Just Made My First Sale on Etsy!

I just sold my set of three "Dove" Silhouettes to someone who loves yellow as much as I do! whoop! whoop!



I'm a rock star, I'm a rock star! Seriously, this is such an amazing boost for me. *SMILE*