Christmas is here! 2014

 Been busy busy busy decorating this weekend. Found this adorable candy cane sign at Today's Patio. The metal tin is from Designer Blvd.  I've been loving my wagon and plan to use it for all holidays. Have a blessed season!

**************Got leftover Thanksgiving mashed potatoes?

If your house is like mine, you eat all the left over turkey within a day or two after Thanksgiving and then you are left with all these side dishes that get thrown out. My Grandma used to make this dish called "Super Supper." It is very kid and husband friendly!

You will need:

mashed potatoes 3-4 cups prepared

1 pound cooked ground beef

1 can of corn (or use leftover corn from the feast!)

1 can diced tomatoes (DON'T DRAIN)

1 T sauteed minced onion

1 tsp salt

1 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 cup shredded cheese

Mix together all ingredients except cheese. Put in 13 x 9 inch dish, cover with cheese and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until browned and bubbly. Enjoy!

****************FREE Elf on the Shelf Note

Here is your free Elf on the Shelf introductory note! I saw one on Pinterest/Etsy but it is $10. This is one I whipped up tonight. Leave this with your elf to start off the season and remind your kids to be good this year :). Right click "open in new tab" to print

Spray tan anyone?

Loving this Elf on the Shelf business these days!! Having so much fun topping the previous day's ideas.

Christmas Decor 2012

I decorated my house for Christmas Thanksgiving weekend. I added even more ornmanets and sparkly sprigs this year (again). Every year I decide to do a little more. Next year I want to experiment with mesh on the tree. I made an outdoor mesh garland that I will be posting soon.

 

 Added some green swirly sprigs this year to the topper. I love these things. I bought what felt like a million of them and this lady was just staring at me with an odd look on her face as I piled them high in my cart at Hobby Lobby :)

 This is the tree I used for my daughter's 5th birthday that had rainbow ornaments on it.

 I spray painted some old candle sticks for the mantle. The curly ribbon on them is actually for wrapping paper. Giant ornments are on top. I bought new "elf" stockings from Target this year. So cute! I took a bunch of tulle and tied it to my existing garland

 Filled my lanterns with ornmanets after I saw this on Pinterest. I used a bunch of batting in the bottom for "snow" or else I would have had to put in a lot more ornaments. Turned out so cute with the bows.

Christmas Card & Newsletter

I saw an adorable newsletter on Pinterest this year. It was so unique and to the point with cute little graphics to boot. I attempted to make one myself, but that was a disaster! SO, I contacted my usual gal who does my cards for everything and had her make me one. You can have her make you one by visiting http://www.etsy.com/shop/deanworks?ref=shop_sugg. She had actually never seen a Christmas letter like this, so hopefully she will start selling them in her shop along with her amazing cards.

Happy Christmas, Merry Everything!

Pretty Packaging

Who needs professional gift wrapping? Using ribbons and bows from Walmart or Michael's, you can create really pretty gifts in a short amount of time.

The zebra ribbon was on a previous gift that I re-used in this gift. Glitter sprigs were from Michael's
Can you believe this cute feather ball is from Walmart?! And it was only $0.97. It has a clip underneath so you can clip it to a tree also

More blue....

Patterned packages can look nice as well with coordinating ribbon scraps

I have this green wired mesh all over my tree and formal dining room fro Christmas. I actually found it in the gift wrapping section at Hobby Lobby. I love the not-so-traditional lime green color.

Gold and brown sparkle sprigs are from Walmart, leopard ribbon is furry in texture and from Hobby Lobby. For the brown paper, I turned a wrapping paper I already had (that has an ugly print on it) inside out to wrap the gift.

For the purple gift, I again turned wrapping paper inside out so the white is showing. Then I wrapped the gift in cellophane. Finish with some zebra ribbon and pink accents

Be creative: use old scraps of ribbon and stock up on glittery sprigs after Christmas. Most of mine were purchased last year for pennies on the dollar :)

Monogram Shadow Box

Have you all seen those cute crayon shadow boxes on Pinterest or somewhere else? What an awesome gift for a teacher! I've been busy making them, along with a rhinestone version for my daughter's dance teacher. I figured crayons would not be as fitting for a dance teacher. The project is pretty easy, but sort of time consuming.

You will need:

shadow box (Michael's had a 3 pack on sale for $9.99)

Hot glue & E6000 glue or GOOP

scrapbook paper

rhinestones (I mixed inexpensive ones with Swarovski rhinestones)
crayons

Embellishments such as flowers and ribbon

paper cutter

sharp knife and cutting board

pencil

computer with printer

light box table or bright window

1. Print out a large letter on your computer with the desired font. Cut your scrapbook paper to fit your shadow box. I like using printed paper instead of white, like I have seen. Place letter behind scrapbook paper and lightly trace with pencil letter on your light table or against a window. Position the letter slightly higher so you can fit the teacher's name underneath the letter.

2. Start gluing your crayons and/or rhinestones inside the traced letter. I used a mixture of hot glue and GOOP because I do not trust hot glue alone. Hot glue can deteriorate and not be strong enough to hold the weight of the crayons over time. I like my crayons facing one way for a cleaner look. I put some rhinestones on one of the crayons also for some sparkle.

3. I mixed all different color pink, some black, and mostly round rhinestones. Adding some Swarovski stones will make the project look a little better without being too expensive. I used some tweezers to pick off any exposed glue when I was done.

4. Erase any visible pencil lines. Print your teacher's name on white card stock and frame with a colored piece of scrapbook paper. Glue the name under the letter.

5. Add flowers or any other embellishments. Place paper inside frame and tie a ribbon around the shadow box, if desired.

Swirly Lollipop Napkins

I went to the Christmas Idea House last weekend, which is put on by the Desert Club. The Desert Club is a women's group that decorates a mansion every holiday season with Christmas decorations and baked goods. The proceeds go to charity or are awarded in scholarships. I received a scholarship when I was in high school.

Anyway, I saw these adorable striped wash clothes there that were twisted and made into a lollipop. What a cute idea right? So I thought this idea would be great on a tabletop with striped napkins. It literally took me 10 minutes to do 6 napkins. SO easy.

You will need:

Striped napkins

Plastic bags, gallon size, no zipper
Popsicle sticks

Green floral wire

Scissors

Decorative tie or ribbon

Beads or ornaments to attach to the final product (optional)

1. Start rolling the napkin from the corner
2. Start forming a swirl, twisting as you go. Don't twist too tight or too loose.

3. Secure the end to the rest of the "lollipop" with a small piece of wire

4. Cut off about 40% of the bottom of one bag and wrap around the lollipop like a wrapper. Put the Popsicle stick in the bottom and secure with a decorative tie.

The finished product is not meant to stand upright because the stick is not securely attached to the lollipop. After all, your guests are just going to take it apart to use the napkin :)You can add a large bead or a mini ornament for extra sparkle

The napkin will be a cute addition to your table

These are matching candy ornaments attached to my chandelier

Here is some ribbon attached to chair backs along with an ornament (all from Hobby Lobby)

Merry Christmas!