Joy Blocks

Kathy at Dandelions and Dust Bunnies made these a few months ago and I just couldn't wait to make my own for Christmas!



Start with a 2x4 piece of lumber that you cut into squares....we just have these things around the house, so I didn't need to purchase one.  My husband saves every scrap of wood!

....I tried using the table saw, but quite honestly, that thing scares me to death....so I got my husband to cut the squares!  I just put my vinyl letter on the block and guess-timated how big I wanted the block.

Grab some red paint....mine was from Walmart!

Paint your blocks....you can even have your 5 year old help you!  It's that easy!

(Please ignore the hairbrush on my kitchen table....that's the 5 year old....)



.....buy some gorgeous vinyl from Jill at Utah Vinyl and apply to the painted block....

Add some sheer ribbon from Walmart......It took about a spool to finish one set of blocks.

They turned out exactly like I wanted them to!!


Total cost:  one 2x4.....free
red paint:  $0.97---1 jar could do at least 4 sets if not more....so count $0.25 for 1
vinyl:  $4.50 per set
ribbon:  $1.99 per spool

Total Cost:  about $6.75 for a gorgeous gift idea! 

(and my Mom made them without the ribbon and made them red and green....she also made a gorgeous set antiqued with glaze!)

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Advent Wreath Tutorial

Okay...so I have a confession to make.  My friend, Melissa, inspired me!  She actually sent me this picture in the morning before my husband brought home some taper candles to "make" his advent wreath.  THANK YOU Melissa for perfect timing!!

Sorry...it's super blurry....but you get the idea!  So, when my hubby walked in the door and I RAN to The Dollar Tree....I knew what I was going to get... (kind've)

I had a variety of glassware in my cart and exchanged them a number of times and finally decided on this:



My 5 year old was "shopping" with me ...enough said!

I had 1 roll of this ribbon left over....I had bought it for garland for our Christmas tree....which, after 5 nail holes, is now anchored to the wall....please don't ask!

So after a little of this....(sorry, we got a new camera, so there will be an abundance of photos!)

You get this:

I "shopped my house" and used my picture frame tray and ended up with this:

We "borrowed" some greens from the empty lot next door and I had bought another $1.00 spring of sparkly
beady things from The Dollar Tree.

Total Cost for my Advent Wreath.....drumroll please:

5 glass jars @$1.00 = $5.00
1 roll of ribbon @$1.00= $1.00
1 sprig of beady's @$1.00 = $1.00
1 bag of votive candles @$1.00 = $1.00
picture frame tray---free, already had it
greens----free..."borrowed"
Total cost $8.00!!!

Hearing my children fight over who gets to light the candles.....priceless!


All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).   Matthew 1: 22-23

A little background on Advent  (excerpted from here.)

The first is called the "Candle of Hope." It symbolizes faith in God keeping his promises to humanity. The second is called the "Candle of Preparation," reminding Christians to "get ready" to receive God. The third candle is the "Candle of Joy." It recalls the angels joyfully singing about the birth of Christ. The fourth candle, the "Candle of Love," reminds Christians that God loves them enough to send his only Son to Earth. The "Christ Candle," the white candle in the center, stands for Jesus Christ himself.

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Dollar Tree Advent Wreath

I grew up Presbyterian, so Advent was a HUGE part of our Christmas.  We couldn't even open our Christmas presents on Christmas morning until we lit the center candle!

I've always wanted to bring the Advent tradition into our family....but have you seen the cost of Advent wreaths???  Every year I say that I am just going to suck-it-up and buy one and every year I just can't put down the cash.....

One year, my husband made one.....he took nails and pounded them through taper candles and a board....it was lovely.....(kidding!)  Actually, the candles bent in every direction, but I really appreciated his effort.

Well...tonight, when he walked through the door with some more taper candles and a desire to "make" an advent wreath.....I RAN to The Dollar Tree!

And this is what I made.........

I'll tell you how tomorrow!

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Christmas Wreath....my version

One of the most popular posts has been this wreath.

Well....as I was unpacking the Christmas bins, I found this....

.......and I felt inspired to try to replicate the Poppies at Play wreath....so off to The Dollar Tree and our local Mexican grocery store.....



After about 20 minutes and 2 blisters on my fingers from the hot glue, I had this....

(and I was too lazy/impatient to soak my cornhusks!)

I grabbed a can of silver spraypaint and headed to the garage.......(where I promptly received a lecture from my hubby about how many spraypaint fumes I've been inhaling....really honey, I'm fine!!)



I let it dry for a day....because I had other things to do....

I found some of this silver ribbon at the bottom of another Christmas bin and added it as a hanger.



I added my clear beady stuff, but it looked a little plain, so I grabbed some red beady stuff that I had on my Goodwill picture frame tray.  I bought the red beady stuff at The Dollar Tree.

I just randomly hot glued sprigs here and there....I was probably a little too random because when I hung it up, I realized that they were not as symmetrical as I would have preferred and I had to rip them off.....grrr!!



And the finished product........the flash picked up a husk that wasn't painted well, but in real-life, you can't see it.  I am thinking that I need to raise it a little higher on my old window.

And please ignore the crooked Christmas tree.....they should be sitting on crystal candlesticks from The Dollar Tree.......but The Dollar Tree has been SOLD OUT of those for days......have you crafty people been making the Williams and Sonoma knock off vases and using up all the candlesticks?????

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Gorgeous Pinecone Wreath

If only I had pinecones.......I have access to at least 10 pine trees, but no pinecones....where did they all go??

I found this at the Craft-O-Maniac link party today.  Just to clarify.....this is not my wreath, I just liked it and wanted to share!

Here are the instructions.....super easy and I think that The Dollar Tree even has the styrofoam wreath form for $1.00!!!  And honey, I forgive you for dissing the dollar stores in your message yesterday! 

(For those of you who don't know me...my husband is a pastor and had the nerve to diss the dollar store in his message....well, yesterday,....he needed to purchase an extension cord and where did he go......The Dollar Store.....and who was working there??......someone who had been at church over the weekend......and what did she say???...."Look who needs the dollar store now!!!" LOL  I couldn't have said it better!!)

Happy Crafting!!

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Christmas Cloche

You'll never guess what this was.....   

(Hint:  It's from the Goodwill!)





It's an old cheese dome and candlestick!!!!  (Sorry for the blurry pic....I stole it from yahoo images...)

I first got this idea from Thrifty Decor Chick.   Here's the link to her instructions.  (She calls it a "cloche"!)

So.....go grab a $3.00 cheese dome from the Goodwill.....look for a chunky candle stick at the Goodwill.  Grab your Gorilla glue and glue them together.

Paint it the color of your choice.....I used Oil-Rubbed Bronze.  The Thrifty Decor Chick used Heirloom white.

Go to The Dollar Tree....grab a set of sparkly, plastic Christmas balls for $1.00 and fill! 

It's seasonal, too.  I filled it with  pumpkins in the fall and will hopefully find some pinecones for the winter.

 

Don't you just love cheap decorating! :)

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Christmas decorating by "shopping the house"

Remember this?

I "Christmas-i-fied" it......it now looks like this...............

Total cost.....$2.00!!!!!

The Dollar Tree  (really....can I get a commission for this????) has little boxes of white lights for $1.00 and tubes of plastic Christmas balls for $1.00.....and then I used ribbon that I already had....

Merry Christmas! (Actually.....Happy Thanksgiving!)

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Williams and Sonoma knock-off

Okay...so I got my idea for this from Thrifty Decor Chick.   Her website has been my inspiration!  She's the one that says these are a Williams and Sonoma knock-off.  Quite honestly, I am not even sure what Williams and Sonoma is......is it a store?  a catalog?  Oh well.....it's obviously too expensive!

Go to The Dollar Tree.....my son was SO embarassed that I was in the store taking pictures!!

Grab a $1 candlestick.

Walk down the aisle and grab a $1 vase.

Go home and grab your gorilla glue.

 (Yes..I know...I was too lazy to go and take another picture!)

And the reveal..........

I am thinking of filling them with pinecones for Christmas....I need to go and check the PB online catalog and see what they are doing!

(And I am still working on my PB inspired Christmas mantle....I just don't have any red glitter and I live too far away from the craft stores!!! Grr!)



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Pottery Barn Lantern Knock-off's

I just love knocking off Pottery Barn.....maybe it's because they keep canceling my catalog.....I think that they are onto the fact that I never buy anything, I just steal their ideas! ;)

With Christmas coming soon  (it scares me how soon...yikes!)...I need to switch out the pumpkins and mums on my porch.

What about this IDEA, but make it Christmas-y? 

They are wood...............spray painted!!!!

With a glass jar and candle from The Dollar Tree!!!  Can you even imagine them in ORB????

Check out Cleverly Inspired to see her complete tutorial.

I'm thinking of painting mine white and adding a metallic blue bow to match our shutters and adding evergreens around the bottom.  OH!-----I could even put my PB knock-off/music wrapped/dollar tree/battery-operated candles in them!!!!!

.......But will they match my husband's multi-colored old-fashion C7 Christmas lights draped all over the house???? 

*sigh*......it's all about compromise!! :)

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