Tag: Christmas

  • Christmas Decorations (Part 1: Upstairs)

    Christmas Decorations (Part 1: Upstairs)

    I know — it’s a little late in the game to finally be sharing our Christmas decorations! The house was photographed this year for the Christmas issue of a magazine (to come out next year, obviously), so I was focused on getting the little details right. Today I’ll share the upstairs decorations, and tomorrow the living and dining rooms.

    First, here’s Eleanor’s room.

    Eleanor's Bedroom, Decorated for Chrismas

    She picked out her little white tree last year, and she was happy to see its return. She decorated it herself (she really likes those spiky glitter ornaments), and was adamant about there being a star on top. We didn’t have one, so I bought a glittery star-shaped ornament to use and all was well. I probably wouldn’t have draped her bed with garland, but we had the magazine shoot and I was feeling a little extra pressure to really Christmas it up. E likes it, because “now her bed looks like a sleigh.”

    Eleanor's Room, Decorated for Christmas

    (And I stand by my love for all the weird deer in my house.)

    August’s room was decorated too. The little Christmas tree is usually on top of his dresser, but his room is so small and hard to photograph that I moved it over to the table (temporarily) to fit it all in one shot with the wreath and reindeer in the window. It looks really nice there — it just wouldn’t survive very long!

    Christmas Decorations in August's Room

    The library has had the silver tree for the last few years — mostly because we already own it and I figure we might as well use it. We already had the birds, and the red yarn balls are new (from IKEA). I was slightly freaking out (oh, just slightly) about there needing to be something else up there, so I invited Kathryn over for a second opinion. She suggested the white feather wreaths from west elm, and I like how they tie in to the white feather birds on the tree.

    Christmas Decorations in the Library

    The other side of the library has had those brass deer up all year. I guess that’s strange? I added some garland and ornaments, white Christmas lights, and my giant sequin disco ball ornament things.

    Christmas Decorations Upstairs in the Library

    I think of these as the ancillary decorations. The pink tree is the real star of the house, and no doubt why we were chosen for the magazine. I’ll share the downstairs photos tomorrow!

  • Some Christmas Decorating

    Some Christmas Decorating

    So. Speaking of sequins, they’re featured prominently in my home for the holidays.

    Sequined Pillow

    The house may be photographed for a magazine (to appear in a Christmas issue next year), so I’m feeling extra pressure to do it up right.

    Pink Christmas Tree with Pailettes

    I bought our pink tree in 2009. Three years later, about 1/3 of the lights have burned out. Supposedly a “lightbulb specialist” will be calling me tomorrow so that I can place an order for replacement bulbs. I’m hoping I can get clear ones because when the tree is fully lit with its pink bulbs, the effect is a bit bordello-ish.

    Pink Christmas Tree

    I have more to do (the pressure!), so there’s more to come. Next week, most likely.

  • Put a Tree on it

    Put a Tree on it

    Christmas Trees on the Roofs of Cars

    I hereby declare 2012 the year of Christmas Trees on the Roofs of Adorable Vintage Cars.™

    1. DIY Christmas Tree Advent Calendar

    2. Vintage Christmas Car Ornament

    3. Vintage Car Guest Towel

    4. “City Christmas” Cards

    I’m going to credit this photo from The Pink Couch last year with the honor of kicking it off.

    Christmas Tree on a Toy Car

  • Free Printable Monogram Christmas Gift Tags

    Free Printable Monogram Christmas Gift Tags

     
    These holiday printables are brought to you by HP. Make other easy printable projects at HP’s Holiday HQ.

    I like to come up with a cohesive wrapping scheme each year for Christmas. That sounds fancier and more complicated than it is though; I just like for all of the presents to look nice together under our tree. This year’s wrapping paper will be in rich shades of brown, punctuated by minty green (because I think mint will look fantastic under our pink tree!).

    Monogram Christmas Gift Tags

    I designed these gift tags to use for our presents, and you’re welcome to download and print them for your gifts as well. I’ve done monogram gift tags before, but those were hand-drawn and I wanted to do a new twist on them this year.

    Cutting Out Gift Tags

    My years as a stationer have taught me a few tips about working with paper. If you have a paper cutter, you can cut the tags into three strips vertically to start. You could also use a ruler and an x-acto knife (or a box cutter, sharp razor, or rotary cutter). Then, keeping the tags in their strips, use an x-acto knife to cut slits along the tops and bottoms for ribbon to slide through. Doing so while they’re still in strips will make the paper a little easier to work with. Then use scissors to finish cutting out each tag. You could also use a hole punch at the top and bottom to thread thin ribbon through, or just punch a hole at the top to use these like more traditional gift tags.

    Free Printable Christmas Monogram Gift Tags from Making it Lovely

    And here’s another tip: When I have gifts for multiple people with the same initial (like August and Ashley), I write their name on the back of the present with a marker. I can usually remember which gift is which by the shape of the box, but it’s good to have the name on there too.

    May your days be merry and bright!

    Free Printable Monogram Christmas Gift Tags

  • A Hip Handmade Holiday

    A Hip Handmade Holiday

    I was in Salt Lake City last month to meet with Allison Faulkner and Susan Petersen of The Craft Pack, along with their fantastic designer Matt Mildenstein. I got a sneak peek at their new digital book, A Hip Handmade Holiday, which is filled with craft projects, ideas, and digital downloads, all to make gifts for under $10 a pop.

    Alison Faulkner, Nicole Balch, and Susan Petersen

    A bunch of us bloggers gathered and got our craft on, choosing different projects from the book. (I went with the Nutcracker Bowling League.) I have since decided that I ought to set aside entire days devoted to group crafting, because that is fun.

    Getting Our Craft On

    Video! Done in one take! Alison and Susan are naturals. (Oh, you guys. I’m totally going to be a pro at this some day. I’m working on it.)


    The trip was made possible by Vivint. Styling and awesome background by Cayleen Haynie, and music by Pleasant Pictures.

    “I kind of Sgt. Peppered them up a little bit.” See? Pro-talk. The nutcrackers are awfully cute though, aren’t they? I’m a little hesitant to let the kids use them as bowling pins. I think I need to make a few more, specifically to set aside as decorations.

    The Nutcracker Bowling League

    We got our party on* later that night, after our marathon crafting was over. I’m pretty sure 95% of the internet’s cute, crafty bloggers are based in Utah, including most of the ladies below.

    * Parties in SLC are mostly fueled by Diet Coke and Diet Dr. Pepper. Also, I got eyelash extension while I was in town! (Sadly, not before the video and photos though.) Utah, you’re a kick.

    A Hip Handmade Holiday Celebration

    A big thank you to The Craft Pack for having me out to Salt Lake City. Their book, A Hip Handmade Holiday is available now, for $10.

  • Santa Visited

    Santa Visited

    The kids have a new favorite toy, and so do I. And Santa filled our stockings with fun things. (I forgot to show you this little part of our home, all decorated for Christmas. There are brass deer.)

    My Secret Santa was good to me too. I still don’t know who it is though! Another package arrived, this time with a set of personalized colored pencils nestled in more pink tinsel. Eleanor has been decorating the tree with the sparkly pink garland.


    And then, a separate shipment arrived. Is it from my Secret Santa as well? It came directly from the shop, so no packaging to tip me off. It’s from someone who knows me well though — I wrote about wanting one of these camera straps a while back.

    Santa is very thoughtful.