A Little Christmas Decor

Things around these parts have been a little word heavy. But I'm sorry- I love to write. Between writing though I have been decorating for Christmas and besides wrapping presents I think the place is done. It's warm, cozy, and just festive enough. So I've snapped a few unprofessional photos to share with you! Here's the Christmas tour of our house. 

What's the old saying? "Necessity is the mother of invention." Well we didn't NEED Christmas decorations but if we wanted things up I was going to have to do some shopping or creating. I opted for minimal shopping and much creating. First on the list was the cinnamon applesauce ornaments. Our house still smells great because of these babies. 

 I also made enough to give to my kids on my last day of teaching. They loved them. I  just hope they didn't eat it. 

Then I bought some apples for a project that will be revealed in just a minute. Add to the yummy smells.  

The first stop is our chalkboard wall. I love that I made the decision to paint a wall in my rental with chalk board. It is so fun to redecorate. Please don't mind the mess in the bottom left corner. I blurred our address. I have it written then to aid in my memorization. It's not really working though. 

Now we will peek at our dining room. See the wreaths on the windows? Those apples were glued to embroidery hoops and then hung with rope. A pine cone garland made by yours truly is gracing our "mantel." See that brick? I'm still trying to work up the courage to paint it. Either make the faux bricks and mortar all white or try and make them look real and reddish. Any suggestions? Anyway, besides looking at our tree, I like being in this room. It's cheery and Christmasy. 

Our stockings. The middle one was bought for me by my Momma from this Crafter. I made the other two, because I had the burlap and the time. But they were stinkers so I wouldn't blame you if you bought yours. Burlap can be tricky. But they turned out cute, now just to decide whose is whose. 

Another reason I love the dining room. It has the most "old stuff" I bought a Hoosier this summer and quickly filled it with my collections. For Christmas I got out these little figurines my Grandma passed down to me. Aren't they cute? They were my Great Grandma's. The rolling pin was another Great Grandma's piece. If you look closely by the handle it was her name written in marker. "Elda." so sweet.

Now for the tree. I really wanted to have a real tree. I've never had one before. But it just didn't work for us to get anywhere. So mom had an extra so we snatched it up. Jerrel is amazed by the amount of ornaments we have. Well dear, that's what about $4 at the thrift store and a few donations from your mother will get you. We made popcorn and cranberry garland and tada! Total tree cost, maybe around $10-we had to buy lights and a other few supplies.

Disclaimer- Some presents may or may not be props.

But we had no tree topper. Mmmm, I've got a tree in the backyard, hot glue, and twine. I googled a few things and decided to just go with it. And I LOVE my star. It turned out to be the perfect finishing touch. The trick was finding the straightest twigs and then making them proportional. I arranged and rearranged them until I had the right shape of star. 

But my favorite ornament is our Mackinac Island ornament. Such a fun trip. Second favorite? The weird green ones I bought at the thrift store. Everyone needs some whimsy. 

So that's our basic Christmas tour. Once again my collecting/hoarding skills have came in handy. Wishing you a very Merry Christmas Season from our home to yours. 

Christmas Blessings!