Crafty Round-Up

We have been making a lot of stuff lately, which is just the way I like to spend December.   And December is marching on! We lit the fourth Advent candle this past Sunday, and as I type this up it's just two days till Christmas. Definitely in the thick of things.

It's pretty rare that all four kids are into making the same thing, but I usually have one or two that are interested. The others go off and do their own thing. A few things we've been making lately....

We didn't exactly make amaryllis, but we did plant the bulbs a few weeks ago and they are blooming just in time for Christmas. I love amaryllis flowers at Christmastime; they remind me of my mom, who always gifted me with a bulb around this time of year.

 We make pomanders every year; they last for several weeks and smell wonderful. Nothing could be easier - just stick cloves in an orange. You can make a pattern or just stick them all over.

Cloves can be kind of expensive at the grocery store; we find ours for much less (and in bulk!) at an Indian grocery store.  And if the cloves hurt your fingers (they can be a little sharp), just use a toothpick to make the hole, then slide the clove in. I used floral picks from the craft store to hold the ribbon in place and allow for easy hanging. 

One day the girls and I made marshmallow garlands to decorate the kitchen. These are just marshmallows strung on baker's twine. We used a blunt-tipped darning needle sprayed with cooking spray to do the stringing.

I  kept seeing cute chalkboard printables everywhere and knew I had to have one.  This one is a Merry & Bright printable, and I just love it. You can find lots more by googling "chalkboard Christmas printables". I printed mine on white card stock, trimmed it a bit, and put it in an inexpensive frame. At only $4 to make, this is one of my favorite new holiday decorations.

Last Saturday afternoon was dedicated to gingerbread houses. 

Grace and I tried to make ribbon trees like some we had seen on Pinterest. They didn't come out quite as nice as the photo we saw - as often seems to happen! But I still think they are charming, in a rustic sort of way.

If you have some paper plates on hand, this is an awesome site. The kids made a couple of different paper plate crafts. I absolutely adore this reindeer!

Today we have been making more cookies - Christmas cherries - watching a few last Christmas specials (Frosty & Charlie Brown), stocking up on groceries for the holiday, and just generally getting ready. I am going to take a few days away from the blog, but plan to be back early next week.

Thanks for stopping by, and Merry Christmas!