Just to bring Christmas back for a little...

Its been almost a week since Christmas has past and I still can't help but feel like it went by all too fast. :(
I would do it all over again.. You? Not that this year I didn't procrastinate. Because I DID... 

There is always the one gift you forget to get and you're running to the store Christmas Eve, even though, every year prior, you told yourself you would never do this again.. RIGHT?? Or is that just me?! haha. At least I can laugh now. My husband at the time: not so much! :)


But... I just love Christmas. I love the joy that is evident. Which becomes dimmer as the months go by...
And for the indescribable gift that God gave us for which we cannot repay: A baby boy born and angels filled the sky proclaiming His glory...


I hope to bring all that back with these pictures of our beautiful Christmas party! It was a wonderful night with friends and coffee and Mrs. Alla's mouthwatering melt-in-your-mouth cake (to those of you who know her, know just how great that part really is!)


 Making the centerpeice! This consists of FREE greenery from a local Christmas tree stand, FREE pinecones that one of the girls found, FREE berries from a bush @ my sisters house (really wish I knew what it's called- they are beautiful!!) and ornaments: silver from Target ($1 section) and big red ones were mine (I bought them last year at Target). Total price of HUGE centerpiece?? $2 :)

 

When everything was finally set up and last food prep was going on, I snapped a few pics. Forgive the quality! Learning how to take "professional" pics is on my New Years Resolution!

The berries again in little vases with a candle! I love these berries! They just about made the party.

Top View. Love it!

 The balls were supposed to be hanging above the food but they kept falling. :( So this is how they were used. It was a little upsetting but still adorable.

  
Dessert Table. Yum! Lots of Russian style sweets :)

"The Birth of Christ" or Happy Birthday Jesus! 


We added berries to the balls too :) They were just fabulous everywhere. :) I love the final look! I got to keep three balls and this is how they look at home now...

Hope you ALL had a wonderful Christmas and this brings back those recent memories and the joy that should not just be around @ Christmas time!

Never too late: Pinecone Decor Balls

Its never to late to make and put up Christmas decor. No, wait.. I guess it is.. if its Dec 26th... But today isn't the 26th.. :) So I guess this isn't too late. :)

Our women's bible study was planning it's second ever Christmas party and we all decided to make the decorations to save money. Actually, it wasn't really DECIDED- there was no other choice. :) We knew it was pointless to buy decorations and have the problem of who gets to keep them! So...


I spotted the inspiration for these amazing pine cone balls (lack of a better name!) at wonderful Target. Target is wonderful.. but I love the stuff even more when its on a marked down clearance! These, however, were not. They were priced @ $25.00 for the larger ball!!

http://www.target.com/p/Smith-Hawken-Jumbo-Pinecone-Ball-11/-/A-13665428

 I instantly loved the idea of hanging them, or placing them on the table as centerpieces. And then I wished I could make them. And then I thought.. "Maybe I CAN make them..." 

And then we made them!! 

Im so excited about them because, even though the Christmas party was last weekend, I get to see and enjoy these creations every day on my floating shelves!


Supplies you will need:
Newspaper (or Styrofoam balls if you'd rather?? But why would you? Its so much more expensive...)
Tape
Glue gun and lots of glue sticks
Pinecones (FREE thanks to AWESOME Ann that picked bags full from the park) DO IT! JUST DO IT! :)
Sharp trimmers or scissors and a really strong arm... ;)

TOTAL COST: $3 (price of a whole bag of hot glue sticks. We made 7 balls!!)


Crumble the newspaper into a ball


Tape around and keep adding until you get to the desired size. It looks best when you have a variety of sizes, but the bigger the ball, the more pine cones you need and the harder it is to make it look good...
TIP: On the last layer, use as little tape as necessary. The hot glue doesn't hold well to the tape!Also, you might consider doing the last layer in a brown paper, or spray painting it dark.. I didn't realize until later that the white peaks out a little...

Then start hot gluing pine cones around the ball. It might look odd at first but you will fill the gaps at the end... Use the trimmers to cut the pine cones in half (We did this because we didn't have as much of the small cute ones) It actually makes the pine cone look like a flower!

It was so much fun to put these together! Thanks to all the girls that helped!

 Stealing them to see how it would look on my shelves- LOVE IT!

Make them for your Christmas table or sideboard or to hang?! 

Can I just add... if you take the time to spray paint them a little (silver or gold!!) and add some sparkles, it could take them to a whole new level! :)


I can't wait to show you pictures from the party! WOW is all i can say! It was GORGEOUS! I am still amazed how cheap we put it all together. I take no credit. It was a group effort.....

But since this is my blog, I take all credit. :) haha jk of course!!

Can't believe Christmas is in three days! Hope everyone is having a stress-free countdown to this happy holiday and remember the real reason for all the presents and lights! The birth of Jesus is the real reason for Christmas!