The Storm2K Holiday Craft Workshop!

[Miss Mary]

Okay, class starts in 30 minutes.....LOL Guys, feel free to skip this topic, if it doesn't interest you. But if so (you can share outside light display ideas too), post away! But I understand it may just interest other women. Not trying to leave you all out. I just want to swap craft ideas!

That said, I'm interested in learning new ways to decorate for the holidays. I have a ton of stuff all packed away. But each year I like to try new things. I just thought it would be fun to share ideas! I have 4 to kick us off.....feel free to add any holiday coming up - Halloween, Thanksgiving and of course the Holiday Season (what I really had in mind when starting this thread).

1. For example at one our neighborhood progressive holiday dinners, a neighbor sewed her own table runners but made them intentionally too long. She had many tables all set - at least 4. Runners all matched. Then she rumpled them up on the table, creating folds, but not perfect ones. She strewn raffia, greens and votive candles among the folds. Boy people were talking about those table runners all night - or I should say the women were. Men were rolling their eyes - table runners, what are they? LOL

2. Last year I bought simple faux silk flower/berry wreath ornaments at Target. At $4 each. I cut the ribbons off and placed them on my chandeliers, just below the candlestick/light fixture. They rested on that flat brass part. I had many compliments on those! I got that idea from HGTV I think.

3. Another neighbor took round glass type ornaments and suspended them from her 5 light chandelier using fishing line. Since it was clear. At various heights. Another moment when all the neighborhood women were ooohing and awwwing over that idea (several years ago). She also wrapped greens around the top so you couldn't see where the fishing line started. Clever idea I thought!

4. One more - haven't tried this yet, but you can take push pins with pearls on the end or other decorative features and push them into pillar candles. Creating any design you want to. Place them on your table with greens scattered about and you're all set. Another magazine idea I saw.

Okay next.......

Mary

PS- you all can call me Miss Martha now...... he he

[Stephanie]

God, I'm not that creative, though I like the candle idea!

I get into decorating, craft moods especially during this time of the year. I have SO MANY crafts started, like a stuffed felt Thanksgiving Day wreath that's not finished, a Christmas tree skirt, dozens of Christmas ornaments, etc.

I do enjoy making wreaths and swags - practice makes perfect. If it was up to Marty though, the walls would be bare!

[breeze]

Oh, boy - I'll be doing more learning
than teaching...! LOL! My skills are painting
and embroidery, in the craft department,
and, I cannot recall the last time that I
actually did those! And, don't even let ME
near that glue gun! :o

Great topic idea, though, Miss Mary - I think
we can all learn from each other, and, enjoy
the holidays more with handmade and
handcrafted items!

[Miss Mary]

Thanks Stephanie and Annette. Next week, we'll sew a quilt.....and the following week, we'll make our own candles. LOL To get serious, I too have had many unfinished projects Stephanie. I'd buy a pattern, cut out the pieces, sew a few together and then it would get put aside for years. Don't know why I did that! I was refinishing a coffee table in the garage. Used Formby's since it worked great on other pieces - it takes the finish off but doesn't strip it down to bare wood. Well, it turned out lousy. Then I used the white goop that's safe around kids....forget the name. It left scratches or I should say the pad did.....grr. Then it was sitting near my bumper, I pulled in and thought my car was in neutral, but I was in gear. Yup, you guessed it, I popped the clutch and right into the trim on the edge of this coffee table. Took a chunk out! So if anyone knows a good filler that looks and acts like wood, then I can fix this sorry piece of furniture (which matches 2 other pieces in the house). I'm just tempted to paint the darn thing.....my perfect example of an unfinished project.

Annette - those glue guns are tricky aren't they? I heard if you freeze the sticks then they melt slower. Just be sure if anyone reaches into your freezer, to tell them they're not edible!!!

I'm looking forward to sharing ideas too!!!

[breeze]

OH, no! I'M the one that has to remember
that they're not edible - forget the rest of
the lot!

[Stephanie]

I probably use too much glue when making wreaths because I want to make sure that it won't fall off. The best thing about that glue is that was it dries, you can literally tear it off and start again.

I made a long swag to hang on the mantle to my fireplace when I first moved to this house. It's artificial pine garland with a beaded burgundy ribbon laced through it and white and pink sparkly poinsettias glued to it. I have three coffee cup hooks sticking out of the mantle (it's not a very decorative one) and the garland hangs over them. It really dresses up the room.

[janswizard]

I work in a large office and the employees are broken up into "teams" that consist of 20 or so people. I didn't want to snub anyone at Christmas last year but knew that gifts for everyone would break me so I had to find something small I could make and hand out.

I found some sanddollars in a shell shop (also available at craft stores), cut small "branches" from an artificial Christmas cedar green and glued them to the sanddollars. I also found some artificial holly berries and was able to glue them to the greens. Then I hand stenciled "Happy Holidays" on the bottom of the sanddollar in red ink. Finally, I strung red satin ribbon through the top holes of the sanddollar and tied a secure knot at the top.

The whole project probably cost me $25 or $30 but I had enough to give to every person on my team plus extras for people from other departments to show my appreciation for the support they had given me all year.

jan

[janswizard]

By the way, thank you for this topic, Miss Mary. I'm also a beginner scrapbooker and would love to share ideas with anyone else who is interested.

[Miss Mary]

Jan - you win the prize of the day!!!! We have our first craft/ornament idea folks!!!!

Thanks for sharing that wonderful ornament idea! Not that I can just run out and find sandollars you know.....LOL But anyone could adapt your idea, with other items - like pine cones, for one example.

I worked in a large medical office years ago too and silk/fabric ties were in then (you tied them under your blouse collar into a floppy bow, we wore uniforms). This was the 80s afterall. I sewed many different patterns of ties. All sorts of prints. Then I tied each one to a candy cane and put them in a pretty basket. With a xmas bow on top. I hid this basket until gift time and when all the swapping of gifts was over (we did exchange names but some still gave you personal gifts too), I just pulled out this basket. And they went at it. The discussion of who got the red tie or the striped tie, etc., went on for a while! We've had a few reunions since those days (we were a tight group, how many doctor's offices do you know that have reunions?) and they still talk about my ties! They were very inexpensive to make.

Mary

[janswizard]

Saw this idea in craft magazine:

Strawberry Walnut Ornaments

Materials:
· Whole walnuts
· Red spray paint
· Tiny white friendship beads
· Craft glue
· Dark green felt
· Scissors
· Gold cording
· Needle

Instructions:
These ornaments can be made in large quantities. Begin by spreading walnuts out onto old newspaper for painting. If the weather’s warm, you may want to do this step outdoors to ensure ventilation when using spray paint. Spray all walnuts with red paint. Allow to dry thoroughly. You may need to repeat this step to ensure all sides of walnuts are covered.

Using green felt, cut out “leaves” for the top of your walnut. Leaves should be a rounded shape with jagged “zigzag” edges. They should be just large enough to cover the top of the walnut. Using gold cording, thread needle and draw into center of the rounded leaf. Draw back up and knot, leaving a loop of thread, which will be used to hang your finished ornament. The side with the knot will be the side you glue to the walnut. Glue leaves into place on top of walnuts and allow to dry.

Using craft glue, carefully take small white beads and glue onto painted walnut, spaced about a centimeter or so apart (think of a natural strawberry and don’t glue seeds too close together). It may be easiest to glue a few “seeds” on at a time and allow to dry before continuing. This will ensure they do not fall off as you finish each area of the walnut. Once the seeds are set into place, you’ve got a finished “strawberry” to hang on the tree.

[janswizard]

Throughout the year, I always look for discounted spices at the Dollar Store. And since I'm fortunate to have a good sized garage with lots of storage space, I also have a habit of saving mid-sized jars that contained peanut butter or jelly. With a can of enameled spray paint, I get to work spray painting the lids to hide the manufacturer's information; leaving me a jar with a brightly painted top. Then I fill them with assorted dry drink mixes or a handmade potpourri like below:

Holiday Spice Potpourri

4 Oranges
4 Lemons
1/2 c Whole cloves
1/2 c Whole allspice
10 Cinnamon Sticks, broken
10 Bay leaves, crumbled

Using a vegetable peeler, peel fruit carefully, removing only the peel, not any of the white pith. Cut or tear into one inch pieces.
Spread peel on paper towel lined pan.
Place in preheated oven to 175, or set oven to WARM.
Dry in oven for 1 1/2 hours, tossing occasionally. Peels should be leathery and/or slightly crunchy.
Spread peels on dry paper towels and let air dry for 24 hours.
Combine with remaining ingredients.
Fill jars with mixture.

To use: remove lid to fragrance a room. OR put one Tblsp into a jar and fill jar with boiling water to release fragrance.

[janswizard]

Christmas Brooches

1 cup flour
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup salt
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon oil
Food coloring

Mix together the flour, water, salt, cream of tartar, oil, and food coloring.
Stir over medium heat until smooth. Remove from pan and knead until blended smooth. Place in plastic bag or airtight container when cooled. This will last several days in refrigerator.

Roll the mixture like you would a pie or cookie dough. To make brooch, use cookie cutters that are Christmas-shapes (stars, snowmen, etc.) Before they have a chance to airdry, press pins into backs of brooches (buy the pins at a craft store). ** When they are totally dry, paint them with your favorite Christmas colors or decorate with beads and buttons.

** You can also use a straw to open a small hole at the top to later hang a ribbon through and use this as an ornament.

[Guest]

Well I am in the progess of cutting out 24 wooden candy canes - they are bout 3 feet tall each. I have cut them out. Have to sand and primer them before I can paint them. Plan to use them in my yard and string lights from them on the ground. If they turn out - I might put a few up on Ebay to sell.

I have an arts and crafts questions - I would like to dry apples, oranges and make decorations with them - does anyone know how to do this in a quick and efficient way?

Sorry I couldn't get to the topic sooner Miss Mary - been in Corpus for Govt Finance Officers Conference. Another co-worker and me go the few - so I'm feeling pretty crappy right now. I'll add more when I feel better.

Patricia

[DaylilyDawn]

Well I just finished sewing a medival lady's dress and a litttle musteteer outfit for my daughter and grandson. I caught a cold from my grandson after starting on the medival dress and jhad to work on it while I felt like a mack truck ran over me. I will not be sewing anything else for a while.

[BEER980]

I can offer help or ideas on the outdoor lights. I had 8,000 last year and should hit 10,000 this year.

[Miss Mary]

Beer980 - maybe you can give us amateurs a 101 Crash Course in Outdoor Lighting Seminar type thing? I now have a very detailed diagrahm, of what strand goes on which shrub, into which 3 way plug. But the first few years I'd finish, lights looked great but a week later, half would stay on. Very frustrating. Then hubby showed me how to string them together, using 3 or less strands off of a plug. Will he put them up, oh no! He coaches well though. LOL

Seriously though. Explain in layman's terms the best way to connect all of these strands so they don't burn out! Thanks. And if long strands - 300 or more - are best over stringing together 100's.

Mary

[Miss Mary]

With the holidays upon us very soon now, I thought I'd bump this topic up a bit.

Went shopping the other day to small, very quaint old town called LaGrange, KY. Gift shops, pottery, cafe's, deli's, xmas cottage, tearoom, etc. Each store was different! I could have bought so much stuff but had to keep my spending down......besides I have a ton of xmas decorations already! But in one shop, the owner displayed items area artists created. Many, many ornaments, from ordinary household products. One was burned out light bulbs. These were painted, strung with wire and decorative ribbon. Each one was unique - some with holly, candy canes, or words - happy holidays. We thought they were so neat. My daughter got one. Now she wants me to save our old light bulbs....LOL

Mary