Themed Holiday Decorating....get ready!

Ok so it is more than a month away, and I have held off blogging about this as long as I could.. but now is the time to start thinking about your theme for your holiday decorating...I enjoy changing it up from year to year, which requires me to do a little shopping early to pick up much needed items to complete a look...sometimes its the thrift store, crafty stores or my very fave local Anthro store for inspiration....

So this year I have narrowed it down to three...

"Red, White and Handmade..."

This is a look I tend to default to, because it is easy, and seems to work well when your home is decorated similar..so fun and cute!

Anthropologie felt tree

Ikea

Some of these adorable lights

and paper items can

be found at Ikea. One of

my fave places for gift wrap!

"Have yourself a shiny little Xmas"

I have always liked this look, and it looks great if you have a lot of white in your living room...

This Anthro ornament was the inspiration for the next theme...

"Totally Retro Christmas..."

This is my goal theme this year, who knows if I will find the time, but the feeling of

nostalgia that retro decorations brings is whimsical ...

Search through thrift stores, and your garage for some retro items to carefully

blend in with your modern items for a great look!

As you can see from these DIY projects, collecting ornaments

at garage sales all summer pays off... 

Now for the DIY craft of the week..

Snow Globes

This is one kids love...

If you are not feeling crafty no worries

you can pick one up at your local

Anthropolgie Store

Almost any jar works for this project: Baby-food, pimiento, and olive jars are good choices. Look for plastic or ceramic figurines (metal ones are prone to rust) at flea markets and hobby or model-railroad shops. Synthetic evergreen tips are available at many floral-supply stores. You will also need oil-based enamel paint, sandpaper, epoxy, distilled water, glitter, and glycerin (available at drugstores).

If the jar lids are not in seasonal colors already, paint them with oil-based enamel paint. Sand the inside of the lid until the surface is rough. With clear-drying epoxy, adhere the figurine to the inside of the lid, and let the epoxy dry.

Fill the jar almost to the top with distilled water; add a pinch of glitter and a dash of glycerin to keep the glitter from falling too quickly. Don't add too much, or the glitter will stick to the bottom of the jar when it's flipped. Screw on the lid tightly, being careful not to dislodge the figurine. Turn the jar over and back again -- and let it snow.

And the good news is, your snow globe will work in any of the above themes!