Corner News-December 18, 2015

December 18, 2015December 17, 20152 Comments

Yay! My last Friday for a couple of weeks! Of course, I already have too much planned for my vacation and probably most of it won’t get done. Oh well! I will just enjoy the time I have.

In other Corner News, Haley and I moved the Christmas Tree to a new corner this week! Ha! Have you ever done this? Since we put up the fireplace, I rearranged the room and then there didn’t seem to be a good place for the tree. I had it one place and it finally drove me so crazy I had to move it. It’s much better now! 🙂 (and so am I!)

christmas tree

Here are a couple of my thrift store finds this week. I also found a Nate Berkus tray for $5.00, and a new lampshade. This metal basket with a liner is filled with silvery leaves. Can’t wait to see what else will work in here!

thrift store finds

I had my husband cut these wood slices last year and have used them so many different way. I hot glued tacks to the back so they can be rearranged easily. Here are a couple more ideas. I filled a glass candle holder with some ornaments and added a couple of Turkmenistan Camels to the display.

Christmas Woodchip Joy

I hope your holiday is filled with joy and time spent with family and friends!

Sunshine and Blessings

Last Minute Gift! Orange, Cinnamon, & Clove Simmer Pot

December 17, 2015December 16, 201514 Comments

I love the smell the cinnamon! And oranges! and cloves! Here is a simple way to get these wonderful scents into your home!

These are great if you are looking for a few last minute gifts! They can be made quickly and easily. I made a few of these last year as gifts for my friends and gave one to my sister for her birthday this year. Then my sis asked me to make some for her friends as Christmas gifts! They are that good!! And so easy!

Here is what you will need:

glass jar
orange peels-I used 6 pieces for my size jar-I let them dry for a couple of days
cinnamon sticks-2 sticks broken in half
cloves-about 1 tsp.
any other goodies you like, such as cranberries, evergreen, vanilla, ect.

This is what is looks like in the pot. I use a small crock pot that I can leave on when I am home and enjoy the smell all day. You can also use a small sauce pan on the stove and let it simmer, just be sure to regularly check the water level.

I started with some glass jars from Michaels. Since these were for a group, I did them all the same, but I have used a variety of jars in the past. Mason jars or spaghetti sauce jars or any other kind work just as well. I bought a few different ribbons to tie around the top. I put a small dot of hot glue on the back to hold the ribbon and then a little more on the front so it wouldn’t slip.

I tied the ribbon different ways. Some were a bow and some just crossed over each other. I added a little bell, that I already had, to each one tied on with bakers twine or plain twine.

Here is the jar filled with yummy goodness!

Here they are, almost ready to go! I will let the orange peels dry for a couple of days, add a tag with directions and they are ready to go to their new homes. I did end up adding some cranberries too. They looked really nice with a little touch of red.

You can customize these many different ways. They would make great gifts for teachers, co-workers or anyone who needs a little extra something. Have you ever mixed together different goodies for a simmer pot? What did you use? I would love to try some different scents!

Creating Your Own Sweater Stockings

December 14, 2015December 12, 201514 Comments

The stockings were hung by the chimney in care…okay, we don’t have a chimney, but we do have a fireplace now! But I still didn’t hang the stockings there. Instead I used an old ladder for some and a new one for the others! I love how they look on the ladders with some cozy blankets thrown over. I showed you the stockings I was making for my pooches and kitties, but I thought I would give you a little more of a tutorial for them.

I started out with a pile of sweaters from a thrift store. They have a deal where you fill a handheld shopping basket and get the whole thing for $7.00. Pretty good deal! I found 7 sweaters in colors that I liked and thought would work for this project. Only 1 buck each! I looked for sweaters with a design, or pockets or buttons that I thought would add something extra to the stocking. (only 6 made it in the picture :))

Here is the stocking I used for the pattern. As you can tell, not really my style. After sewing this one, I realized I should have put the top of the stocking at the bottom of the sweater. The tops didn’t stretch out so much when I used the binding at the bottom or the neckline at the top of the sweater.

I’m going to be using a different sweater for the rest of the tutorial, because it was an oops. I traced the pattern on the outside of the sweater instead of the inside. 😦 But it still ended up working out! I actually got 2 stockings from the sweater. I think it was actually a dress. Notice how the top of the stocking will be on the neck of the sweater.

After tracing the pattern it was time to sew. My favorite thing! NOT! But I did it anyway! I sewed right along the line I had drawn. Just don’t sew the top! That is your opening to put the gifts in!

Once the sewing is done, cut around the edge. I cut just to the outside of the stitching.

Here is the stocking all cut out.

I turned the stocking right side out, which was actually inside out, but whatever! Then I took a piece of the binding from the neck that was left over and cut a little strip off.

This will make my loop for hanging. I sewed it on with the machine, but it could easily be hand-stitched too.

The collar of the sweater had some buttons on it so I cut them off and added them to the front of the stocking where the diamonds of the argyle met.

And there it is! It doesn’t looks to bad being inside out! I hung this one in my bedroom.

Here are a couple of the others hanging by the dining room tree. I finished 8 of them in all! If I can make these, anybody can! I love how they look warm and cozy plus you can make them to match any decor,

Thanks for following along! Hope you have a wonderful week!

Soup Party Table Setting

December 10, 20154 Comments

As the weather is changing and getting colder, there is nothing better than having a nice bowl of warm soup. And sometimes, people have a soup party where they invite others over to bring a type of soup to share with everyone. And even though I will not be hosting a soup party this year, I wanted to show what my table setting would be if I hosting a soup party.

It is very simple, I know. But it looks elegant.

I have grey place mats at each place setting. I have added a bowl, a small plate for bread, a small mug, and a soup spoon. It looks so nice!

I added a nice bowl that has woodsy stuff in it. My roommate Hannah put this together, so I don’t know where she bought everything from, but it looks really pretty!

The next thing I added was a glass cylinder full of colorful disco balls. I bought the disco ball ornaments from Grocery Outlet for $1 a package. I added a book underneath the cylinder to add height. Plus all of the colors look cool when I take the picture with flash.

The last thing I added was this decoupaged candlestick that I’ve shown you before. It goes great with just about anything that I decorate with. It adds a lot of variety in the heights of the centerpieces.

So that is it. That is my table setting. Nothing super fancy, but it does look very nice and inviting.

Red Truck Story and Wrapping Gifts

December 7, 2015December 6, 20158 Comments

Many, many moons ago, when I was a little girl, my dad owned a Forest Green Ford F100. I sure wish he still had it today! I would paint it Apple Green and have it all decked out. I would wave goodbye to him in the morning when he left for work. By the way, my mom made me that nightgown. 🙂

Several years ago, my mom purchased a similar truck as a gift for him. It is red, but it is the same model. I used it under my clear lamp with some snow and bottlebrush trees. I love how nostalgic it is!

It looks great with the tree in the back, ready to be taken home and decorated for Christmas!

Do you see the fireplace in the background? Love it!!

Now on to the rest of the post.

It is my friend, L’s, birthday today. Happy birthday! So I put together this gift for her. I’m posting a little later today so she won’t see this until after I give her the present. Sneaky, huh?! I made a couple of things and picked up a few things at the store. So simple really. This would work great for any occasion.

You can’t go wrong with chocolate and a candle.

I made this tassel key ring for her using purple (one of her favorite colors) embroidery floss. I added a dog tag and a couple of charms.

I also made her this sign using her favorite verse. I used different fonts, printed it out on the computer, traced over it on the board and then wrote it in with Sharpie.

I added black and white polka-dot tissue and some shredded paper to the box. I placed all the goodies inside. Then I wrapped the box in black and white paper, added sparkly black tulle, and finished the top with a red ornament with the initial ‘L.’

I didn’t want it too Christmasy, since it’s for a birthday, but I really like how it looks so festive! This would definitely work for a Christmas gift too!