I'm not going to lie...a properly prepared fruitcake is actually ridiculously good. I digress.
While decorating for the holidays is always more or less enjoyable, sometimes the high prices of all those decorations are not…
But who says you have to shell out unreasonable amounts of cash in order to make your house look like this?
Here are 7 easy as pie holiday DIY ideas. And yes, I’ll stop with the food metaphors.
1. Reuse Those Frappuccino Bottles!
Seriously. Don't throw them out. Remove all stickers, wash the bottles, and throw some garlands, glitter, candles, whatever inside. That's that!
2. Sparkle Lanterns
Grab some mason jars (or those handy Frappuccino bottles), paint the inside with clear glass paint, toss some loose glitter into the jar or bottle, seal it, shake it, and remove any extra glitter. Leave the jars out to dry before spicing them up with tea lights or led strings.
3. Mantlers
Antlers for your mantle! Use those weird tree branch scraps they give away at Christmas tree shops! Shape them into something that resembles antlers (just layer them over each other in a line) and secure with wire, twine, ribbon, whatever you desire. You could get crazy and also add some lights, hang some stockings, or even use your mantlers as a table centerpiece with candles thrown in.
4. Hide Decorations in Plain Sight
If you're like me, you never have space for anything. And, if you're like me, you tend to buy all your holiday décor the second it rolls into stores…even if that happens to be November first and you haven't even put away the Halloween decorations. So, store those ornaments in kooky places!
Get crafty with the small stuff!
String up lights all over your room…or all over your house...or all over everything. Hint, hint: Any heavy object makes a great paperweight or bookend. I’m not even sure what this owl is supposed to be used for, but this ornament makes it look like the most adorable little wizard-owl to ever exist.
5. Customized letters
Get your hands on those wooden letters (easily found at Michaels or any craft store), and paint them whatever colors you desire. Make sure to have newspapers, wallpaper, or any kind of paper/photos ready. Trace the letters onto the paper, cut the paper and glue it to your wooden letters. Finally, finish with Mod-Podge or any crafting sealant.
6. Not So Basic Hot Chocolate Gifters
We've all seen those little jars filled with hot cocoa mix and tied in a million and one ribbons and bows. But it's not so often that one lays eyes on a hot chocolate landscape. Thankfully, creating one of these is absurdly simple. Throw any kind of cocoa mix inside a mason jar, then, using melted white chocolate, "glue" sugar snowflakes on the insides of the jar for a much less basic jar of hot cocoa.
7. A Warm and Cozy Wreath
Create a wreath using linen cutouts, glued together to make a softer take on a seasonal classic.
8. Painted Pine Cones
The possibilities are endless with this one. Paint the whole pinecone, or go for just the edges, tipped in ombre colors.
9. Wrap Your Presents In Anything
Literally anything. Newspapers, trendy magazine pages, anything goes. Hint: buy blank tags and doodle on them, add glitter to them, glue whatever you want on them... basically, personalize your tags as well!
10. Pine Cone Trees
Paint a small flowerpot gold, silver, any metallic color or regular color that your heart desires. Find a pine cone, paint it dark green, and yes, sure, why not drown it in glitter as well? Once dried, glue the pine cone into the pot; finally, top it with a silver star...or don't. It's your call!
11. Knockoff Anthropologie Garlands
Possibly a bit more time consuming, but definitely worth it, these whimsical little garlands can be strung up all year round.
