Week 52 :: A Christmas Project
In case you couldn’t tell, I cheated a little with the last couple posts. Clearly, it hasn’t been a week since the last 52 Weeks post, but there’s something to be said about starting a new year fresh, so I’m skipping ahead (it’s my blog and I can if I want to).
I wanted to end this blogging challenge with a little project I did that I’m so proud of – a Christmas wreath and tree decorations I did for my sister (tree photos above, wreath photos below). This was such an eleventh hour project (I literally whipped it together two days before Christmas because of the renovations), and it turned out so much better than I could have hoped for.
With the rush to get it done, I didn’t stop to take any prep photos, but it was pretty simple to do and it should be pretty easy to see what I did in case you’d like to do it yourself next year (or, should I say, later this year). I started with store-bought fruit garlands (I found it at Michael’s for those interested), a pre-lit fake tree, and a real wreath. I grabbed pine cones, a can of spray glitter in gold, some floral wire, and wire cutters. I used one and a half garlands on the wreath, and about five on the tree. I had more garlands, and if I do this again, I’d use more, but time was a factor.
Upon closer inspection, I realized that each garland contained individual bunches wrapped to a longer strand; so, I simply unwrapped them, then re-wrapped them where I wanted on the wreath and the tree branches. I then sprayed the pine cones with the spray glitter, let them dry, then wrapped them in place with floral wire. If you’ve never used spray glitter before, it’s just like spray paint, but the paint is clear and has glitter. You’ll need a well-ventilated area and a box to spray in. I got about three coats per pine cone out of one little can, and I used about 50 or so pine cones of various sizes. I will say it’s probably best to give every one a first coat before doing a second coat; I didn’t, and my last batch came out not so sparkly (so I just put them up top or in the back where no one would notice).
I went this route because the regular ornaments were packed away in storage. The benefit of this was that everything was wired into place and secured, so we could move them around without breaking anything. I should also say that while I’ve decorated trees before, this was my first year doing a wreath all by myself. It’s such a simple thing, but I’m so proud of this little project. It turned out better than I hoped (sometimes, I’m not so good with three dimensions or anything of a sculptural nature), and was very subtle and earthy. Take a look:
Not bad for a first timer, huh?
I haven’t yet decided if I want to pursue another year-long blogging challenge, but I can say that this one was great; I would highly recommend 52 Weeks to Blogging Your Passion to anyone out there that needs a little extra push. It got me thinking and blogging again, which I wasn’t sure I had in me a year ago. So, many thanks for following along for the ride! I appreciate every single comment and email, especially since it’s not always easy to put your thoughts out there for consumption (it’s a little nerve-wracking, so the kind words mean a lot to me).
This post is part of a series for my 52 Weeks challenge, inspired by the 52 Weeks to Blogging Your Passion ebook by Tara Gentile. Grab a copy and join me!
