Christmas Cookies!

One of the best Christmas traditions is Christmas cookies, we always make a whole bunch of different kinds for the friends and neighbors. And who doesn't love to get or give Christmas cookies! Here are some new chic ways of packaging those cookies as gifts instead of the usual paper plate.

Sometimes one is enough so stick a big gourmet cookie in a cd holder! You can find these cheap anywhere and with a pretty little label they look professional!

So I have a ton of these packaging tubes and with a little wrapping paper they can become perfect holders for the cookies.
This is just a box but create some compartments and you have an interesting little display!
2 gifts in 1! A cute little ice cream cup to hold the cookies. Wrap with cellophane and ribbon and viola!

This idea is just a little obvious, but I like it just the same!

Advent Calenders, It's not to Late!

This is a quick project since it's already the 4 of December and because I have to go make 2 casseroles, a fruit salad, some baked brie and a red velvet cake all tonight for the 2 Christmas parties we have to go to tomorrow! It's the most wonderful time of the year!

OK so go to http://studio5.ksl.com/and click on crafts.
It's really easy, it's a pizza pan and plastic cups with lids that you fill with a treat. The website has a link so you can print out those cut circles numbers and the rest of the instructions!

Have fun! I'm going to make one tomorrow! Sometime after one Christmas party and before the other.

12 DAYS OF CHIC'NESS!

Welcome to the 12 Days of Chic'ness! For the month of December I will be posting a Christmas decorating tip, idea, project, receipt, handmade gifts, ect...! It will fall on the even days, therefore making it 12 days by December 24! See how that works!

The First Christmas Chic'ness is Trees! Since it's usually the first thing you put up, if you haven't already! Here are some handmade ornament ideas if you want to add a personal touch or get the kids involved!
I love Silhouettes! This tree is so charming! You can make your own silhouettes of the family and put them in frames or mount to card stock. Take a profile picture against a blank wall and use the magic of Photoshop or Adobe to create! Hang with ribbon.
TIP: Everything looks better hung with ribbon!
Here is little more of a rustic tree, but it doesn't have to be that way. These are vegetable seed packets turned into ornaments! So clever, but I think using flower seed packets would be more my style and little more chic. Notice the tree stand, different. I like it. To do, line the bottom of a galvanized bucket (of anything container big enough) with bricks then put the tree stand on top and top with moss.

WARNING: Soooo easy and cute (and cheap!) OLD CHRISTMAS CARDS! Save them or buy on clearance for next year. To make the garland, cut circles out of the cards and then use a heavy string and stick it to back with stickers! You can find the stickers at any office supply store.

I've seen just Cookie Cutters on trees before, but because I'm a spaz about paper and think you can use it for anything I thought lining the inside of the cookie cutter is fun and you have an instant frame (and gift)!

I like this a lot, it's totally me. Put branches in a vase and hang stuff. So easy and chic. I would recommend like they did here and do a collection of the same ornament.

FOR THE KIDS

This looks bigger than it actually is. These are just regular sized peppermints put together with frosting (or glue) with a red candy such as a red hot or .....something red, you know check the candy isle, I'm sure there's something!

LOVE IT! Button ornaments. Looks harder then it actually is. Using pipe cleaner create a loop (for the ribbon) and then fill it with buttons. Obviously use the bigger ones for belly's and hat brims. To create arms or legs wrap another pipe cleaner and put in place of a button, then continue on with the buttons!

Hope you enjoy! If you have questions or need help feel free to email me!

Thanksgiving Centerpieces

It's that time of year again! Time to get those creative juices flowing and create a show stopping center piece for your Thanksgiving table. One that will get oohs and awhs from all your guest (and maybe even that jealous sister... or brother, I don't judge).
Ok so take some time to be inspired, there's a lot to look at!
above: This is my favorite. A simple, modern center piece, for more of a elegant dinner.

Using baby gourds, put them on tops of old balustrades. This would be great if you had a lot of tables you needed centerpieces for.
Or... float them in water!
Piling them in glass containers with vines is simple and great for the buffet style dinner.

This would even been fun outside on a table on your porch to welcome your guests, or inside on a side table.
The gourd used for these 2 projects is called a Swan Neck gourd. I love how it's used as a vase for casual or formal look.

The gold and the candles are a bit much for me, but could still be tasteful in the right setting.

Gourds cut out to hold objects is always a favorite of mine. Really easy to do!

Candy holders! Just dry out for 24 hrs and line the inside with saran wrap if your a little eerie of the rind.
This place setting is simple with a gourd and a garden marker to hold the name of the guest.

Have a Happy (and beautiful) Thanksgiving!

courtesy of BHG.

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Thank you!

Look for the craft project of the month coming this weekend! It's a good one!

More Halloween Goodness!

This "Chic It Yourself" project comes from a reader and friend. She went all creative on us! Here is her fireplace, she printed these letters off the computer, cut and aged them with a marker and then strung them up with ribbon. To create a "haunted" center piece, she again went to the computer and printed out these images from the internet and framed them.

These candles are chic'd! (what? that's a word) She went to D.I. (a thrift store here in Utah) and found these candles sticks and spray painted them white and black and added contrasting candles to each!

GORGEOUS!! Love the display! The pumpkins in the cake stand, great! Lets not forget the table runner! It's just printed damask paper, brilliant!

OK so I was reminded by a reader that I never posted my old house from last year's Halloween (because the blog didn't exist, K) so here are a few highlights.

Remember when I said I loved pumpkins? Well, I grew them in my front yard so when fall came I would have vines of pumpkins! That's love.

This is a cake I made, not super professional. I got the cat template out of a magazine, it was suppose to be black but by the time I decided to make it I couldn't find black sugar anywhere. But the green worked, you can still find this template, I believe, at Country Living Mag's website.

Ok, so this what I did this year, I'm kind of regretting that I even posted it. But I found these cute wood circles and hung them from a dresser door, The End. Next year, when we're in a house, I promise to have more of a Halloween Extravaganza!!

I LOVE Decorating for Halloween

So I should tell you that I'm sad. Sad because Halloween is my favorite holiday to decorate for ( I know,weird) and I currently don't have a house of my own to decorate. SOoo.. why do I love Halloween? Um can you say, Orange, Black and White, and Chartreuse! The best colors ever created! OK, so some of the best colors. I should mention that I only like the "classy" Halloween decor, not the blood and guts! Tacky. I should also mention that....I LOVE Fall! (if I was a computer nerd I would have put "I HEART Fall" with a little heart, but I can't)
You may have already checked out some of the pictures below that were featured on MSN.com on Sunday, but I had to post a few of them, they're great ideas!

TABLE TOP
Take small pumpkins and using double-sided tape put ribbons around them and group them in a bowl!

Cut off the stems, add a candle and some glass to create a hurricane lantern! Kind of tricky if you don't already have the glass!

Hallow out the pumpkin and then spray with matte black paint. Then use a spoon to scrape off the paint creating shapes! Stuff with fresh flowers or twigs from your local craft store.

FIRE PLACES

I love the spilling out look of the painted pumpkins. It's so easy to paint pumpkins, my mom had us doing it before we were 10. It's an easier clean up!

White pumpkins are very 'in' right now. You could paint or use vinyl lettering to create this, and spray paint some ivy black for the vines.

ENTRY WAY

So easy, stick some twigs in the top of a pumpkin. I did this last year, I found the easiest way was to drill smaller holes in the pumpkin then work the branches in. You could also just use a crafting pumpkin from a craft store.

Cut some bats out of black or printed paper and hang! Again, white pumpkins, some candles, and a bowl of candy complete the look!

These are great! Create the silloutes by cutting out scary creatures out of paper and mounting them behind a candle (not to close!) or if you can find Halloween ornaments those work best. A bent clothes hanger or even a fondue fork can hold them up, or buy a small picture holder at your local store.

Untraditional! Have a lot of butternut squash you don't know what to do with (besides make soup) turn them into scary Jack-o-lanterns! The elongated face gives a great spooky look!
courtesy of Marthastewart.com


I would love to see how you decorate! Send me some pictures if you want! At

staceymangum@gmail.com