decorating

Christmas ‘Fantle’ 2011 | Mixed-Media Decor

December 8, 2011

Welcome to Anna K. Originals! So glad that you took the time to click over and stop by for a visit. I’m linking up with the Christmas Mantle Link Party hosted by the ever-creative Beth at Home Stories A-Z. Thanks for hosting this fun link up, Beth!

Having said that, I'm sure some of you may be wondering why it says "Christmas Fantle" in my title instead of Christmas Mantle. Well, I don't have a fireplace, but I did manage to rescue a solid wood mantle piece from the side of the road some time ago and now we have a fake mantle ('fantle'). We had it hung in our dining area during a recent remodel. Now on to the pictures!

Did anyone else go into Pinterest overload with Christmas decorating ideas? Yeah, me too. It is a total treasure trove of ideas, projects, and inspiration...but, eventually, I had to pull myself away and take a look at what I already had on hand. And I'm digging what I came up with! I still look at it and see 16 different things I'd like to add or try, however, I have a family that likes to eat occasionally and other things that need our money more.

My oldest son said it looks like a cool forest. That made me smile because that's kinda what I was aiming for - a take on the Christmas scenes/villages that everyone loves so much, just with a mixed-media twist. Here is a quick run down of what went into the making of our Christmas Fantle~

Star (purchased a few years ago)
Cone Trees (Styrofoam/Paper covered in felt, old book pages, yarn, or paint)
Little bird houses ($1 at Michael's)
Yarn-wrapped foam balls (left over from our Christmas Tree)
Wooden "NOEL" ornament (purchased a few years ago)
White scarf ($5 from Big Lots)
Old books and other items to lift objects up (hidden under scarf)

The tree on the left (above) is covered with vintage dictionary pages and a sparkly, bright green ribbon. I like the way the shiny ribbon and aged paper contrasts against one another. The yarn-wrapped tree on the right was originally a Styrofoam cone that I cut into three sections, wrapped with green yarn, and stuck through with a bamboo skewer. It's resting on a glass votive that I filled with neutral colored felt to give it the feeling of a pot. I originally had the white scarf on a table in the living room, but the snow-like effect was soo cool that it was moved to the fantle.

Ribbon and felt leaf shapes cover the two cones in the background and are flanked by more yarn ornaments and another simple birdhouse. I thought it was important to bring in simple elements to balance the colors and textures going on in the rest of the fantle. The bluish-green tree that you see is one of my mixed-media creations. I used layers of tissue and paint, with strips of sheet music for garland and a white gel pen for this unique tree. One of those paper mache cone forms from Michael's is the base.

Last, but certainly not least, is the message of NOEL.

Many thanks to all who stopped by and Merry Christmas!

Blessings,

Anna K.

Tagged being creative, Christmas Decorating, Christmas Mantle Link Up 2011 Filed Under Christmas, decorating, Handmade Christmas Decorations, Holidays, Uncategorized 1 Comment

Seaside Christmas Mantle

December 20, 2010

I know. I KNOW. Y’all have probably looked at Christmas decorating posts on your favorite blogs for weeks now.

I, too, have been one of the many who’ve partaken of those awesome and inspiring posts. There are some seriously talented folks out there!

Simplicity was the name of the game for this year’s Christmas decor at our house. With a curious toddler in the house, the Hubs and I decided that our living room tree didn’t need ornaments. Lights and some ribbon for garland are all that grace our tree this year. We like it and the little one has left the tree alone. Thank Heaven!

Our “mantle” in the kitchen was where my creative side got to play.

Natural elements ~ Twigs from the yard, moss, burlap, starfish (in the shadow box), sand-filled ball ornaments

For some sparkle ~ Beaded garland, white and silver ball ornaments, shiny green ribbon

This twig arrangement was part of my Fall mantle decor. With the addition of some white ball ornaments, burlap trim and a bright green bow it’s all dressed up for Christmas.

A couple Christmases ago I filled a few clear ornaments with beach sand and iridescent glitter. I loved them so much that I’ve used them ever since. The fun part about them?

They stay wherever I put them because the sand weighs them down!

{Comes in handy when they’re up on a shelf.}

I cut out a scalloped garland from some scrap burlap. I like how it adds contrast to the shiny beaded garland that I picked up for a few bucks from Wally World.

To continue the burlap and green to the other side of the mantle, I wrapped a white candle with those elements…a dab of hot glue was all that was needed to make them stick.

White and silver ornaments with touches of green moss fill up one of my favorite glass containers and add a little something extra to my glass pedestal where I placed the white candle.

***

Like I said, simplicity was the name of the game. The only thing I purchased especially for this was the silvery-blue beaded garland. Everything else came from what I already had on hand. Love that!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

♥ Merry Christmas!

Filed Under being creative, Christmas, decorating, Handmade Christmas Decorations 5 Comments

Hearth and Home: Being creative around the house

October 14, 2010

Sometimes my creative energies turn toward hearth and home.

Well, mantle and home in my case.

We don’t have a fireplace but we do have a “rescued” wooden mantle that we use for display…or just a place to put something out of our toddler’s reach.

Anyway….what was I saying?

Ah, yes. Mantle and home.

What with the holiday season around the corner and an upcoming visit from the Hubby’s fam around Thanksgiving, I’ve been snagging moments here and there to add some Fall touches around the house.

Pumpkins are my fave way to bring that Fall feeling to life. The color and the shape bring instant fun and life to any arrangement, porch step or table centerpiece that they’re included in.

Keeping in mind that I have a very curious -and tall- toddler in the house, I set out to make a movable centerpiece of sorts.

Materials included~

{clear glass container}

{bags of dried beans}

{moss}

{mini pumpkins}

~The hardest part of this was cutting open the plastic bags that the dried beans were in. I used two different colored beans and layered them.

~Once I’d reached the height I wanted with the beans, I layered in some moss that was leftover from another project.

~Topped off with some cheerful mini pumpkins, this project was done.

This only took me a few minutes to do and I’m quite pleased with the results. I like that this is open to variations. I can see it using strings of beaded garland and glass ball ornaments for Christmas or even Easter candy and some decorative (faux) Easter eggs perched on some paper grass….Oh, the possibilities!

So far, I’ve used it on my entry table, my kitchen table and even as a centerpiece at my Dad’s birthday party.

When I said I wanted a “movable” centerpiece, I meant it!

As for keeping it away from the toddler~

So far, so good.

Blessings,

Filed Under Being a Mom, being creative, decorating, E-man, Fall, Family 1 Comment