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Holiday Projects

Decorating and Craft Ideas

ornament hanger

Angel ornament hanger

Here's what you need:

2-3 large ornaments, preferably ones that are flat on the back
2 coordinating ribbons, about 3 yards each
scissors, wire, hot glue gun

Lay out the ornaments as you want them on the ribbon. Cut one length of ribbon about 12" longer than the ornaments plus the desired space between. Fold under the edges of one end to form a point. Hot glue in place. Cut two lengths of the coordinating ribbon about 3 " shorter and finish with points. Cut two pieces of the first ribbon about 3" shorter than the last two, fold under points.
Lay the ribbons out as shown in the photo and hot glue them in place at the top. Glue the ornaments on the center ribbon.
Run a piece of wire through the top of the streamers and form a loop to make a hanger.
Make a bow with the two ribbons and glue it in place at the top.

musical grouping

High Impact Decorating!

Grouping like or related items always has more punch than displaying them separately or in a random manner. This grouping on a piano has a musical theme: carolers, instruments, Christmas cards with music. It's a simple idea, but it's very effective. So go through your ornament collection, gathering up the ones that carry out a theme and find a way to display them as a group. It will make a much more exciting statement!

chandelier

Deck the Chandeliers!

Here's what you'll need:

artificial evergreen garland
Christmas balls
2 coordinating ribbons, preferably 1" to 1-1/2" wide
acrylic or glass icicles
scissors, wire cutters, wire, ornament hooks

Cut a length of garland to fit the inside arms of the fixture. Twist the ends together and lay the circle of greenery on the chandelier arms. Tie small bows and leave enough wire to add the christmas balls. Attach a bow and ornament to each arm of the fixture. Weave both ribbons loosely through the greenery. Tie several small bows with long streamers and cluster them at the base of the center. Add icicles with ornament hooks.

card placemats

Recycling Memories

Got a stack of old Christmas cards you can't bear to part with because they're too pretty? Make placemats! You'll need:

a roll of clear Contact paper
scissors, ruler and masking tape

Work on a surface such as a laminate counter or table, OR work on a sheet of poster board. With masking tape, mark off a rectangle on the table or poster board 17-1/2" wide X 12-1/2" high. This will be your layout guide.

Cut the backs off the cards you want to use. Place them as desired within the rectanglar template. Overlapping is ok. A variety of sizes makes a more interesting design. You might also wish to add stickers or scrap pictures as filler. Use bits of tape to hold cards in place on the back side as you decide on their positioning.

When you're satisfied with your layout, cut 2 pieces of contact paper about 19" long and peel the backing off of one. Carefully lay the contact paper over the face of the cards, pressing into place. Turn it over and cover with the remaining piece of contact paper. Press the edges very hard to seal. Trim so that there is about 1/8" of sealed contact paper all around. (You might want to do this with a razor cutter and a metal straight edge.)

This is a great project for ANY paper scraps, other greeting cards, children's art work, magazine clippings...and they're very tough as long as they're stored flat.



This page copyrighted M K McClure 2001. For more information regarding my designs, click here:

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