Christmas and Pink

 

I was going to title this blog post "a pair of perfect pines in pink" because I love alliteration but, sadly, they are actually fir trees! I was so fortunate to receive these trees (plus 2 other items that I'll be sharing soon!) from King of Christmas. 

The minute I saw them I knew that I wanted to put them in my thrifted vintage urns and flank the fireplace. I wanted them to look like there were piles of pink ornaments surrounding them but I knew I had to find a way to secure the ornaments so that the whole set up was Cooper proof!

The solution was an "ornament collar" to go around the base of the tree. It would hold the ornaments in place and still look like they were piled in the urns. 

First I placed my trees, they have a  weighted burlap wrapped base, in the urns and filled in around them with discarded packing materials. Once the trees were secure I cut a piece of coat hanger wire and formed it into a loose circle 

I gathered up all the different pink ornaments and a few gold ones too and randomly threaded them on my wire circle. I used a variety of sizes and finishes. 

Then I simply slid the ornament filled wire around the base of the tree like a 'collar' and nestled it in the urn. I twisted the end of my wire together to make sure it was secure and wouldn't slide off. 

I added white cotton batting to look like fluffy snow and to fill in and hide the wire. You could also do this with greenery. I did add some fresh magnolia because I can't decorate anything without using a bit of magnolia! It looked so festive that all I added was a pink bow on the top. 

The King of Christmas trees come with an option to plug them in or convert to battery operated. I opted to use the clever battery pack which is tucked in the back of the urn under the cotton batting "snow." They have a timer so I don't have to worry about accessing the battery pack or unplugging. They'll just come on every night for everyone to enjoy - including Cooper. You can see all the details in this Instagram video.

I'll be sharing the rest of my KOC products soon but be sure to check out last year's posts about the KOC tree in my Library for more Christmas inspiration.

Marbleized Mushrooms? What's Next?

There seems to be no end in sight when it comes to marbleizing items around here!

Today it is mushrooms - wooden ones, not the real thing.

I used the same technique to marbleize my wooden pieces as I did the Christmas ornaments. Full DIY here. You can see a video of the mushrooms here.

I used my favorite Rustoleum 2x spray paint in Berry, Blossom White and Coral to create my mushrooms. You can find all kinds of wooden shapes to marbleize but I chose mushrooms this time.

I painted my mushrooms white before dipping. Here they are drying under Cooper's careful supervision :)

I had to go back and touch up the stems a little after the marbleizing dried. 

I added screw eyes and fishing line so I could hang them on my new King of Christmas Noble Fir tree.

I'm loving the warm colored swirls on the mushrooms with the blue and white marbleized ornaments.

Be sure to follow along. I have a few more ornament DIYs planned for this tree in our Library. 

December!! How Did That Happen??

 We know it's coming but somehow it's still a bit shocking when December 1 shows up! And now it is already 5 days in, only 2 more shopping Saturdays until Christmas!! It is moving so quickly! And I don't seem to be :)  I'm not sure why I haven't gotten more decorating done but now that I see the date I am on it!! Are you finished or, like me, amazed that it's flying by??

We just haven't hit our stride yet. We never start until after Thanksgiving but we are lagging more than usual. We've always been motivated to get the house ready for our "kick off the season" Ladies Mimosa party on the first Saturday of December but for the second year in a row we are unable to host. We have a conflict this year and we are bummed! 

Since 2 heads are better than one, I'm sharing a couple of my bust planters decked out for the holidays. 

I'll be sharing more "in the moment" Christmas decorating over on Instagram.

 I hope you'll join me.