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While Christmas is a traditional holiday, not everything about it has to be traditional. This year, it’s time to unwrap the gift of your imagination a little early and make your holiday décor your own. For our last post before Christmas, we’re here to help you out with five fun DIY projects to replace the traditional Christmas tree with something a little more unusual and utterly unique!
Christmas Tree Wire Ornament Holder
For this project, you’ll need crafts wire, an old frame, plenty of ornaments, and a handful of other accessories and craft tools. We love that this untraditional “tree” gives you the chance to take something old and make it new! It also makes a wonderful tree alternative if you don’t have a lot of space in your apartment for a full-sized tree. Hang your tree in a central spot in your home, or lay it wherever you’ll be doing your holiday gift exchange! For a full tutorial, pack up your crafty sleigh and head on over to Better Homes and Gardens!
DIY Pallet Christmas Tree
Looking for an easy decorative piece for your patio or balcony? Check out this easy guide to making a Christmas pallet tree. This is a project that you can size to meet your needs; if you want a bigger tree, just get bigger pallets, or go small for a corner tree for your living room. You’ll need several pallet slats, paint, tools, and maybe some holiday lights and ornaments to make your tree extra festive! Get all the supplies and instructions you’ll need to bring this project to life at Hometalk.
Paper Christmas Tree
We’ve seen this project done a few different ways, but one thing they all have in common is that they are super easy! For a homemade paper tree, all you’ll need is tape, several pages from old books or sheet music, twine, and something decorative to serve as your tree’s star. We’ve seen folks use empty frames, wooden cutout stars, favorite family photos, and more. Simply hang your pages in the general shape of a tree, securing them with tape (or adhesive putty) to the wall and each other. Decorate your “tree” with twine, lights, or any other décor you’d like (just keep in mind … your tree is made of paper, so avoid fire hazards). Hang your “star” at the top, and lay your gifts at the base. You can find a ton of tutorials for making a paper Christmas tree, but we used this one from My Sweet Savannah!
Upcycled Sparkly Christmas Tree
This tree DIY calls for the use of cemetery vases, but you can easily replace them with paper mache cones or doll cones, which can be picked up at almost any craft store. The project has you wrap the cemetery vase in craft paper, but with our craft cone alternative, you can easily skip this step! The main craft supplies you’ll need are hot glue and strands of gold beads! You can find the beads you’ll need at a craft store or a Dollar Store (just head to the party section). This is an easy tree to place on your table or bookshelf. Just set it down as it is, or place it on top of a pretty matching candlestick! For easy to follow instructions, visit Vintage News Junkie … and scroll all the way down for a ton of other fun DIY tree ideas!
“From Trash to Trees” Book Spine Tree
Unless you’re a diehard book junky who thinks dismantling a book is sacrilege, we think you’ll love this project as much as we do! All you’ll need is a pallet wood or other sturdy craft background and pretty spines from some vintage books (head to a second hand or consignment shop to find some if you don’t have any of your own), plus some craft glue. (If the idea of taking an old book apart is giving you heat palpitations just scroll down on the tutorial page for a tutorial for another tree project; it calls for vintage book pages, but you can easily replace them with craft paper or old newspaper!) Check out the full tutorial from Vintage with Laces.
In these final days until Christmas, we wish you happy crafting, and much joy!
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Print a Present
The ultimate last minute gift is one that’s worth more than a thousand words (so save your excuse on why you didn’t bring anything!). Think of a moment of significance for you and the recipient, and share a photo from that moment! Whether it’s a real picture you took during the event—like a birthday party, wedding, vacation trip, etc.—or a snapshot you can take that captures the moment, the photo memento will mean a lot! You can print the picture at home (save your color ink … black and white is SO in!), and snag a nice frame and gift bag on your way to the party!
Subscribe and Save (the Day!)
There are so many subscription services out there these days, it would be hard to NOT find one your special someone will enjoy! Monthly boxes make great gifting options: try Blue Apron for meal deliveries, Birchbox for a health and beauty bounty, or even KitNip Box for your fellow cat lover! Then there are the subscriptions everybody loves: Netflix, Hulu Plus, and Pandora are all monthly subscriptions that won’t set you back too much! You can also shop great bargains on magazine subscriptions from Amazon or Blue Dolphin!
Ye Basket of Gifting
Ah, the old tried and true gift basket … Rather than going out and ordering or buying a premade gift basket, head to the store and get creative! Think about your host or pal’s favorite colors, and find household items and other fun trinkets that go along with a color theme. Or, pick a theme you know the recipient will love. For a foodie, snag some tea towels, a nice cutting board, wooden utensils, fancy spices, a few tried and true recipes (or a cookbook), etc. For a pampered pal, try chocolates, scented candles, pleasant smelling bath and shower products, and a fluffy robe. For a techie, grab some tools, a fancy USB drive, a wireless speaker, computer cleaning supplies, etc. Remember: a gift package is just as much about the presentation as the present, so be sure to get creative and pick out the perfect packaging to make your gift really shine!
The Gift of Learning
Sign your friend—and yourself!—up for a fun class! Check out Groupon for great deals on local classes from yoga to cooking, or see what some local shops might have to offer! Check out Creative Live for a ton of great classes you can sign up for online and find your friend’s interest to get them started. Check out Brit + Co for classes on coding, calligraphy, crowdfunding, and more! It’s a gift that keeps on giving!
Give Some “Me” Time
Does your host love hosting but hate cleaning? Chip in for a housekeeping service for a day! Maybe you’ve been listening to your friend complain about some much needed car service. Set up the appointment and prepay for the labor … you can even volunteer to take their car in for them so they can just relax and wait for it to be done! If finding a service isn’t something that’s easy for your friend, maybe you can try a day or night out: buy them some movie tickets, concession stand vouchers, and for friends with kids find a babysitter (or offer to do it yourself). You could do the same with a spa day, a dinner out, a sporting event, or whatever tickles your friend’s fancy.
Remember: Just because it’s a last minute gift doesn’t mean you didn’t put a lot of thought (and love!) into it! Find something simple and unique to give this holiday season, and take joy in the simplest gift of all: the gift of giving!
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December is here, and that means the holidays are almost upon us! The countdown to Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and our other favorite holidays is officially on like Donkey Kong, and what better way to do the countdown in style than with a sweet new calendar?! We’re all about saving during the holidays, so if that store-bought chocolate-filled advent calendar isn’t quite your thing, here are some of our favorite DIY calendars to brighten up your ho-ho-holiday! And the best part is, all of these can be adapted to the holiday you're looking forward to. Have fun!
1. The Mini Tree Advent Calendar
Make a list … and don’t forget to check it twice! Your list might be made up of fun holiday-related activities, favorite memories from Christmases past, a to-do list of tasks to get your home ready for the holidays, or anything else that will make each day leading up to Christmas merry and bright. This DIY calendar has you then put each item from your list in a small box with a cute ornament on top. You’ll need small brown boxes (enough for each day leading up to Christmas or New Year’s), mini pine trees, glue, scissors, and this tutorial from Oh Happy Day!
2. Toilet Paper Roll Christmas Calendar
If you’re like us, you always wonder what you could use those empty toilet paper or paper towel rolls for rather than just throwing them away. Or maybe that’s just us … But if it’s not, this craft project is the answer for you! We love that this idea is both a neat way to recycle and a beautifully crafty way to countdown to one of our favorite holidays! Check out the tutorial from Morning Creativity here!
3. Easy Envelope Advent Calendar
Want to keep it simple? All you need for this calendar are envelopes, decorative paper, and a poster board! Cut out envelope liners from the pretty paper you pick out (try simple red and green craft paper, or some of the many holiday prints you can find at a craft store!). Fill the envelopes with tiny, quirky holiday treats, number each envelope’s lip with your countdown, and mount each envelope to a poster board! (Hint, hint: try a “reverse” advent by adding money to each envelope each day leading up to Christmas or New Year’s … it’s a great way to get a head start on your New Year’s Resolution to save!)
4. (Slightly More Complicated) Geometric Advent Calendar
Maybe “simple” isn’t a word in your vocabulary. If not, give this slightly more complicated calendar a try! The creator describes it as “simple, minimal, [and] with just enough festive sparkle,” so maybe it’s not as hard as we think, but we see the word “geometric” and get a little nervous. Unfortunately, the designer didn’t share how to make the geometric boxes, but fear not; we found you this video tutorial! Or try this awesome template maker that will automatically design the template for a box to your specific measurements. The rest of the tutorial on making this calendar can be found here.
5. DIY Punch Box Advent Calendar
So, we all know the holidays can be stressful … Here’s a calendar that will help you get a little frustration out, and you even get to enjoy a sweet treat as you do it! You can adapt the design to however many days you’re counting down, and the decorations of your box to whichever holiday you’re celebrating. The key, though, stays the same no matter what: Have fun makin’ it, and have fun breakin’ it! Get the tutorial from Studio DIY!
Enjoy your crafting! Enjoy your calendars! And enjoy your holidays! Ho-ho-ho!
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