Copycat Crate & Barrel Ho Ho Ho Letters

I just love this time of year!  Everything is so festive and happy.  Of course there is the flip side of that too which means this time of year is exhausting, stressful, hectic, and more!  But mostly I love it.

I was perusing Crate & Barrel recently and saw these metal Ho Ho Ho letters and just loved them.  I am always looking for a project so I immediately thought about how I could remake them myself on the cheap.  I remembered I had a few paper mache letters at home and decided to try spray painting them to see if they would hold up.  It worked like a charm so I got more letters and sprayed them all with high gloss red paint and then did a final coat of red glitter spray paint over the letters.  Easy as can be right!?

 You will need:

H's and O's in wood or paper mache 

High Gloss red spray paint

Red Glitter spray paint

If you want your O tipped like mine then you will need E6000 adhesive

Ribbon

Sprig of berries or something similar 

  I sprayed all my letters on all sides letting them dry entirely before adding a coat of glitter spray paint in red.  I used a very light coat of the glitter just so it had a tiny bit of sparkle. 

 Once they were dry I angled the O in the direction I wanted it to be and added E6000 glue to the spot where the O touches the H and then added a piece of wire around the two letters to hold them together until they dried. 

 After the glue dried I then cut a piece of grosgrain ribbon and added a little sprig of berries and pine cones.  

I also remade this centerpiece from Target by adding quite a few pine cones and sprigs of pine and berries to spruce it up.  I got it on clearance last year but it looked sparse to me so it was an easy fix!

 I probably should have Ho Ho Ho out but I just used 2 sets on either side of my centerpiece and I'm very happy with them.

An easy and inexpensive craft to make which is my favorite kind!

DIY Christmas Ski Decoration

I know I'm not the only crafter that stalks the Dollar Spot at Target!  You will probably know all about these awesome skis they have right now in their bins and maybe even have some at your house. 

I actually passed these skis up numerous times because I just wasn't sure what I wanted to do with them even though I loved them.  I debated on painting them white and adding them to a pine wreath but I wasn't convinced that I loved that idea so I just kept walking by them.  Then I needed something to hang on my wall that wasn't too large but looked Christmasy so off I went back to the Dollar Spot to see what I could come up with.  The skis were added to my cart and I came right home to get a set made for my wall.  I loved them so much I made a second set and then made a bunch for gifts.  After getting about 12 extras done I'm all set for teacher gifts, neighbor gifts, family gifts etc.  You can never beat an inexpensive gift that looks like a million bucks!

 You will need:

Set of Skis from Target or anywhere you can find skis

Pine 

Berry picks like above or just berry garland you can cut into small pieces

Floral wire or floral tape

Ribbon 

 To make the skis a little dressier you will need to "clump" your berry pieces and pine pieces together and arrange them in the layout you want and wrap the "stems" with floral wire or tape so they stay together fairly well.  Cut a piece of ribbon long enough to wrap around the center of the skis and lay your berry arrangement on top of the skis and then tie a pretty knot around the skis and berries with your ribbon.  I never cut my ribbon from the spool until after I've tied it off so I don't waste any but once you do one you'll know about how much you need.

When you cut your ribbon be sure to cut it with sharp scissors and cut at an angle so it doesn't fray at all.  I used 2 inch wide Grosgrain but you could use wired ribbon or satin ribbon or twine etc.  I chose to skip a bow but you could certainly do a bow instead of the knotted ribbon.

I want to mention how amazing these Berry Picks are that are available from Target in their Christmas Section.  They work so well for wreathes or other diy projects.  They come in a box and you get a bunch!

My mom is planning a set of these using a poinsettia and a few bells along with some ribbon.  You could use most any pretty arrangement in the center of the skis.

 These skis come ready to hang but since I didn't want to make holes in my wall for just the holiday season I used 3M picture hanging removable tabs to hang mine and they are staying put perfectly without ruining my walls.  

 Easy gift for just about everyone and it doesn't break the bank!