Christmas Decoration with Glass Beads

Another great and easy to make Christmas decoration idea. Few pine twigs, wire shaped as a Christmas tree decorated with glass beads and... voila!!! A simple to make Christmas trees are decorating my home :)

Dar viena puiki diena kalėdinės nuotaikos kūrimui. Kelios pušų šakelės, keletas iš vielos išlankstytų eglučių, kurios puoštos biserio karoliukais ir...vualia!!! Dar viena jauki kalėdinė dekoracija puošia mano namus :)

 

Kind wishes
Evelina

Christmas is coming: Simple Advent Wreath. How to make it and a little bit of history.

While it's still quite early to get ready for the winter holidays season, today's cold but sunny weather awakened the upcoming holiday spirit. I was looking for a meaningful addition to truly celebrate Christmas and so the Advent Wreath came to my mind. This is a symbol of Advent therefore so beautifully suited to wait for Christmas. Without further ado, I decided to make one myself. Advent Wreath can easily be made up quickly and frugally, yet be a beautiful touch to your seasonal decor. Many of the items you probably have on hand. 

A pine twig by pine twig I was creating a wreath and was thinking about the history and traditions behind. 

So, a little bit of history first:

"Advent begins St . Andrew's Day (November 30th), and ends on the Christmas Eve (December 24th). It's a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the final year. The term is an anglicized version of the Latin word adventus, meaning "coming".

The concept of the Advent wreath originated among German Lutherans in the 16th Century. However, it is not until three centuries later that the modern Advent wreath took shape. Research points to German pastor Johann Hinrich Wichern, a pioneer in urban mission work among the poor, as the inventor of the modern Advent wreath in the 19th century. During Advent, children at the mission school would ask daily if Christmas had arrived. In 1839, he built a large wooden ring with 20 small red and 4 large white candles. A small candle was lit successively every weekday during Advent. On Sundays, a large white candle was lit. The custom gained ground among Protestant churches in Germany and evolved into the smaller wreath with four or five candles known today. 

Little did J.H. Wichern knew that his idea will survive to these days. Now wreaths are made ​​of conifer twigs and usually decorated with four candles that are lit one by one every Sunday. "

Now, DIY wreath. Materials I used:

A plate (or any other base for the wreath)
Greenery (pine twigs)

Four candles

Crochet snowflakes. I crocheted 12.

Thread (not necessarily)

Petite bells. I used 12.

1. Arrange the greenery on the plate leaving the middle empty. You can tighten it up with the thread if wanted.

2. Place the candles inside the wreath. As the candles I had were quite low so I placed them on the candle holders.

3. Add more greenery among the candles so that the wreath looks fuller and therefore prettier.

 4. Crochet (or buy) 12 snowflakes, iron them to keep the shape and arrange on the wreath.

5. Hang 12 petite bells anywhere on the wreath.

 

That is all. Very classic and simple Advent Wreath is decorating my table. Have you got yours?

Nors dar ir anksti ruoštis žiemos šventėms, tačiau šiandieninis oras pažadino manyje artėjančių švenčių nuotaiką ir prisiminiau, kad Kalėdinis vainikas kaip tik tinkamas advento laikotarpiui. Tad, nieko nelaukdama kibau i darbus.
Dėlioju pušies šakeles ir bandau prisiminti iš kur ta, Kalėdinio vainiko, tradicija.  Tad šiek tiek istorijos.

Adventas prasideda Šv. Andriejaus dieną (lapkričio 30-ąją), o baigiasi Kūčių vakarą (gruodžio 24-ąją). Tai rimties, susikaupimo, dvasinio apsivalymo ir ūkio darbų pabaigos metas. Adventus, adventire išvertus iš lotynų kalbos reiškia „atėjimas“.

Advento vainiką sugalvojo vokiečių pastorius Johanas Heinrichas Vichernas. Jis rūpinosi vaikais iš vargingai gyvenančių šeimų, našlaičiais ir benamiais. Šie labai laukdavo Kalėdų ir klausdavo, kada gi pagaliau šventė ateis. Kad neprailgtų laikas, kartą ant seno medinio vežimo rato pastorius pritvirtino 19 mažų raudonų žvakių ir 4 dideles baltas. Kas rytą globėjas kartu su vaikais uždegdavo po mažą žvakutę, o kiekvieną sekmadienį – po didelę baltą.

J. H. Vichernas tikriausiai net neįsivaizdavo, kad jo sumanymas (pirmas „vainikas“ sukurtas 1839 metais) gyvuos iki šių dienų. Dabar vainikai daromi iš spygliuočių šakelių ir dažniausiai puošiami 4 žvakėmis, kurios po vieną uždegamos kiekvieną sekmadienį."

Na, o dabar trumpas Advento vainiko darymo aprašymas.

Reikės pušies ar eglės šakų; 4 žvakių; lekštės ar kito pagrindo ant  kurio bus vainikas; nėrimo siūlų ir vašelio snaigėms nunerti; varpelių ir siūlo šakelėms surišti tarpusavyje (nebūtina).

1. Sudėliojau šakeles į lėkštę taip, kad vidurys būtų tuščias.

2. Sudėjau žvakes. Kadangi žvakės, kurias turėjau, buvo per žemos, tai nusprendžiau uždėti ant žvakidžių.

3. Sudėliojau šakeles tarp žvakių. Taip vainikas tapo gražesnis ir pilnesnis.

4. Nunėriau 12 snaigių, išlyginau ir sudėjau ant vainiko.

5. Užkabinau 12 mažų varpelių.

Na štai, Advento vainikas jau puošia mano stalą. O Jūsų? 

Kind regards/LInkėjimai
Evelina

Fab little gifts - I Promise

If you are looking for new and fabulous gift ideas for Christmas (and not only), I Promise cards might be just what you need. It's a unique way to give thoughts, not things for any celebration. Whether it's little thoughts, time together, exciting experiences or romantic gestures, I Promise believe anything can be wrapped up as a promise. DIY or have a look http://www.ipromise.to/

Jei ieškote naujų  nuostabių dovanų idėjų Kalėdoms ir ne tik, I Promise (Aš pažadu) kortelės gali būti kaip tik tai, ko jums reikia. Tai gražiai supakuotas būdas padovanoti savo nuoširdžius pažadus vietoj daiktų pirkimo. Tai gali būti tiesiog paprasta jauki mintis, pažadas praleisti laiką drauge, nukeliauti į jūsų mėgstamą šalį, pažadėti patirti naujų įspūdžių ar net pasipiršti. Tokias korteles galite pasidaryti ir patys, bet jei neturite laiko ar priemonių, pažiūrėkite čia http://www.ipromise.to/

10 ridiculously easy last minute DIY Christmas ideas

To me this time of the year is all about preparation for Christmas. I live, breath, sleep, think, I love Christmas. Browsing the Internet I found some easy but beautiful DIY Christmas cards and decoration ideas as well as added couple of mine. Have a look.

Paper Tree

Simply Simple Cards

Acorn Ornament

Paper Ornament Garland

Christmas Stocking Garland

Pinhole Cards

No-Sew Bunting

Felt Christmas Tree

Jingle Bell Garland

Ribbon Candy Ornaments

Simply Simple Cards

Need an idea on quick and easy Christmas cards? Look no further. Simply simple cards.

1. To make the simply simple cards you will need:

- Blank cards or card paper;

- Any type of fabric material (or coloured paper);

- Some decorative templates (small hats, socks, gloves, candies..);

- Coloured paper for card insert, optional;

- Mini pegs;

- Jute string;

- Pencil, marker, ruler, glue, scissors and paper cutter.

 2. If you do not have blank cards, cut out the card paper to:

            - 21x15cm size. It is your main card;

            - 9.5x14cm size. It is the top of the main card;

            - 9.5x14cm size for the insert, optional.

 3. Fold the main card's paper in half to get a 10.5x15cm size card.

  

 4. Cut jute string of the length of 18cm, turn it down approx. 3 cm on each end and then glue it on top of the card as shown in the picture.

 

5. Glue a 9.5x14cm size top paper in the middle of the main card to hide a glued jute string. 

6. Glue the insert to the card. Weight it down with a load, for example, books for a quicker bond.

7. Place decorative templates over a fabric, circle it with the marker and then cut it out. 

8. Using pegs attach the cut out templates to a string. 

  

9. Simple last minute cards are ready. Happy Christmas!

Templates for Pinhole Cards

Ladies (and an occasional gentleman), below are some of the templates I used to pinhole the cards. Unfortunately, I did not save the links of these templates so uploaded some pictures.

Please ignore a bad quality of pictures, they still serve the purpose. Happy pin holing! 

DIY Christmas Stocking Garland

Garland is a great decoration for Christmas as well as any other occasion. Today I am making a very simple stocking ornament garland. I am using felt but many different materials could be used. Kids love crafting it from colorful paper and then decorating with their own ornaments and drawings. It looks lovely! And gives so much joy.

Stocking size made: length (toe to heel): 10cm/4"; height (heel to cuff): 13cm/5.12".

1. To make a Christmas stocking garland you will need:

- 11 pieces of felt of colors of your choice. I used dark and light green felt of size      15x15cm/5.9"x5.9" each;

- Stocking template. I drew mine;

- Ribbon to decorate approx L110cm/43.3" (approx L10cm/3.9" for each stocking);

- String to hang the stockings (approx 120cm/47.2");

- Sewing thread and a needle;

- Marker, fabric glue, scissors and pinking shears, optional.

2. Place the stocking template over a felt, circle it with the marker and then cut it out. 

 

3. Cut the ribbon of the length to match the stocking's width, then glue it on the stocking. 

4. Use the pinking shears to cut a decorative edge around the stocking sides and bottom.

 5. Attach the stockings to a string. 

6. That is all. Decorate your fireplace with the handmade stocking garland and admire it when enjoying a glass of mulled wine with your family and friends.