Christmas House and Wreath

Front of the house

The side walls match

Back of house

So THIS is what I wanted pine cones for!

I use the making of crafts as a way to balance my life. It relaxes me, keeps the creative juices going, and helps me think. I know that sounds a little strange, but for me if I am concentrating on making something, my mind can let go of whatever is bothering me. Like not studying for the AFAA certification.

Anyway....the house is paper mache, and comes naked when you purchase it. I painted it with craft paint in white and let it dry for a few days. The blue is scrapbook paper cut out with Spellbinders squares. Great way to make a perfect frame. Little candy canes that were intended to be used as ornaments on the mini Christmas trees are on the windows, tied with Baker's Twine. I glued them first and let them set. The mini wreaths on the sides I made from a rope type garland. Red Stars on the roof are an ornament, as well as the snowflake done in glitter above the door. I used Melissa Francis mica chips for the roof.

The wreath is 8 inches and yes, these are the pine cones that I picked up on a dog walk. I soaked them in 50/50 solution of bleach and water for 8 hours. This debugs the cones and dries them out. I then set them out on the deck in the sun for several hours, then let them sit in the house for a few days. If you are going to use this method to preserve cones, I recommend drying them completely, slowly. The cones will open up.  To add a little extra something that didn't show up in the this photo, I sprayed them with an adhesive and sprinkled white glitter on each cone, lightly.

The postcard in the middle of the wreath I made from chipboard, cardstock, and a Crafty Secrets image. Postcard stamp is from Tim Holtz.

Thanks for stopping by.
Linda