Last Minute DIY Christmas
Christmas is one of the busiest holidays of the year to prepare for... it's no wonder that you may feel like the Grinch for lack of Christmas decor. It's cool. We've all done it before. However, I've got the perfect solution for you that'll make your feel as warm as the Grinch's heart when it finally grew. Pine cones... Yes, that's right. Pine cones. Pine cones make for some of the simplest decorations, but also some of the prettiest. (Make sure to bake your pinecones first to prevent a few little bugs escaping into your home.) Refer below to the few ideas you can use those pine cones laying out in your yard for!PineConed Gnomes:
For this project, you will need cream colored felt, wooden balls (1-inch diameter and 3/8 of an inch diameter), PINE CONES, white chenille stem, curly white wool, hot glue gun (with glue gun sticks, of course), sewing needle and cream thread.
Cut the felt into (however many gnomes you wish to make) triangles. Fold each triangle in half and blanket stitch them together so that they make a hat. Now, cut the felt into 1/2" x 6" strips and make sure to cut the both ends of each strip to add "fringe". These will be your scarves. Take your 1-inch wooden ball and glue it to each pine cone. Your gnome now has a head! Take the smaller wooden ball and glue on int he center of each of your gnomes' heads... Now, your gnomes have a nose! With the chenille stem, cut them into 4" lengths and fold one end of each length over slightly. Take the stems and bend the at a right angle 1-inch from the other end and then, hot-glue the 1" portion to each head. Time to make your way back to the hats. Fold a cuff at the bottom of each hat and hot-glue hats to the heads over the chenille stems. Your scarves can now be wrapped in any form you'd like and hot-glued to each of your gnome's necks. Hot-glue curly wool to each gnome's cheeks and/or underneath the nose... this is all up to you. Lastly, sew a short length of thread to the back of each hat to create a hanging loop.
(http://www.bhg.com/) Pine Cone Wreath:
Wreaths have always been a common Christmas decoration, but now, people hang up wreaths on their doors all year-round. This wreath is beautiful in its own simple way and it doesn't even have to be simple. The good thing about pine cones is that they can be "jazzed up" in many ways from adding paint, glitter and other decor.
All you will need for this project is a wire hanger, pine cones and floral wire.
First, bend the bottom of your hanger into a circular shape. Just as close as you can get it. It doesn't have to be perfect. You have now created the form for your wreath. Now, cut a piece of floral wire about 8" long. Wrap each wire around a pine cone and make sure that it is tucked inside of the pine cone's cavities. Okay, so now twist both ends of the wire together securing it tightly around each pine cone. Hold the pine cone against the hanger and wrap whatever is remaining around the hanger. This should secure each pine cone onto the wreath's form. All you've gotta do now is keep wrapping pine cones until the wreath's form is completely covered. Make sure it's full enough to where you can't see the hanger wire.
VERY last step? You can use the hanger's hook to hook it or cut it off and use a pretty ribbon. That's up to you. The wreath is now all yours to flair it in any way you feel like.
(http://www.iheartnaptime.net)
Pine Cone Centerpieces:
This is the easiest and probably most elegant decoration you can make with pine cones in my opinion. Centerpieces make your tables spark. Whether it's your dining, coffee or just a display table, a centerpiece can really make the difference.
For this one, all you will need are pine cones, jars and stems. This is all on YOU. Make the centerpieces to your own wants.
(http://www.thebudgetdecorator.com)
I hope that you "PINE" for some of these ideas and use them to spruce up your cone... I mean, home, this Christmas. :) 