DIY Wood Slice Family Picture Ornaments

I did it...and for once it wasn't because I wanted to. It was because my kids kept bugging me and asking why our Christmas decor wasn't up yet. They have been watching Christmas movies since July....yeah, I know. And they have been listening to Christmas music since the day after Halloween. You guys, even my husband turned on a Christmas movie for them willingly...and watched it last night! Serious. Something strange is going on in our house! ha! He's the one that always says that we killed another reindeer if we listen or watch anything Christmas before Thanksgiving.

So, I put up our first Christmas tree and I'm still not sure how I feel about it. I have a few trees, one dedicated to the handmade ornaments or the yearly ones my littles pick up....like ballerinas, doughnuts, shopkins, etc...ones that I don't necessarily like to adorn our main trees. I know, I know. What's the fun in that, or where's the tradition? As I said, we do have a special tree just for that :) But, I did want to add a little family connection to our main trees this year. I decided to make some wood slice ornaments with our family pictures on it. They are definitely a more subtle way to add the family touch. 

Today I'm joining 6 other amazing bloggers on some DIY ornament inspiration in perfect time for the holidays hosted by Heidi from Honeybear Lane. You can see the full list of tutorials at the bottom of this post. But, for now....here's the tutorial on how I made mine :)

Supplies you'll need:
Wood slices. I got a set of 4 from Michaels for about $2. 
Black and white family photos printed on normal print paper in size that will fit the wood disc.
Decoupage(I used a kind from DecoArt)
Sandpaper 
Jute
Hot glue gun

Here are the types of wood slices I found. The largest is about 3.5" wide.

 Step 1: Pick a picture you want to use, and trace around the wood disc. Cut out.

 Step 2: Brush on some decoupage onto the disc. Place the cut out picture on top of it. Smooth out any bubbles and wait to adhere completely. 

 Step 3: Brush the decoupage onto the top of the picture, just one layer will do it. Let harden and dry completely. I used a blow dryer on it to speed up the process.

Step 4: Using a fine grit sandpaper, gently rough up the edges of the picture. 

 Step 5: Cut a piece of just about 8" long. Tie a knot on each end. Hot glue the ends onto the edge of the wood disc.

 And that's it. It's a pretty simple ornament to make and looks so good in the tree! ..Well, simple if you don't run out of ink and have to go to the nearest print store just to print one page! :) haha

Now for the other fun DIY Christmas ornament ideas. Be sure to check them out and give them some love :) 

Thrifty and Chic | Remodelando La Casa | A Pumpkin and a Princess

Delightfully Noted | Lolly Jane | Stacy Risenmay | Honeybear Lane

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Red and White Buffalo Plaid Christmas Wreath Tutorial

I was provided product by DecoArt and compensated to write about this project, but all thoughts, opinions, and ideas are my own :)

Well, it's November so I guess that now makes it okay to talk about Christmas! Seriously though....Christmas? I feel like I'm dreaming. I'm not sure how it's that time of year again. But! That hasn't kept my brain from going into overdrive on Christmas craft ideas. Today, I'm going to share with you how to make this wood wreath, and better yet, how to paint the perfect red and white buffalo plaid. 

You can't tell much from the pictures, but this wreath has the prettiest hints of glimmer in it from the red in the buffalo plaid to the green leaves and the gold snowflake. Here's the paint I used to achieve this look.

 DecoArt Americana in Primary Red, Titanium White, and Lamp Black.
DecoArt Glamour Dust in Gold Glitz, Emerald, Ice Crystal, and Sizzling Red.

For the main piece, I used a 15" pressed would circle. You can find these at most home improvement stores in multiple sizes.

 Step 1: Using the Titanium White and a foam brush, paint the entire disc. Apply two or three coats for full coverage.

 Step 2: Using the Glamour Dust in Ice Crystal, go over the white with a sponge brush. The more coats you use on this, the more glittery dust you will be able to see. I kept mine to two coats. Let dry completely.

 Step 3: Using 2" painters tape, tape straight down the middle. Then using a small piece as a spacer, place another tape parallel to the first piece. 

 Continue on until the you have the disc full of stripes.

 Step 4: Mix 4 parts Titanium White to 1 part Primary Red and 1 part Sizzling Red. Make enough to fill in these stripes plus another set of stripes.  

 Using your foam brush, fill in the stripes. Don't worry, it won't be pink for long.

 Step 5: Once the pink is dried, add a single coat of the Sizzling Red over the pink stripes. 

 Step 6: Remove the tape, and you should have candy stripes.

 Step 7: Now using the painters tape, apply lines in the opposite direction.

 Step 8: Paint these lines with the pink mixture. Apply a coat or two for full coverage. 

 Step 9: Paint on a single coat of the Sizzling Red.

 Step 10: Leaving the painters tape on, place more lines of painters tape the opposite direction again. Start in the middle and move outward. 

 Step 11: In the open squares, paint two coats of Primary Red. Let dry. Apply two to three coats of Sizzling Red. More coats of the Glamour Dust make it more shimmery. 

 Step 12: Now for the most satisfying part...take off all the tape to reveal your buffalo plaid pattern. If you find any areas that seeped under the paint, clean them up quickly before they dry.  

 Step 13: To finish the disc off, carefully paint the edge with Lamp Black.

 Step 14: Now for the accessories! I got these all at Hobby Lobby. 

 Step 15: Paint the snowflake with the Gold Glitz. I applied about three coats to get it super shimmery. 

 Step 16: Since the faux greenery that I picked didn't have any glitter, I decided to add some with the Emerald and Gold Glitz. Using a small brush, I painted a thin coat onto the leaves. 

 Step 17: I finished off the Merry Christmas with the Black Lamp. I went back and forth on this with adding the Glamour Dust or not, and decided I liked the flatness about it in comparison to the glitzy red buffalo check.

 Step 18: Hot glue everything into place. 

 Step 19: To hang, place a d-ring on to the back. Just find the center of where you want it to hang, and screw it in. 

 This would look so cute just hanging on a door by itself, but I decided to hang it above the mantel coupled with this old window frame. I think I am leaning towards a red and white them this Christmas. I just love how the red pops off everything. 

 Are you ready for Christmas decor? Or do you still feel like it should July, like me? It totally doesn't feel like July right now with temps in the teens, but it still doesn't feel like it should be November yet either! 

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a “sponsored post.” The company who sponsored it compensated me via a cash payment, gift, or something else of value to write it. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Last Minute Halloween Decor (Tour 2019)

I'm not one to decorate for Halloween for too long. I put fall decorations up usually in September and then Christmas decor up at the beginning of November (I know, I know...to early :) ). So, Halloween doesn't get much show time. I want to keep my fall stuff up as long as I can, and truthfully, I prefer fall over Halloween any day :) Most years, I decorate for Halloween the week before the 31st. This year....well, I just barely finished it up. A little late, but done. We went on vacation for about a week and a half and it totally threw everything off.

Since I put this decor up so quickly, luckily, it's just as quick to take it down. Having a neutral home is the best when it comes to fast switches like this. I added lots of black to capitalize on the Halloween feel....that and skulls. Lots and lots of skulls. Because I waited for so long to decorate, I was able to find most of my decor for 70% off (besides the stuff I already had). Totally worth waiting sometimes!

For my entryway, I hung some tattered fabric I found at Walmart a few years ago. I had some extra smalls skulls from Michaels that I hung on the barn doors also.

 I used what I had with my entryway. I took off the greenery and the nice blanket on the ladder, and placed a witch's hat, tattered fabric and a broom on it. I then added a few bats to the wall and changed out the real blanket for a black and white striped one.

 For my living room, my mantel got a small upgrade with black pumpkins and cut out bats. I got these bats from a store a couple of years ago, but they are super easy to make too.

 I also switched out my blankets and pillows. I just love these black striped ones for Halloween, along with the raven pillow.

 As for my tabletops and trays, I just added things to them. I placed a skull in this lantern on my coffee table.

 I switched out the pumpkin in this corner for a black owl. I updated the sign too and placed the raven on top.

 Other skulls and bones were placed around my living room tabletops.

 Now for my dining room. This room was so easy to do. When I tell you I got skulls from the store, I'm not kidding. I seriously picked up like 10 skulls from Michaels yesterday. The big one in the middle was the most expensive at a whopping $2.40.

 I bought these plates during the summer and never ended up using them. I realized how perfect they were for Halloween, so I brought them out. I kept the place setting simple and just plopped a pumpkin on it.

There used to be a time ....before I had kids....that I did not decorate for Halloween at all. They keep urging me to decorate more and more and scarier and scarier. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I like to keep it simple. What about you? Do you go all out for Halloween? Or are you kind of in between like me?

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