Garland DIY.

I probably shouldn’t call this post a do-it-yourself. It’s more like ‘do-it-themselves.’ Because Connor and Nora were bored and wanted to help with Christmas decorating and I had to find an activity that they could do on their own while I was buried under nursing textbooks. So they set up in the office and got to work with my favorite Martha Stewart glitter and lots of Mod Podge. ‘Really happy with their results, which made for a welcome addition to the mantle for our Christmas decor.

A little how-to:

Start with pine cones. I was surprised to find that they are non-existent in our backyard this year. Not sure why. So I used a bunch that I had in the closet from last year- some had wire attached, which made Connor’s day. After all, he could use Dad’s wire cutters.

Apply Mod Podge liberally- without any regard to perfection. It really doesn’t matter.

While Mod Podge is still wet, add glitter. My favorite is Martha Stewart’s White Gold. Which is silver, really. Put a piece of tissue paper underneath the pine cones first. Look closely at these photos. That is why you need tissue. Mm-hmm.

Little Miss Lefty had some trouble with her aim. Oops.

Two little things I helped with. Once the first pine cones were glittered, there were a lot of leftovers on the tissue. So the kiddos would paint the Mod Podge on, and I would put them into a little tissue pouch and shake the excess on. Worked great. For the string, I was going to use the red and white baker’s twine in the photos. But then I changed my mind when I found this mini pom pom string. I’m going with a different color scheme on the living room mantle this year, and the red wasn’t thrilling me. So I just hot glued the pom pom string to the tops of the pine cones. And since I can’t even trust myself not to burn my fingers, I didn’t let the kids use the glue gun. Mean Mom.

Before and after-

That’s it. Simple. Pretty.

There was still lots of glitter left over, so they helped out with a monogrammed ‘H’ for our mantle. It was fun to see them enjoy making a mess without me getting aggravated with them. I think that was their favorite part.

Warning:  this glitter is the prettiest I’ve found, but it’s also the messiest. It lands everywhere, and is so fine that you may find it scattered throughout the house. While it isn’t Paul’s favorite thing, I love walking up the stairs and seeing glitter dust on every step. A little bit of Christmas sparkle. (I know. I also detest vacuuming. Grow up, Betsy.)

Have fun!