Decorating for the Holidays - on the cheap!

A few crafty projects and just a couple of dollars turned some old Christmas decorations into a festive atmosphere around here this week.

First, my favorite, a wreath for our front door made with some garland we found in the storage spot above the garage at our old house.  The lights on this strand didn't work anymore, so I took them off and put half the garland onto a wire wreath holder that my mom brought me over Thanksgiving when she was getting rid of a bunch of craft stuff.  Then I added some gold beaded garland (also from the old house garage treasures) since our front door has some gold on it.  Then finally, I picked up these red berry bushes at Wal-Mart for $1 each and hot glued them onto the wreath.  Then I realized I had no way of hanging the wreath on the door.  Now, I know the wreath hangers are only about $1 some places (I've seen them recently), but I couldn't go out right then, and I just *knew* I could come up with something from around the house.  So...here you go.  A wire coat hanger became my wreath hanger with just a few snips & bends.

Next, the centerpiece on our island is usually just a blue vase and a green plate.  Our craft project at MOPS the other night included a small wreath and these pine-cone accents, so instead of making the original craft project, I decided to dress up our centerpiece for the winter:

Next, the dining room table.  This I had to keep super-simple because little hands are always grabbing everything on it.  So, I used a white candle (also picked up at my MOPS meeting for the would-be craft project), a clear candle holder we already had, and I picked up the little berry wreath at Dollar Tree for just $1. The Santa Claus placemats were made by a former boss/friend in Arkansas (Thanks Lora! We still use them!).  Don't mind the trivets..not really a part of the decoration, but for some reason we store them there, and I didn't move them.  Although I did move the napkins, salt & pepper to a nearby shelf.  Not sure it was the most useful choice of items to move...but whatever.  Just pretend the trivets aren't there.

Then, the kiddie table...which came upstairs from the playroom for Thanksgiving dinner, and fit so well, we decided to keep it there a while.  More garage treasure garland (this time with working lights), some $1 silver ornaments, and two stuffed animals make Ayla very happy when she sits at her table.

In my office, I have a mini-tree on my bookshelf, decorated with chipboard stars that I made last year for neighbors...these were the extras.  

Then, of course, some Christmas layouts from the last two years displayed in my Picture It PageFrames:

And finally tonight, the finishing touch....our tree.  This 7.5 ft tree we picked up from some people at church who were giving it away.  Talk about lucky!  I did buy about $4 worth of silver and red ornaments and a $1 star from Dollar Tree to add to our family ornaments. 

There you have it.  Our VERY inexpensive holiday decorating....works for me!