Sheet Music Christmas Wreath

All of the book pages and sheet music wreaths around blogland have had me drooling.    

So much so that -- despite the fact that I am not a crafter and despite the fact that there are just a few days remaining before Christmas, I decided to tackle one on my own.            

I used this tutorial by Jaime at That's My Letter, with just a few variations.  Here's my variation on that tutorial.

1. I started by creating a star in Word on my computer. I made it as big as I could while keeping it on an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper and printed it out. (Jaime used a three dimensional star to make her wreath.)

2. I cut out the star and used it to make a cardboard template.

3. I then started rolling/hot gluing cones, and glued the first five cones at the tip of the star. (Strangely, rolling the cones was the hardest part of this project for me. Mine were hardly uniform. I guess it's been a while since I made a may basket.)

4. The next five cones I put directly between the first ones, and glued them to the center.

5. I then continued filling in with cones until the first layer was complete. I put two cones in between the ones you see above.

6. For the second layer, I just put cones where I thought the wreath needed some filler. No real plan at all. As soon as the wreath looked "done" I stopped.

6. Silver glitter was all I had on hand so that's what I used. I brushed white glue onto the tips of the cones and then liberally sprinkled on glitter. This part was easy, but messy. A class of kindergarteners would have made a smaller mess, I think!

7. The finished product, which I hung above my fireplace on a metal wall hanging that was already there.

This was a really quick project (a couple of hours start to finish) with a really fun result.

Linked to:
Tutorial Tuesday at Hope Studios
Get Your Craft On at Today's Creative Blog
Nifty Thrift Tuesday at Coastal Charm

Christmas in Rome

Two years ago, my entire family took the trip of a lifetime to visit my sister and brother-in-law in Germany.

Part of that trip was a side trip to Rome over Christmas, that included Christmas Eve mass at St. Peter's.

Fast forward two years and I am making a digitial photo album of that trip as a Christmas gift for my parents.

That would be this Christmas. 

I'm not exactly on the ball, but it was still worth doing because the trip was that special.

Here are some of my favorite shots of Rome that I re-discovered while creating the album.

Love, love, love this wreath and this architecture. Love it.

St. Peter's Square at the Vatican

It was raining on Christmas Eve, which made everything more reflective and beautiful.

Even the food on the street was amazing.

This might be my favorite photo of all. They ran into each other on the street. Wouldn't you love to know what they're saying?

Busy street at Christmas.

The decorations were much more understated than those in the U.S.

But the architecture's definitely not. Ceiling of St. Peter's.

I'm blogging from Kansas City and not Rome this year, but I'm wishing you Merry Christmas just the same!

Linking to: Potpourri Friday

O Holy Night Lyrics as Art

This line from the O Holy Night has been going over and over in my head all through this Christmas season:

"A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices."

I love the image of a weary world rejoicing.

With inspiration from Jenni at Dear Lillie's downloadable art and Holly at Holly Mathis Design's lyrics on canvas, I created this framed lyric to go along side our nativity this year.

With Christmas so soon and so much to do, it was probably crazy to spend precious time in Hobby Lobby yesterday choosing a frame and scrapbooking paper, but I'm glad I did. :)

Linking to: Sunday Showcase Party

Thanksgiving Table

Gratitude

“You say grace before meals.  All right.  But I say grace before the concert and the opera, and grace before the play and pantomime, and grace before I open a book, and grace before sketching, painting, swimming, fencing, boxing, walking, playing, dancing and grace before I dip the pen in the ink.”  – G.K. Chesterton

Investing in Perennials

Annuals = Spending

Perennials = Investing

Investing in Perennials

Poppy Seed Salad

We've reached that stage in our lives, where our friends' kids are getting married. (!)

There is an upside to feeling so old, however.

At a recent bridal shower I was at, the hostess served the best. salad. ever. I was tacky enough to ask for the recipe and she was gracious enough to give it to me.

She served the cashew/strawberry/swiss version, but the thing that's so great about this recipe is that it has three versions, and could probably have many more if you like experimenting. Basically, you combine the greens of your choice with a nut/fruit/cheese combination of your choice and toss with the dressing .

Poppy Seed Salad

6 cups of the salad greens of your choice

Combine with your choice of the following combinations:

• 1 c. pecans, 1 c. raspberries, 1 c. cubed brie
• 1 c. cashews, 1 c. sliced strawberries, 1 c. cubed swiss
• 1 c. walnuts, 1 c. diced, red apples, 1 c. havarti

Toss with the following dressing*:

1. c. salad oil
1/2 c. sugar
1 t. onion poder
1/3 c. white wine vinegar
1 dash salt
1 t. prepared mustard
2 T. poppy seeds

* This makes a lot of dressing. It could have easily been cut in half and I would have had plenty for the salad.

How great would the apple/walnut/havarti combination of this be for fall? And I'm thinking a cranberry version could be concocted for winter.Such an adaptable recipe for any season or whatever you happen to have on hand.

Linking to: The Stories of A to Z