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Kristen Anne Glover

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Simply Homemade: Craft a Peacock Lamp Shade

Simply Homemade

Christmas does not have to break the bank.  In fact, it shouldn’t.  Going into debt or spending more than you should is no way to show people you care about them.  That’s why I began this Simply Homemade series.  I wanted to release you from the obligation to spend too much by coming up with some creative gift alternatives you can make yourself.

Every single idea I’ve shown you so far can be made in very little time and requires no special talent, fancy equipment, or complicated directions.  They’re just simple. 

Today’s idea is no exception. 

How to Craft a Peacock Lamp Shade

Peacock lamp shade

This project is so simple, you really don’t need a tutorial for it. 

I purchased a couple of accent lamps at a home store for under $10 each.  They are pretty enough, but the lamp shades are kind of eh.  Certainly, they wouldn’t make a very memorable gift, not with vanilla lamp shades that aren’t special at all.

Fortunately, it takes very little effort to transform a boring lampshade into something one-of-a-kind.  All you need is a bit of ribbon, a peacock feather, and an interesting jewelry finding. If you don’t have peacocks running around your yard, you can order feathers here.

Peacock Lamp shade before

Pre-embellishment

A dear friend of our family gave me a bunch of peacock feathers a few years ago.  She collected them from the peacocks that roam about her mother’s property on Whidbey Island, Washington.  Every year, the birds molt, and she goes about picking up the long, jeweled plumes because they are too beautiful to leave out in the misty rain.

That’s one of her feathers in the picture above.  You’d better believe I moved those babies all the way from Washington to Texas this summer, even when the packers looked at me funny and none of them could find a box the right size.

Using fabric glue, I wrapped the ribbon around the top of the shade, being sure to start and end on the seam that was already there (neatness counts).  I tried to use as little glue as possible because my ribbon is sheer and I didn’t want globs of glue to show.

Peacock lamp shade tutorial

The ribbon was a bit too sheer for me, so I wound it around a couple times, secured it with the clip, and let the glue dry.

Then I created a bow, ran the shaft of feather through it, arranged it the way I wanted, and secured the whole thing with a jewelry finding and some hot glue.  The jewelry finding is important because it hides and holds the feather in place, but you could use anything you like, from a button to an old key.  I just happened to have a couple of those faceted gems leftover from another project (besides, I kinda liked the added bling).

That’s all there is to it. 

I love how this lamp looks when it is off or on.  When the lamp is off, the peacock feather adds a splash of sophisticated color.

Peacock lamp shade OFF

Peacock lamp shade OFF

When the lamp is on, the peacock feather looks like a pencil sketch.

Peacock Lamp Shade ON

Peacock Lamp Shade ON

I made a pair of these with slightly different bases to give away.

But for now, they’re adding a little light around the corners of my rooms.  I love having little pools of light in unexpected places around my home.  Don’t you want to walk into a room where a cozy light is shining?

Peacock Lamp ShadeThat’s what makes this gift so great.  Most people like light, and in the winter, we never quite get enough of it.  Give one or two hand-finished lamps and it’s sure to be appreciated.

Peacock lamp shade and tableAnother project is coming right up!  Stay tuned for another simply homemade idea tomorrow.

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Crafts 1 Comment

Simply Homemade: Snowman Votive Ornaments

Simply Homemade

A few  weeks ago, a friend shared a cute idea on Facebook.  Someone had taken an LED votive candle and turned it into a snowman by drawing eyes on the candle and plunking a little top hat on its head.

The idea was super clever, and I had a dozen little votive candles left over from my Pottery Barn knock-off chandelier project.  What a great way to use them up!

But the snowmen I saw were kind of…boring.  Drawn-on eyes were cute, and top-hats are nice, but I wanted my votive snowmen to be extra-special because I wanted to give them to my kids for their Christmas ornaments this year.

I wanted my snowmen to have real knitted hats and eyes that looked like rocks, just like real snowmen.  I wanted cheery scarves and rosy cheeks and sweet little smiles.  In other words, I wanted to take a bunch of boring, old LED votive candles and turn them into something my kids would treasure.

I stared at my votive candles, and soon, and idea began to take shape.

Votive to Snowman

From votive to snowman

This is exactly what I had in mind for my kids’ ornaments.  What a sweet little snowman he turned out to be!

If you’re like me, you’re going to want to make a whole tribe of these to give away.  And why not?  They’re much easier to make than a real snowman, and you won’t even have to put your mittens on to do it.  But go ahead and sip some hot chocolate while you work.  It helps to make better snowmen, trust me.

How to Make Snowman Votive Ornaments

Snowman votive hat

Make a snowman hat out of an old sweater

I wanted to make snug little hats for my snowmen, but I can’t knit.  Besides, who has the time for that?  Instead, I rustled around in my stash of clothes destined for the thrift store and found the perfect red sweater.  Fleece would have worked well, or just about any fabric that has a little stretch to it.

It only took a few minutes to make hats for all five of my snowmen ornaments.  You can probably figure it out from the photos above, but just in case, here’s the step-by-step.

1) Cut a strip of fabric about twice as long as the votive, but not quite twice as high.

2) It works best if the fabric scrap is shaped like a trapezoid.  If you don’t remember what a trapezoid looks like (high school geometry was a long time ago, I know), see the photo above.

3) Use a glue gun to put a strip of glue at the top of the trapezoid.  If you have a sewing machine, you could sew instead of glue, but there’s no need to be an overachiever.

4) Pinch the fabric together to form the top of the hat.  Don’t burn your fingers!

5) Glue the back seams together.

6) Roll up the bottom of the hat and secure it with a bit of glue.

Votive snowmen

Ta-da!  Your snowman won’t be bald!

Finish the hats with jingle bells and pom-poms.  I also added little touches to each one like sequin “snow” and holly berries made out of beads because I think these details elevate the gift from homemade to hand-crafted.  It doesn’t take much more time to add the details, but the overall impression is that someone cared enough to make it special.

Glue the hats to the tops of the votives, being sure not to block the “on” switch on the back, or access to the battery.  You’re welcome.

Use a pink permanent marker to draw rosy cheeks on the faces, then use two different sizes of seed beads for the eyes and mouth.  If you’ve got Super Glue, use it.  Hot glue makes too much of a mess on these tiny beads, but you need a strong glue or they will pop off.

Snowmen votive ornaments

Snowman votive ornaments

Pick out some Christmas ribbon, tie it in the middle, and glue it off to the side of your snowman’s “chin” for a scarf.  A few inches is all you need!

I bought a bunch of Christmas ribbon on clearance last year so I happened to have enough different kinds of red ribbon to give each of my five snowmen a different scarf.  My kids will love the fact that they each get their own, unique snowman ornament.  No two scarves or hats are the same!

Snowman votives

What do you think?  Are you ready to make a batch of cheery snowmen for yourself?  You can order votive candles here to get started.

Don’t forget to pin this idea to your Christmas board, or share it with a friend so they can make one for you!

Variations: These snowman votive ornaments don’t have to be saved for the tree!  Here are some ways they can be used to brighten up the holidays.

  • Use them with a gift tag to decorate your wrapped presents.
  • String them on a ribbon and make a decorative garland for the mantel or mirror.
  • Tie one to a gift card to add a little personal touch to an otherwise impersonal gift.
  • Add a magnet to the back and bring a little Christmas cheer to the fridge!
  • Place the snowmen on an outdoor wreath and turn the candles on when expecting company.
  • Put one by your child’s bed as a night-light.

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Simply Homemade: The Making of a More Meaningful Holiday

Simply Homemade

“Laura sat thinking.  She was making a little picture frame of cross-stitch in wools on thin, silver-colored cardboard.  Up the sides and across the top she had made a pattern of blue flowers and green leaves.  Now she was outlining the picture-opening in blue. While she put the tiny needle through the perforations in the cardboard and drew the fine, colored wool carefully after it, she was thinking how wistfully Carrie had looked at the beautiful thing.  She decided to give it to Carrie for Christmas.  Someday, perhaps, she could make another for herself.”

-Laura Ingalls Wilder, The Long Winter

Long ago, before I was born, Christmas was a simple season.  Black Friday had not yet been conceived of, nor had shopping malls and toy catalogs and parking lots without enough spaces.

On Christmas morning, real gifts were opened because there was no such thing as a “gift card” back then, and no one would think of sticking money in a card and calling it a present because that was rude, plain and simple.

The gifts, if any, were crafted in the secret corners on dark winter nights, fashioned with no little creative thinking out of the leftover bits and pieces of everyday life: a length of ribbon, a piece of leftover wood, some fabric that was too little to be made into anything else. 

The homemade presents were simple but delightful.  How could it not be delightful to give something you had created especially for  someone you loved?  And how could it not feel like a very special honor to receive it?

“Pa and Uncle Peter had each a pair of new, warm mittens, knit in little squares of red and white.  Ma and Aunt Eliza had made them. 

Aunt Eliza had brought Ma a large red apple stuck full of cloves.  How good it smelled!  And it would not spoil, for so many cloves would keep it sound and sweet.

Ma gave Aunt Eliza a little needle-book she had made, with bits of silk for covers and soft white flannel leaves into which to stick the needles.”

-Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little House in the Big Woods

How far we have come from those days!  Now, children concoct wish lists that sound like ransom notes and parents rush about, stressed within an inch of their lives, trying to give their children exactly what they want so the kids won’t be disappointed.  Somehow, disappointing the children on Christmas is the worst thing ever, even if the children are behaving like greedy little monsters. 

We feel guilty if we don’t “spend enough” on someone, or if we buy the “wrong thing” for someone we have allowed ourselves to feel obligated to purchase for in the first place.  When did we begin to feel compelled to give gifts to anyone?  Gift-giving should be an act of love, not a duty. 

Even so, most of us would never dream of giving a handmade gift to someone on our Christmas list, even if we resent the fact that we have to give them a gift in the first place.  Somehow, we’d rather purchase another scented candle to give to someone who doesn’t need it instead of making something simple but thoughtful.  Why? 

We are busy, to be sure, and many of us do not think we have the time to make anything for anyone.  But I think something else is going on in our culture.  I think we have come so far from the days of the past that we, as a society, now associate simple handmade gifts with poverty or stinginess, not creativity and thoughtful affection.

What a shame!

In each stocking, there was a pair of bright red mittens, and there was a long, flat stick of red-and-white striped peppermint candy, all beautifully notched along each side. 

They were all so happy they could hardly speak at first.  They just looked with shining eyes at those lovely Christmas presents.  But Laura was happiest of all.  Laura had a rag doll.

–Little House in the Big Woods

I wonder what would happen if, instead of rushing to join the crowds and feed the consumerism that has choked out Christmas, we attempted to make a more meaningful holiday by creating and giving thoughtful gifts to those we love?

They don’t have to be complicated.

They don’t have to be expensive.

They don’t even have to be time-consuming.

Homemade Christmas gifts can be thoughtful, meaningful, and simple.  Starting tomorrow, November 15, I will be showing you some ways to make a simply homemade Christmas.  These are projects that require no special skills.  Many of them can be done quickly or while watching It’s a Wonderful Life for the millionth time.

My hope is that these projects will jump start your creativity and get you thinking about ways you can bless your loved ones with one-of-a-kind gifts you created just for them.  Maybe you can even skip Black Friday altogether.  Wouldn’t that make Christmas even more delightful?

For tomorrow’s project, you will need brightly-colored seed beads, elastic thread, and a bit of ribbon. Now that’s simple.  

*The posts in this series may contain affiliate links for your convenience.

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Crafts, Gifts 9 Comments

I believe you can find grace for the mother you are and help to become the mother you long to be—a mom who has the freedom to choose the better things and enjoy her kids right now.

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