A Little Knick Knack

Guest Editorial- Home Security Family

2012-01-29T17:04:00.000-08:00

One of the most enjoyable aspects of owning a home is infusing it with personal style and character. A house is only truly a home based upon what’s in it: your belongings, decorations, furniture and most importantly, your family.

Via All Things Thrifty

To some it matters what sort of TV you place in the living room, or what kind of bookcases you line walls with. You may display precious antiques or collectibles, including family heirlooms passed through several generations. All of these things are part of your home, and contribute to its overall personality, quality and value.

Via All Things Thrifty

Similarly, it matters greatly which sorts of security features you include in your home. These features control the security not only of you and your family, but of your entire home environment. Here are just a few key security features:

House Alarm - The most common, most basic, and most necessary element of any home security system is the house alarm. These alarms serve two functions: they sound loud alerts in the event of an intrusion and they automatically contact the authorities. Because of these vital functions, and also because the alarm’s control panel can control your entire security system, a house alarm is an essential safety feature.
Motion Detectors - Motion detectors are becoming more common in household security systems. They provide you with a second layer of security and are relatively cheap to buy and easy to install. If an intruder somehow finds his or her way into your home at night, your motion detectors will provide the same protection as the house alarm on the inside of your home.
Yard Sign or Window Decal - One of the most significant and simple security features that you can buy is a yard sign for your front yard, or decal for your window. While these markers provide no tangible security of their own, they are in fact strong deterrents against crime. If a potential criminal sees a sign in your yard advertising the fact that you are protected by a security company, he or she will be far less likely to attempt to break into your home.

Home security is a choice for each homeowner. Hopefully, we are all doing our part to protect not only our belongings but our loved ones. Visit http://www.homesecurityfamily.com/adt-home-security/ for more information and helpful hints on how to protect your valuables and your family.

Everything but the Kitchen Sink Link Party

2012-01-27T06:48:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! Sorry to get this party up and running so late! We had a computer-free day yesterday. Ever have one of those? Where you just never get around to turning the computer on? It was kind of nice actually. We stayed busy with other activities....the kids, pretending and me, napping. It was a win-win for everyone. Every once in awhile, you need a computer-free day. It's amazing what else there is to do in life besides computer-related things (I'm talking not just about blogging, but about browsing, banking, betting---just kidding...thought it'd be funny keeping with the "b" words)! Oh, I'm not saying I'll give the computer up forever (obviously). But, every once in awhile, during the full moon...a break is sort of nice.

Now, on to last week's fav's!

Who doesn't love ice cream? And sprinkles? And cherries??? Are you with me?!? Randee's Organized Chaos shows us how to make these mini banana splits for a cool treat. She even managed to get these to her kids school for their special snack time. I think she deserves props for that as well. Yum!

I appreciate a good bedroom makeover as much as the next person, but Sung as a Bug Baby added some amazing vintage finds and furniture re-do's to make her kids room special. I love her colorful dressers and toy chest she painted and her vintage toys add a wonderful flair to the room. Come re-do my son's room....please??

And I love the specimen art that is out there in the world. Shaken Together shows us how she made this adorable bird art just in time for lovebird season---Valentine's Day.

Ever want to make a wreath? Out of a pool noodle and a sweater? No? Well, you should! The Creative Imperative shows us the step by step process she used to make this adorable wreath. So cute!

What the Graham shows us how she made this awesome barn door closet for her baby's nursery. Oh, I love. I want! It's a unique feature to the room and really makes things flow easier as well. Great job!

Fun projects, right? Be sure to grab a button off the sidebar if you were featured!

Time to party! Please take a moment to visit some other link-ups and leave some nice comments. We all enjoy those! Have a GREAT weekend everyone!

Baby Quilts

2012-01-22T18:35:00.000-08:00

I know I have shared this with you before...that my husband's Grandma is a champion quilter. Seriously, she has won competitions. I feel grateful to have received a few of her lovely quilts for keepsakes. The good thing about having lots of babies, is that you get a handmade baby quilt from Grandma Rosa Mae. I just wanted to share some of this loveliness...

This one was for my oldest daughter...who has a serious love of pink....

...she's the girly one.

This is for my second daughter...who has a serious love of all things color (right now her favorites are orange and green)...

I just love that intricate detail.

And here is my son's baby quilt....that makes me think of a circus, full of life and action and happiness...

....just like my son.

Everything but the Kitchen Sink Link Party

2012-01-19T16:59:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! Having a good week? We had such a lazy day today....and you can totally tell. The house is trashed! Ever have one of those days? Where you just have to sit back and let the day happen. Can't control it. Can't change it. Everything is what it is. I'm like Confucius today. So, here are some fun recaps from last week....as always don't forget to grab a button!

Our first blogger tonight brought us a wonderful way to organize and store our cookbooks. Ms. Smartie Pants found this cute shelf but also found a way to sneakily hide those mis-matched cookbooks and awkward cards we use to store our useful recipes. Excellent!

And I just fell in love with this mudroom makeover from At Home with K. I love old doors and she found a very cool way to use them! Oh, if I only had a mudroom....

And since the trend right now is moss (who doesn't love a good moss project? I have several projects around my house), I love, love, love this tutorial for a simple, cheap and elegant moss wreath from Less Than Perfect Life of Bliss. You have to check it out.

And, I never knew the official name of this window until I read this post, but now that I know it, I totally want it. Chapman Place shows us how to build our own Transom Window. It's divine and I love it!

And, finally, I fell in love with the colors and the detailed stencils on this piece from Petticoat Junktion. It's unique and bright and wonderful. I know she'll sell it soon!

And, have fun at the party! I would love it if you could visit some of your favorite link ups and say hello! Have a great weekend!

Tulips and Chocolate Cake

2012-01-18T05:53:00.000-08:00

Ever have one of those days? Where you need to just go into your room, lock the door, eat a lot of chocolate and maybe shed a few tears? Well, that day came and went for me last week and it was a doosey. I was seriously thinking of packing up my bags and heading to a deserted island, where no one would ask me to pick their nose for them or wipe up their bums. Where I wouldn't be expected to do the dishes or a million loads of laundry. Where I could sit back, relax and do what I wanted to do for a change. Ah, yes, that was a serious contemplation for me last week. I went so far as to let my husband know of my plans, so he could be home to take care of the kids when I made my Great Escape.

Well, he didn't let me escape. But, he did let me cry for awhile and he did take 1/2 a day off of work to come home and help me out. And he also brought me these....

....beautiful, white, sweet smelling tulips....

....in the middle of January....

....he also brought me a yummy, decadent piece of chocolate cake and told me I didn't have to share it with anyone....a mom's dream come true....

...sorry there are no pics of that....I'll tell you, though, it was quite yummy....

So yes, my hard day of wanting-to-give-up came and went and I survived and stuck through it all. The amazing thing was, the next day I had such an appreciation for my children, my husband and my life. It was almost like I woke up from a hazy sleep of misery and noticed all of my lovely blessings.

Then, I saw the piles of laundry....and so I looked at my lovely tulips, and closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and got to work. All the while, sneaking little bites of chocolate cake throughout my day. Life is not so bad. When you have tulips and chocolate cake.

Giveaway with Ramsign - CLOSED

2012-01-15T21:07:00.000-08:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Hey everyone! I'm so excited to introduce this next giveaway. We all love our homes, right? In fact, I believe that's what we are doing---making a house a home, with each crafty project with each post about our kids or our jobs. Our life revolves around "home" and making it ours. And with that comes our individual style shown through how we live.

I love old fashioned signs. They have a certain charm and elegance that's timeless. I fell in love with these enamel house signs when Ramsign contacted me for a giveaway. I only offer, what I feel, are quality products and services for the kind of interests we have here at A Little Knick Knack. And I think you'll enjoy these, too!

Ramsign is offering one lucky winner one house number sign (1 - 5 digits) of any size and design.

This is a fabulous way to customize your style for your home, for all to see and enjoy. Now, I know you want to know how to enter.....

(Excludes name or address plaques)

....so here's the scoop:
1. Become a follower of A Little Knick Knack.
2. Visit Ramsign's website and come back here to tell me what you love!
3. Join A Little Knick Knack's Facebook page and spread the word about this fun giveaway!

And that's it! Three chances to enter, three chances to win (please leave a separate comment for each entry). This giveaway will be open all week and will close on Sunday, January 22 at midnight. Winner will be announced Monday, January 23.

Good luck!

EBTKS Link Party

2012-01-12T16:55:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! Are you guys having a great week? I hope so! We are stuck in our house, with below freezing temps right now. It's so cold! And my kids still don't want to wear hats, coats and gloves! What's with those guys? They are never cold, it seems like. I had so much fun looking through last week's party. Such great ideas! Here are a few that caught my eye....

Look at these awesome candlestick makeovers from Larissa Hill Designs. I want one! I want them all!

And check out this super cool baby makeover by My Cowboys's Wife. She made all the adorable black and white bedding, and I love it!

And check out these hand-painted damask tile wall art from Our Mini Family. She gives a fabulous tutorial so go check it out!

And I love these scrabble tiles from Tattered and Inked. She has a whole post on some really cute and thoughtful little gifts and how you can hand make each one! So talented. Show her some blog-love and go say hi!

Ok, ladies if you were featured, don't forget to grab a button from the sidebar! Now, on to the party! Let's show lots of bloggy love and leave lots of comments this week, ok? I have a super fun giveaway to share with you next week! I hope you're excited and check back Monday for the info. Have a great weekend!

Shabby Apple SALE

2012-01-10T06:17:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! It's time to celebrate 2012 with an awesome sale at Shabby Apple! I love these clothes, I have one maternity dress and my sister has two of their amazing dresses (I can't wait until I'm post-pregnancy and can buy some of their cute non-maternity dresses as well!)

I am happy to give you guys a cool 20% off code that is good for the practically the entire site (excludes Saddle Line) until the END of January at Shabby Apple! Click on the Shabby Apple ad above to enter the site and start shopping!

Just use the code NEWYEAR at checkout to receive your 20% off!

Here's a reminder of some of their lovely dresses....

....oooh, I'm running to shop! Have fun!

Yummy Squares

2012-01-09T06:14:00.001-08:00

*Don't forget to enter the giveaway for a customized home number sign here! Going on until Sunday, January 22.*

Hey everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I feel much better! Caught up on a lot of sleep and had some fun relaxing times with family and friends. I might say I feel differently around 3:00 p.m. (why is that always the time I seem to need a nap?) but right now, I feel good.

Today I'm going to share a recipe from my Grandmother called Yummy Squares. She would make them for us all the time and we'd always end up sneaking them until they were all gone. They are DE-licious. And, very sentimental for me, since I miss my Grandma very much! Every time I make them I feel a bit closer to her. I hope you enjoy!

You'll need:
24 small squares (or 12 rectangles) of graham crackers
1 can of sweet and condensed milk
1 bag of semi-sweet (or milk) chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups of chopped walnuts

Here's my favorite part (it was when I was a kid, and it still is now!) My kids love this part, too....Take your graham cracker squares and put them into a large zip-lock bag.

Seal the bag and then take your rolling pin and smash, roll, and squish those squares until they are dust. Ok, well, not that much, but until they look like this....

Now throw all your ingredients together and mix thoroughly.

Take and 8 x 8 inch pan (spray liberally with your non-stick spray) and spread out your mixture. Use your fingers to pat it flat and get it nice and even in your pan.

Cook on 300 degrees for 35-40 minutes. The sides should be lightly brown and the top will pretty much look the same. Just make sure it's a little stiff and not to mushy. Let cool for 1/2 an hour (sometimes I even stick it in the freezer to help this process out).

Cut into small 1 x 1 inch squares...and gobble, gobble, gobble....

Oh, they are delicious....I admit, I ate a few....

But, I'm willing to share.....

These are great and easy to make! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. Have a wonderful week!

EBTKS Link Party

2012-01-05T19:10:00.001-08:00

Hey everyone! I hope you are all having a great week! This ole pregnancy of mine is taking its toll on me this week! I have been an exhausted, hormonal wreck. My poor husband has been getting weird texts like, "bring home chocolate. Stat." And, "the kids are driving me crazy and I'm putting them to bed at 5:30." Hopefully, this is a pregnant phase, and sanity will return, shortly. Cross your fingers. Now, on to the party! Have fun!

A Year in Review: Popular Posts of 2011

2012-01-03T10:59:00.000-08:00

It's always good to reflect on life, isn't it? And what better time to do that than in the new year?! I have been mentally making my little new year's resolutions (nothing too big....I try for big and usually end up getting upset with the results, so small is better....like brushing my teeth every morning...I know, gross right? But, sometimes, the day just gets away from me and it's around lunch time when I remember that I haven't taken care of my pearly whites! For shame! Anyway, that's just an example....)

I thought I'd share with you some of the most popular posts you guys seemed to enjoy for 2011....it was a little surprising for me (a GOOD surprise), but I love that you love this stuff! So, here goes, with the top 5 of 2011!

#5 Canvas Re-Painted and some Thrifty Finds (1,004 views)

#4 Master Bath Re-do (1,016 views)

#3 A Little Hallway Organization (1,091 views)

#2 Wooden Block Display (1, 148 views)

And....in the #1 Position....

French Canvas Pillows! (1,258 views)

You guys have been so awesome! I hope you realize how grateful I am for each one of you who comes to visit and leave a lovely comment on my little blog. It's a happy part of my day and I'm so glad to share it with you. Have a great year and I look forward to sharing more projects with you in 2012!

Felt Flower Scarf

2012-01-02T17:06:00.000-08:00

I saw this felt flower scarf on a link party and had to try and make it for my mom for Christmas. I thought it was so cute....and so "mom." She has great style. Anyway, here it is from Watch Me Daddy...I used her awesome tutorial as well.

Watch Me Daddy

And here's my version...I know, I loved it so much I even got the same color....

The flowers were fun to make, but it took a LONG time. There are a lot of circles and a lot of sewing to make them as cute as they are....

...but it was all worth it in the end!

I thought that it would look cute on me, too, so I bought some felt in black. I am not going to lie, cutting all those circles and making those beautiful flowers gave me a blister on my fingers, so it may be after Christmas before I attempt to make my lovely scarf.

Hope mom likes it!
Update: She loved it! ;)

EBTKS Link Party

2011-12-29T09:13:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! I hope you're having a great holiday vacation (if you're having a vacation, and I really hope you are!) and getting lots of relaxing movie time in right now. If you're still up for blogging, here's this week's Everything but the Kitchen Sink! I'd love for you to visit some of the other link ups and show some blog love! It's always fun when we stop by and say "hi!"

Have a wonderful and happy New Year!! Now, on to the party!

White Chocolate Popcorn

2011-12-26T18:18:00.000-08:00

Welcome back, bloggy friends! We had such a great Christmas with our family---and we're still enjoyoing each other's company. I hope you guys had a great Christmas as well. Time to get ready for New Years! Here's a fun tasty treat to make for any occasion....

This year we decided to make it simple for our friend gifts. We got a million bags of this....

....and added a little bit of this (put your popcorn in a large brown grocery bag, add the melted almond bark and SHAKE)....along with some dried cranberries.....

.....Spread it out on this to dry.....

Yum....cranberries.....

....and then bunched it up in these....

...and ta-da! A yummy Christmas snack for all to enjoy! We had a ton left over and my kids just went to town. It was deeee-licious!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Christmas!!

2011-12-21T20:29:00.001-08:00

Hey everyone! It's finally here! Christmas is around the corner and like many of you, I'm excited to spend a few days with family and friends. So, I'll be back next week and I wish all of you the very best Christmas and a lovely New Year!

Guest Blogger - In This Crazy Life

2011-12-20T05:29:00.000-08:00

Hello, lovelies!

I'm Bethany, a wife, Momma, professional teenager wrangler and blogger from over at In This Crazy Life. I'm super thankful to Meg for letting me hijack A Little Knick Knack for the day to share with you some of what is going on in my world!

I like to say my blog is about life with a shot of sarcasm, lots of laughs and tons of love...because if I didn't have those three things I would seriously be bald by now (I cant drink at work, so I gotta have an outlet!). I am the wife of the best guy I know, Mommy to my gorgeous little man, an avid DIY-er, cheapskate extraordinaire, a ninth grade science teacher, and lover of all things creative. My life is a basket o' crazy fo 'sho...every day is an adventure and not always one I wish I was on.

One of my favorite sayings is that the best ideas spring from necessity- and its necessary that I have pretty things on the cheap. So rather than pay for them, I figure out how to DIY them with my crafty ways and my husbands extensive power tool collection.

One of my favorite DIY projects was Grayson's subway art. I had been drooling over these online for weeks, but couldn't bring myself to pay the $26 for a piece of paper and like twenty-five cents worth of ink from my printer. (Esp. when they wanted $5.95 for shipping- its a piece of paper for crying out loud, a stamp would have shipped it!)

Also in an effort to get myself organized before Grayson's arrival I made these closet size organizers. I started with size dividers I got from eBay in an attempt to organize all his little clothes. They're super cute and work well for Daddy's who don't realize that a week old baby will swim in a sleeper that's for 18 months and Grandpa's who forgets that an 11 pound kiddo just isn't going to fit into them super teeny newborn pants. (My kid looked like he was preparing for the flood, it was hilarious.)

My other love is food. You don't gain 40+ pounds while preggers when you're on a diet. Nope, I lived it up. However I'm a firm believer that food should be easy, inexpensive and should not take more time to make than to eat. Now that the bean is here, we have to figure out how to make some of our restaurant faves at home; like these cheater Cheddar Bay Biscuits that kick the butt of the ones at Red Lobster because I added bacon. Mmm. Bacon.

Well that's me in a nutshell, lovelies! Thanks for letting me hang out today, Meg, its been a blast! Hope you'll all stop by and see what else I have going on sometime!

Happy Tuesday!

XOXO,

Bethany

*Thanks for visiting, Bethany! You have one cutie pie son and some great ideas. I hope you all can go show Bathany some blog-love and stop by and say hello!

Mini Burlap Stockings

2011-12-16T10:29:00.000-08:00

http://www.betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/ I love burlap! As part of my friend presents, I made these little burlap stockings. I was going to do a little tutorial, but honestly, I changed the pattern every time I sewed a stocking (I wasn't in love with any of my original designs) and just had fun with it.

At first, I made one side burlap and one side fabric.

Adding contrasting threads and fun zig-zag patterns makes it more fun!

These are my total burlap stockings with "JOY' stamped on the front for some merriment....

I bought three different colors of burlap (chocolate brown, white, and sage green)...I think I like the white the best.

Guest Blogger - We Like to Learn as We Go

2011-12-16T06:23:00.000-08:00

*Hey everyone! I hope you have fun meeting Alexis from We Like to Learn as We Go today. She has some really fun ideas and a super cute daughter to try them on! Be sure to scroll down for the latest EBTKS Link party! Have a great weekend!

I'm so excited to be here on A Little Knick Knack! I have a fun and easy craft that I want to share with you that will look great in your home for the holidays! A few things about me - my name is Alexis. My husband and I have been married for 2 years and we have a beautiful 9 month old girl.

We've learned a lot in the short time we've been married and thought it would be a good idea to write a book about all the things newlyweds need to know. But I decided to start with my blog We Like to Learn as We Go to share the things I learn every day as a wife, mom, crafter, and cook. It's a very fun journey!

I went to Home Depot the other day to get some wood and cut some blocks for other projects I'm working on. The last block was a little smaller which I thought would be perfect for my Snowflake Block!

Here's what you need:

- Wood Block (mine was 6.5 x 9 x 1.2)

- Sandpaper

- Ribbon

- Scrapbook Paper

- Mod Podge

- White Paint

- Paintbrush or Sponge

- Letter Stickers

- Snowflake Ornament

Start with your block of wood. Use sandpaper to smooth out the edges and corners.

Cut the scrapbook paper so that it covers the front, left, and right sides of the block.

Mod Podge the paper on the block. Make sure to Mod Podge under the paper and then again on top to make sure it sticks well and gives it that mod podge look.

I already had this sparkly snowflake ornament, but you can use any type of snowflake you have! Outline the snowflake with a pencil so you know where to paint.

Use a paintbrush or sponge to dab on white paint where the snowflake will go. I didn't think the snowflake stood out enough on it's own so the white paint gives it a good background color.

Use a glue gun to glue the snowflake on the white background.

Then use sticker letters or vinyl letters to make the words Let it SNOW and tie a lovely ribbon on the side and you're done! A super cute decoration for the winter holidays!

Thanks again for letting me guest blog here on A Little Knick Knack! I hope to see you over at We Like to Learn as We Go!

- Alexis

EBTKS Link Party

2011-12-15T17:35:00.001-08:00

Hey all! Time for another fun party! I'm trying to post this from a remote location, so we're going to go with the basics today. Have fun and be sure to visit other fun link ups and share the love! Have a great night!

Guest Blogger - Twinkle Toes

2011-12-14T05:58:00.001-08:00

*Hey everyone! I'm so excited for today's guest blogger, Tina from Twinkle Toes. She's one of my oldest blog-friends and we've had her here lots of time to share her talents! Her family is currently living half-way across the world (sniff!) but since the internet has no boundaries, we're able to have her back today! Yeah!

Hi, there! I'm Tina from Twinkle Toes and I'm so excited to be guest posting at A Little Knick Knack!

You may remember me from the Sew Basic Series that Meg and I hosted last spring, where we took you step by step through some basic sewing principles and techniques while making a cute pillow case. I'm married to my high school sweet heart and am a stay at home mom to one little girl. I love to sew, craft, run and travel. My little family and I just started a big adventure when my husband's company asked him to do an international assignment. So we left our home in Ohio and are now living in Luxembourg, which is a tiny country that borders France, Germany and Belguim. Last year, I shared this easy and inexpensive holiday craft on my blog and I plan on making more this year. It's a perfect gift for teachers, babysitters or your girlfriends.

Homemade Bath Salts

You’ll need:

1 clear jar (I run mine through the sanitize cycle in my dishwasher, or you can submerge them in boiling water for a few minutes)
1 scrap of fabric or burlap Ribbon or string
Cardstock paper
Epsom salt
Baking soda
Essential Oil in any fragrance (lavender and peppermint are my favorites). You can also use lemon juice or vanilla extract.

Mix three cups of Epsom salt (regular table salt won't work - it makes skin really dry!) with one or two tablespoons of baking soda. Then add 10-12 drops (more or less depending on how strong you want your fragrance) of essential oil and mix well. Pour your mixture into your jar and make sure that it seals well. You want to keep this as dry as possible because moisture will cause it to get clumpy. Cover the jar with fabric, tie it with a ribbon and attach a note to add 1/2 cup to a warm bath and relax!

If you want to make this little project even easier, I found this bag of lavendar salts at Wal-Mart for less than $5. You could simply pour this into a pretty jar and top it off with a festive fabric and note.

Thanks, Meg, for having me over again. Merry Christmas!

Blog Swap with Creative Juice

2011-12-12T05:54:00.000-08:00

*Hey everyone! I'm so excited to introduce you to the amazing ladies at Creative Juice! I'm over at their blog sharing an old family recipe, so I hope you can go over there and say hi to me, too! Enjoy!

we are so excited to be visiting here today
to share a fun and easy holiday craft!
do you like to party?

at creative juice that is pretty much what we do!

party crafts, decorations, favors,

printables, recipes, and more.

here are some of our recent parties

today i am sharing a super easy craft

pepermint ornaments

and

a free christmas printable

unwrap pepermints

place in ziplock bag

crush

sift out the small pieces

line metal cookie cutters on non stick bake sheet {silpat}

arrange large pieces of pepermint in cookie cutters

place in oven at 350 for about 6 min

{or when you see that they are melted}

remove cookie cutters while they are STILL HOT

use a skewer to make hole when it is WARM

{i like the flip side of the melted candy}

grab some string and hang on your tree

click HERE to download

your FREE christmas printable!

happy etertaining

mindy starr

from

CREATIVE JUICE

find us on facebook

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

2011-12-11T07:11:00.001-08:00

Ok, I was waiting for a sunny day to take some fun Christmas pics, but since those seem to be few and far between, I figured I just need to go Nike...JUST DO IT. So, I did....on a nice gray morning when it was snowing. Ahhhh....winter.....

Anyway, we finally have some Christmas up and I'm loving it! I change a little, tiny bit every year and it makes the holidays so fun. This year, I changed out my book wreath in my front entry way to my green burlap rag wreath....

Like I need a sign to tell me it's cold outside?

Aren't these candle holders LOVELY? I love the chippy paint and the chunkiness. I found them at a little antique shop for CHEAP. It deserves caps, ya'll! These were old banister and spindle parts that someone brilliantly drilled holes on top for candles. Love....

Some shiny tinsel up the banister....

Now, let's have an Elvis Blue Christmas for a bit, ok? These pics were taken out in the gray dreary world, and somehow my white balance was off, so they ended up....blue-ish. But, you will get the general idea.

I made another ornament wreath since my dear hubs threw away my last one (why??? WHY???). It was such a simple project, though, so I wasn't too upset (WHYYYYY????).

I decided to go white, silver and red this year.

I found these white-flocked wreaths at Michael's for $3.50 a piece! Oh yeah!

And then we always have to decorate the outside tree for the seasons and we picked these lovely white, silver and red snowflakes. They sell them in packs of 5 for $1 at Target. Yesssss......

I love glass and we have a lot of it around the home (I'm not going to lie, a lot of it is broken because of my adorable children)....and I like to use the $1 spot (Target) mini ornaments to bring some festiveness to the space.

Oh, who loves oranges at Christmas??? I do!!!

Also, candy makes a fun and yummy decorations!

My little cloche is now protecting my favorite nativity scene....kids...stay away.....

And my centerpiece this year was a mod-podge collection of old bottles (spray painted silver), glass candle holders and mason jars with candles everywhere....I like.

And I'm all about adding the natural elements into your decorating scheme. These are my lovely cinnamon scented pine cones....mmmm.....so Christmas-y

So, it's finally Christmas around here and we are so excited. We have gotten exactly 0 presents for the kids, so I kind of need to get on that. But, I love the festiveness of the season and seeing my kids faces every time they see our tree or check out the toy houses we have on display....is priceless!

EBTKS Link Party & Features

2011-12-08T17:23:00.001-08:00

Hey all! Sorry I'm a bit late. My lovely kid decided to keep the sink on in our upstairs bathroom....with the sink plug in. So, she flooded the bathroom....which in turn leaked through the floor and down in to our downstairs bathroom. I was blissfully unaware, folding laundry, when my son came up to me and said, "mom, it's raining in the bathroom!" Needless to say, we've been mopping, dry-vac-ing, wringing out towels all night long. Sheesh.

Anyway, I'm finally taking a break to bring you this week's Everything but the Kitchen Sink! We had such a great turn out last week! Here were some fav's....

Craftberry Bush shows us how to make a sparkly crystal ornament to beautify any tree. It's so simple, you'll be amazed!

And I love this advent calendar from Our Forever House! Using ornaments?!? Directly on your wall (no fuss?)?!? I'm all for this simple yet elegant advent calendar!

Artsy VaVa shows us what to do with burlap with these amazing burlap trees. They look elegant, whimsy and beautiful all at once. How does she do that???

And Tales of a Trophy Wife (aren't we all???) shows us how she made this adorable rag wreath. She loved it so much, she made one for each season and then for presents! If it's that easy, I may have to give it a try....

And check out these cool hymnal trees from Plum Doodles. I love these! And those are simple candlesticks they are on, can you believe that? Awesome.

Aren't those all so cute? Don't forget to grab a button if you've been featured (on the sidebar)! And, please scroll down for a free Christmas cupcake topper printable from All Things Fee! Enjoy the party!

Guest Blogger - All Things Fee

2011-12-07T16:33:00.001-08:00

*Hey everyone! I hope you enjoy what Felicia is offering you today! She has some amazing ideas so be sure to check out her blog as well. Have a wonderful day!

Hello A Little Knick Knack Friends!

I'm Felicia and I create, cook and play over at All Things Fee!

Thanks Megan for letting me stop by!

As the season of giving is already upon us, I decided I wanted to give my readers a gift!

And what better way to do that, than with a freebie!

Recently, I have become addicted to designing these cute digital cupcake toppers!

So much so that I started to offer them here.

All you have to do is print them on card stock!

I've made Jessie Cowgirl Birthday Toppers,

It's A Boy! It's A Girl! Toppers,

Halloween, and Thanksgiving Toppers too!

With lots of plans of adding more in the New Year!

And now you can get these Holiday toppers free, just for stopping by!

(When you stop by you will be able to access and save the toppers without the copyright on them!)

Classic Red and Green Christmas Colored:

OR:

Blue and Silver:

Cupcake Toppers are 2" in diameter.

To create Toppers:

-Save File to your computer

-Print on Card Stock or Heavyweight Paper

-Attach a Toothpick to pack of topper, or laminate and place right in frosting

To create other matching Party Accessories Think About Printing:

-Magnets

-Sticker Paper

-Gift tags

Become a follower of the shop to be the first to know about FREEBIES, SPECIALS & NEW ITEMS!

Enjoy!

Thanks again Megan for letting me stop by!

Wishing each and everyone of you a happy and healthy holiday season!

Guest Blogger - How to Nest for Less

2011-12-05T21:07:00.001-08:00

Hi everyone! My name is Erin and I'm the DIY wannabe behind How to Nest for Less!

I'm excited to be guest blogging with Megan at A Little Knick Knack for her Christmas series! I'm a HUGE fan and so grateful to be sharing a quick and easy project with you guys today. So the holidays are fast approaching and I feel like I'm running out of time to get new Christmas projects completed in time for our upcoming parties. So how about a quick splash of holiday décor? Voila! FIVE MINUTE TINSEL TREES!

Oh how I love the Dollar Tree! While wandering aimlessly through the aisles the other day to kill some time, I spotted some 9ft tinsel garlands that were screaming for a cheap project.

I scooped up 4 garlands (2 red and green, 2 red and gold).

I found some cheap cardboard cones from Michael's in the Christmas section. I picked up two small and one large and planned to make some cheap and fun tinsel trees!

First thing I did was get out my hot glue gun. I glued one end of the tinsel garland to the top of one of the small cones.

I then wrapped the tinsel around the cone all the way to the bottom and glued along the bottom edge.

Once the glue was dry, I went back and glued the loose midsection of the garland to the base. Much easier to space out my tinsel this way!

And that's about it! Super easy 5 minute project! The best part? All three Christmas tree cones cost less than $8!

These are absolutely perfect to scatter around the home, use as a centerpiece or end table décor. I actually have mine on huge candlestick holders on my fireplace hearth. LOVE.

Well, thanks for letting me share a new project with you guys! And Megan, thanks so much for inviting me to A Little Knick Knack for the day.

Much ♥ to everyone, Erin

Erin is a St. Louis based designer, wife, mother and author of the blog How to Nest for Less.