Advent Wreath - Revisited

 

I worked on my Advent wreath again today.  I appreciate all of your kind words but I just felt it needed more.  For starters, every time the boys tried to move it, the candles would fall and get dinged - can't have that.  This is much more secure for them to move on and off the table.  

I had this idea when I was taking a shower yesterday.  The shower is the only place I have where no one bothers me!  LOL!!  I think this will work fine.

I wonder if this is now an Advent Basket?!

Advent Wreath? I need help!

Advent has started and I am so unprepared.  I do not have the traditional wreath of evergreens and berries.  I did well just to have the candles.  I had bought them back in the summer at Big Lots.  They are not exactly what I wanted but much cheaper than ordering them online.  I tried hundreds different candle holders, plates, bowls, etc...  I'm frustrated.  But, since I needed the candles for our meal tonight, I used what I had.  I like the simplicity but feel that the candles need dressing - maybe with some twine or a band of brown paper?  I don't know, maybe you could suggest something?

The vintage cloth that it is sitting on is the only thing I really love.  Isn't it pretty?  I can just imagine some housewife laboring over this.  I thought it was perfect for Advent.  It reminds me of poinsettias.

I am linking to Heidi's"Make Do and Mend."

Thankful Tree - New Beginnings

I decided that even though I liked my first tree, that it did not have enough branches for all of us to hang our thanksgiving leaves and it was asymmetric (which kinda bugged me as well).  So, Deniska and I went into the woods and he found this branch, which I love so much better.  It even still has a few green leaves left on it at top.  I left those on to remind us that even when we feel bare and deserted, we can always find some joy and life.  

Thankful Tree

 

This year, our family started a thankful tree.  Every day we write down what we are thankful for.  Each of us has a different color.  Dennis is brown, Nikolai is red, Deniska is orange, and I am yellow.  By the time Thanksgiving get here, we will have listed 92 things we are thankful for - and this will just be a drop in the bucket of how richly God has blessed us.   

 Deniska helped hang the leaves tonight.  He is such a good helper!

Of course, he had me take a silly picture showing how hard it was to hang all the leaves!  Silly boy!

This is a very frugal project.  The tree came out of the woods, the acorns (around the top of the bucket) also came from the woods.  I cut the leaves out of construction paper.  I used a leaf die cut.  And, the scissors and thread are necessary as well.  We had all these things on hand and did not have to buy anything.  That's my type of craft!

I am linking to Heidi's Make Do and Mend page.  

And, to Sew Many Ways

Maxie's new dress

Maxie is our 6 month old Sheltie.  She came to live us this past Thursday and taken over the house.  We all love her except for the cats.  They just tolerate her.  Deniska begged me to make her a dress to wear.  So, Saturday night, he picked out the material and I made a pattern.  It didn't cost anything except a little of time. She looks cute, don't you think?  I don't see her wearing this very often but it made Deniska happy and that is all that matters.

I am linking to Heidi's Make Do and Mend Monday.