Saturday, November 30, 2013

Tis the Season....to DIY and Decorate for Christmas

 I’m baaaccckkkk! It’s been far too long since I last blogged and I couldn’t let it reach December before I posted again. So, here I am! I’ve been a busy little bee this holiday season. It’s crazy to think Halloween and Thanksgiving are both over. But, that’s music to my ears because that means Christmastime is here! I will admit that Christmas has been on my mind for a while now. I watched Elf in September! Can you blame me though? The movie is great!
 
With Thanksgiving over (the food coma too!), my family and I have been gung ho about Christmas. Yesterday was the tree hunt and the hauling down of the decorations from the attic. Today is the fun part! We get to decorate the inside of house and the tree. Thanks to Pinterest, I was able to create some new decorations for the inside of the house. Check out my no sew sock snowman below!
 
 
HERE IS WHAT YOU WILL NEED:
  • Children's white socks: I purchased size 6-8 1/2 socks from the Dollar Tree
  • White rice: a 5lb bag is plenty to make 6 snowmen. I got my bag of rice from Wal-Mart for less than $3
  • 3/8" buttons: Michael's craft store (40% off for Black Friday weekend!)
  • Colored string and ribbon pack: Michael's craft store (40% off for Black Friday weekend!)
  • 9mm Jingle Bells: Michael's craft store (40% off for Black Friday weekend!)
  • Bows: 10 pack holiday colored bows (40% off for Black Friday weekend!)
  • Googly eyes: Dollar Tree
  • Toothpicks: Dollar Tree
  • Sharpies: orange and black
  • Rubber bands: thin rubber bands work
  • Tacky glue or hot glue gun
***You can use whatever you would like to decorate your snowman. These items are just what I used***
 
 
To make your snowman, simply pour a little less than a cup of rice into the sock. Wrap a rubber band around the sock to section off the base of the snowman. Repeat the previous step but use less rice so the middle section is a bit smaller than the base section. Again, do the same for the head of the snowman.  
 
With the remaining part of the sock (the pleated part), fold it up and over the snowman's head. Lift the bottom part back up to create the look of the hat. Look at the picture above for a closer look.
 
 
Use Tacky Glue or a hot glue gun to hold the sections of the snowman in place. I simply put the glue in between the sections and let it dry.
 
Now for the fun part: Decorating your snowman!
 
 
Glue the googly eyes, the bow (or ribbon), and the buttons to the snowman. Use black sharpie to make a mouth. Color the end of a toothpick orange and poke it through the sock. Do not break the toothpick to shorten it because the end will not be able to poke through the sock.
 
For the hat, I strung jingle bells on this colored string and tied it around the front so the bow can be seen. Put a dab of glue over the knot to seal it.
 
Ta-da! Your snowman is done! See how easy that was?! After you are ready to make your snowman family like I did. ;-) My little family (Mom, me, sister, brother, Dad) is now sitting on the mantel in the living rom.
  
Email me @meetmissparker.gmail.com with any questions about making snowmen of your own!
 
CHRISTMAS AT THE PARKER HOUSE 
 
While I was busy making snowmen for the inside of the house, my dad has been working even harder on getting the outside of the house ready for Santa. Take a look at the pictures below of the CRAZY holiday fun that happens each year at the Parker house!
 
The North Pole comes to little Rhode Island. My dad does an amazing job with his display! He has done it since before I was born. Each year it gets bigger and bigger! We are at the point now that Santa's workshop has made it to my lawn. I can't imagine what it will be in years to come! I love it all though! ;-)
 
Welcome to the inside of Santa's Workshop! Santa greets you at the end of the hallway in the chair that my dad built this year! (He is very proud of it!) <3
Here's a peek into the elves' toy shop! I love the tools on the wooden bench!
  Elf Quarters: Where Jingle, Hermie, Jangle, and Jolly sleep in their teeny tiny elf beds! ;-)

One of the reindeer peeking through the window!

Nutcracker standing by Santa!

Santa's (hard) bed! I will have to stuff some pillows under that blanket to make it a bit more comfy for Santa.

And of course, a Christmas tree!
Just when you thought the North Pole might be enough, there's more! Take a look at the outside part of our Xmas display!
This tree is my favorite! It looks so pretty decorated and covered in snow! <3 
My parents have always gone all out for Christmas. Even to the point that they dress as Santa and Mrs. Claus......
<3
My mom might kill me for posting that picture, so I guess I can sneak in a "normal" pic of my amazing parents!  
Thanks everyone for stopping by! Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and a safe Black Friday! Now, time for me to do some more shopping! ;-)
 
 
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