The Awesomest Garland Ever

I alluded to it yesterday on Twitter and, despite my declared laziness, got a few requests for pictures of my homemade Christmas garland.

(Before you purists get up-in-arms, please understand that I am not in full-on Christmas decorating mode. I simply have so much going on plus so much in the way of Christmas decorations that I'm trying to do a little at a time instead of killing myself in one day. So far I have my Christmas wreath on the front door and this garland over the large arched doorway of the dining room. My goal is to proceed this way until I am fully decorated right before Thanksgiving, when the only thing I want to worry about is turkey. Then I can come off my Thanksgiving high and enjoy a fully decorated home! At least that's the plan.)

Well. Here I go, putting my crafting skills to the test.

I love it. I walk through this doorway, get distracted by all the pretty things in the garland, and stand there, dazed, at least 37 times a day.

I'm not afraid of loving things I make myself.

Don't worry: there are plenty of birds, feathers, and exotic-looking leaves and branches to probably injure an innocent passerby if this sucker decides to collapse under its own weight. I hope our homeowner's insurance covers this.

I simply wrapped together (not using any wires) three separate garlands (two different types of evergreen and one fancy-schmany green leafy one), wired the resulting mega-huge garland to some strategically placed nails in the wall, and then poked lots of fun things (leaves, birds, sticks, glittery things, feathers) into the garland itself. Nothing is glued or wired, except for the wire holding the garland itself to the wall. This will make it super easy to take apart and cannibalize after Christmas.

All in all, the supplies probably cost me $10, if even that. I got the evergreen garlands for about $.10 at a garage sale and the pretty leaf garland for $2 at another sale. The frosted sticks cost me $.50 at yet another sale. The other picks and such were either stuff I had around the house or ones I picked up at Michael's and Hobby Lobby on sale. And you'd pay $50, easily, for something this elaborate from Hobby Lobby. I love elaborate and I hate paying $50. Perfection in crafting!

If you are looking for more detailed instructions on this sort of thing, go here. I heart the Nester.

I also heart this yogurt-and-granola-loving girl.

She's a mess 87% of the time. It makes for a messy home.

I wouldn't have it any other way.