holiday decor ideas
Aubrey from Hello Maypole is sharing a simple yet festive decor idea that could be used for Christmas or any other holiday throughout the year.
I’m the valedictorian AND homecoming queen of the school of “More is More,” but I realize not everyone subscribes to my same philosophy. A felt ball garland is a simple (if you’re into that) way to add some festivity and happiness to your home to dress up your mantle, tree, banister, walls, or bare ledges. But it’s even MORE festive and MORE happy when it’s gussied up a bit. To dress it up for the holidays, I sifted through the craft room and the junk drawers around the house for whozits and whatzits galore to throw into the mix.
Scraps of fabric, jingle bells, ribbons, and trim – the sky’s the limit with baubles to add. Surely I’m not the only one who has the just-in-case stash of buttons from coats and button-downs -- those would make great additions, too! We even pulled in some miniature bottle brush trees that I picked up from the craft store. I’ll experiment with miniature ball ornaments when I create my next garland. I think the play on similar sizes, but mixed materials, will be super playful!
To create this garland, use a needle and baker’s twine to string the felt balls and jingle bells. I prefer a size 18 darning needle because it’s long enough to go the whole way though the felt ball and pull through the other side, it’s sharp enough, and it has an eye big enough to carry the baker’s twine. We used ribbons in two fashions -- tied in a knot and cut with a v-shape at the edges as well as strung through our garland to showcase the specific words (in this case) or patterns. Some baubles should be added in line with the felt balls, like the bells, while others, the knots of ribbons for example, can be added after the fact to fill in empty spaces.
The felt balls will move across the garland with ease but will also stay put where you leave them. There’s no need to add knots before or after each felt ball to keep it in place. This makes for a super flexible decoration that can be designed to fit your space as you need. A good rule of thumb is to create a garland that is 1.5 times the length of your space to account for “swag.” If your mantle is six feet long, for example, use a nine foot string and space the felt balls and accessories accordingly. The garland can be attached with Command hooks, washi tape, or small nails. Add a few between the ends to swag the garland. These can be spaced evenly or randomly with varying lengths of garland hanging between the hooks. There’s no wrong way to space or add to the garland. Every way is the right way! And every way makes your home a happier, more festive place!
Felt balls are definitely the "thing" lately and we are loving this Merry and Bright holiday décor that our friend Katie Sabin of Just Add Sunshine whipped up.
I LOVE color and the more the merrier! Especially in my holiday décor. I also love crafting and working with paint and wood. So this year I’m adding these DIY houses to my Christmas decorations and oh how I love them!
They are perfect for a personal craft session and especially great and easy for little ones to join in and paint! The houses were cut from a piece of 2x2 wood and the little wood hearts and stars were found at a local craft store.
The super fun part of this project is that you can make them look however you’d like! Use paper, glitter, paint—imagine away!
Aubrey and Katie are both ultra talented and I am loving the way they used non-traditional colors in their decor ideas! Be sure to visit both of their sites for a ton of inspiration!
