Category Archives: Tree

Our Tiffany’s Inspired Christmas Tree

Tiffany's Christmas Tree

This is our third Christmas in England (read about last Christmas here) and third year we have gone with my Tiffany’s inspired Christmas tree.  I had used this once before back when we were living in Hawaii.  Sadly as a person of high mobility I know the experience of losing things through out the years as you move. We lost a whole box of our Christmas decorations somewhere from Hawaii to England. So much of what I have on the tree we have acquired since living in the UK.  With a smaller budget and less Christmas holiday resources (lets be honest the USA really goes big when it comes to any holiday) I have been able to keep up the theme.

Tiffanys Inspired Christmas Tree

Aside from some of the token blue ornaments that did arrive I also had a few of the plastic diamonds that I had bought at a chain craft store in the US.  It originally was a huge tub of these plastic clear diamonds in three different sizes with holes perfect for ornament hooks.  I also had my Tiffany’s boxes, pouches, and bags that I have also graced my tree with this year. For hanging up the original boxes I pierced the box with a hand sewing needle twice and then threaded through a piece of white thread to make a loop from which I could hang it like an ornament. The two inch wide ribbon you see on the top of the tree has wire on either side which makes it easy to curl.  I suggest either using the roll of wrapping paper or for a looser curl a one pint size beer can. The mask at the top was a prop I had used on a photo shoot in Hawaii which I have used to put a little bit of my years growing up in Italia into our holiday.

Tiffanys Inspired Christmas Tree Tiffanys Inspired Christmas Tree

We have bought the rest of our ornaments at various pound shops (think dollar store).  Pound shops are great places to find Christmas decorations!  We have three different types of garlands on our tree and I found a matching tinsel garland this year which is across our tree on our mirror.  The big foam snowflakes, the silver ornaments, the silver bell ornaments, and the silver gift tags (yes they work great as ornaments) also came from the pound shop.

Get Creative!  I wanted to really punch the theme so I found those little white boxes in a wedding section of the store that you would use for reception gifts for guests.  I put them together, taped them up, covered them in the blue coloured tissue paper, and added white ribbon to get little Tiffanys inspired boxes for the tree.  I put in the ornament hook at the corner of the box so that it hangs at an appealing angle on the tree.

Tiffanys Inspired Christmas Tree

Tiffanys Inspired Christmas Tree

Tiffany's Christmas Tree

Tiffany's Christmas Tree Tiffany's Christmas Tree Tiffany's Christmas Tree Tiffany's Christmas Tree Tiffany's Christmas Tree Tiffany's Christmas Tree Tiffany's Christmas Tree

Tiffany's Christmas Tree

Tiffany's Christmas Tree

We also have a small (near enough to) three foot tall tree.  It was our main tree our first year here in England before a client at the salon gave me her big tree before moving out of the country.  The boys are using this one as their ‘free for all’ decorating.  I grew up with a mum who did similar.  We had a main tree that was decorated to a colour scheme and a smaller one we could decorate with all the other ornaments you collect through the years as a child. It is a beloved tradition we have carried on with our family and my boys had fun decorating their tree last night. It included our egg blown ornaments we made this week as a family as seen on Amanda’s blog in Making Your Own Christmas Egg Ornaments.  I decorate mine with a map on the bottom half (a keepsake from Wales) and a night sky on top.  The boys and my husband use tissue paper to collage their eggs with glue and I ended up joining in and making one more too. It is a fun idea for making DIY ornaments at home.

Tiffanys Inspired Christmas TreeTiffanys Inspired Christmas Tree Tiffany's Christmas Tree Tiffany's Christmas Tree

This year my kids opted to not use the star or angel on the top but our golden snitch ornament that we made with my sister, their Zia Zoe, last Christmas.  Want your own Harry Potter Snitch for your tree? Find an ornament in a gold shade and grab some paper, scissors, and glue.  I picked up our ornament for not very much at a charity shop and had my sister make the wings for the boys.  It is our favourite (non blue/silver) ornament for sure! Anyone else have a Harry Potter inspired ornament on their tree? I would love to hear about it!
HP Snitch Ornament HP Snitch Ornament Q: If you put up a tree this year, what was your theme if you had one? Or tell me what your tree looks like! 

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Looking for Travel Tuesday?  As it is Christmas Eve we have taken a week off to celebrate with family.  Check back next week on New Years Eve for the next edition of #TravelTuesday!

* Photography belongs to Bonnie Rose Photography © 2007 – 2013 All Rights Reserved | www.bonnie-rose.co.uk

 

Maddox makes decorations!

When I dropped Maddox off at school I got to see all the ornaments they have been making for school.  He was very proud to show me the ones he made specifically.  He looks forward to bringing them home at break so we can put them on our own tree.  Afterwards I stopped through town to check out the charity shops.  I found a huge tub of assorted legos for less money than a new lego set costs in the store.  I could not pass this up and so I bought it for the boys for Christmas.  I will just need to figure out how to wrap it up.

Maddox showing off some of his homemade decorations at school. 
Maddox and his classmates decorated these to hang up on their class tree. 
I really like the rudolph ornaments they made too! 
My charity shop find: a huge tub of legos!  This will be perfect for under the tree at Christmas. 

St. Nikolaus & the Shoes

I have picked up many a customs and traditions along my life as a nomad.  One of these is St. Nikolaus, from my time living in Germany.  On the Eve of December 5th, children put out a boot or shoe outside of their front door.  In the morning the children find that St. Nikolaus has filled it up with gifts and sweets after checking to see if the children were ‘good, polite, and helpful the last  year’.  The boys woke me up as they were opening up their goodies from their shoes.  There were candy canes, lego figures, toy airplanes, and a helicopter.  It is a nice tradition I have enjoyed thus far with my kids.  ‘Morty the Moose’ left some moose paper for the boys to make paper chains with today. They enjoyed the craft and we will have fun growing the chain through out the month.  

Maddox holding the candy and toys left in his shoe.
St. Nicholas came and filled the boys shoes with candy and small toys. 
Crumpets with jam and clotted cream
Ronan and Maddox at school. 
Lamb with sweet potatoes and roasted veggies.
Step One: Folding the wrapping paper in strips.

Step 2: Cut along the fold to create long strips.
Step 3: Cutting into smaller strips

Step 4: Fold strips into loops and tape to secure.  Add another strip into the loop and repeat.
Step 5: Hang up on the wall

Our hanging decoration.

Our Polar Express Christmas bells from  Christmas 2008
Bows, cookie cutters, bells, ornaments, and lights. 

Christmas Tree

 Today was the first day that we started playing Christmas songs at work.  Luckily they are laced in with the regular songs, so I think they will be enjoyable through the Holidays without getting over played.  When I stepped outside of work tonight, I noticed all the Christmas lights were up down the street in Burgess Hill.  It was very beautiful and seeing Christmas lights are one of my favourite elements of the season.  Upon coming home I decided I was in need of some holiday cheer. So the boys and I put up our Christmas tree.  I found this one the other day at a charity shop, originally from Marks & Spencers, for only 5 quid.  The boys and Ryan had gotten decorations from IKEA on their shopping trip today and so we got to decorate the tree together after dinner.  We have a red and silver theme this year, and it looks very Christmas-y in the corner.  I do miss my Blue and Silver ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ tree from Hawai’i.  But I look forward to building up our Christmas decor while we are living here in England.

Burgess Hill is lit up with Christmas lights. 
Ronan and Maddox decorating our tree
Our Christmas Tree 2011

Gingerbread Houses & More

Tonight’s Christmas craft was this Gingerbread house.  Ronan and Maddox had fun but wished it was edible so it could be eaten later.  Maybe we will have time next month to make a real gingerbread house to fulfill their wish.  I am not sure how easy it will be to find a gingerbread house kit here in England.  So far I have not seen one and that would mean we would have to make one from scratch.  Could be a fun adventure with gingerbread and sweets!  If all else fails and it crumbles, we can eat the evidence. 
Ronan and Maddox with our finished Gingerbread house. 
Gingerbread house has a very glittery roof. 

Decorated with lots of candy and sweets!

Today Maddox brought home a Christmas wreath that he made yesterday with his class.  The parents of his reception class were invited to stay in the morning to help them with the Christmas craft activities they were doing with the kids in Nursery.  Maddox got to hand paint on a Christmas tree, make a decoration for the tree, decorate part of a snowman, fill in the colour on Santa’s sleigh, and make a Christmas wreath.  There was lots of paper, paint, glue, and glitter involved and much fun was had by all.  I really enjoyed getting to spend the special time with Maddox in his class.

Green handprints to decorate the tree at Maddox’s school
Maddox decorated his ornament for the tree. 
Maddox with his decorated ornament…with a quite a lot of glitter!

A sleigh ride decorated with paper and material in different colours.

Decorating a snowman with scrunched up paper. 

Last craft was to make and decorate his own Christmas Wreath which he got to bring home today.
Ready to Deck the Halls with Christmas Cheer!