Some of them are souvenirs that we have bought on overseas holidays, or are gifts from dear friends. Our most precious decorations are the ones that our children made with their own chubby little fingers, and proudly brought home from kindy, daycare and preschool, and even sometimes as they got older too! I used to be into beading and embroidery, and so made some decorations too... and some of our decorations are little things I did with the kids as fun little activities, to fill in those long weeks when Craig was working and we were home alone.
According to Aussie tradition, these gumnut babies have to be hung somewhere so they can "see" a gum tree. (embroidered and beaded on cardboard by me)
one year, Cassie and I ceremoniously transformed her Kelly dolls into elves and pixies... Tim made the sparkly gumnut elf with googly eyes...
Cassie made this beaded gingerbread man...
you can make cool decorations using origami too... one small sheet of paper is all it takes!
the advent calendar... when my children were little this would have 3 lollies tucked into each heart pocket, and it was such a treat to take one out just before bedtime... ! The top heart would have 3 Freddoes; it was a tight squeeze to get them in there but you've got to have something a wee bit special for Christmas Eve!
a clothes peg with toothpick arms and wrapped up in embroidery thread makes a cute Father Christmas... don't you think?
a pine cone. stuffed randomly with glued-in cellophane and tinsel, makes a pretty good table decoration I reckon. This is the very first one Tim brought home from kindy, and the beginning of my obsession with non-commercial handmade decorations...
Our Christmas tree is like yours. A plastic tree bought when my daughter was born 15 years ago. When the kids & I were decorating the tree this year it took us forever because with each decoration we too stopped and reminisced. I also have things strung all over house that the kids made when they were little. I love pulling out these decorations each and every year. The kids do too.
ReplyDeleteOur Christmas things are simple too. I love the family sharing together more than anything else.
ReplyDeleteYour decorations hold much beauty and richness that nothing can replace.
I have three pine cones that my daughter painted as a very small girl. They come out every year, and love spills over again. Mave
Those decorations are priceless! Even though most of my decorations are "boughten", they were gifts or souvenirs - collected over many years, and every one holds a memory. Unfortunately, many of the pieces made by my children are no longer in such a shape that they can be put to use, but I couldn't get rid of them. Holidays are all about the making of family memories. Life would be too sad without them. No wonder my daughter demanded that I send "her" ornaments for the tree - she needs a bit of home to make the Christmas magic happen.
ReplyDeleteThese are the best kind of decorations.
ReplyDeleteI agree that homemade and sentimental ornaments make for the most wonderful trees. Our tree is covered in things that my siblings and I made, as well as things that my mother made when she was younger. The favorites are a set of 12-days-of-christmas ornaments that my mom embroidered, that my brother and I hang up in time to the song of the same name. Always fun!
ReplyDeleteHow great that your decorations are all so special, the reindeer are fantastic and I think I will have to try this!
ReplyDeleteHandmade ornaments are the best. My favorites in my family are the ones made by my grandmother and grand-aunt: styrofoam balls loaded up with sequins and ribbons.
ReplyDeleteAre those cork reindeer's your designs? I love them!!!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was married and a stay at home mom I did an all handmade Christmas one year. I did not successfully make EVERYTHING but I always remember that year and it was the best ever. Your decorations are lovely.
ReplyDeleteI love hand made decorations, too! My tree is a mix of a few new ones from our travels or gifts from people; handmade decorations by my friend who just passed away last month and my Mom (gone 21 years now); and old decorations with dates on starting with 1944, Mom and Daddy's first Christmas together. Putting up our tree is always an emotional journey for me.
ReplyDeleteI too love those reindeer...don't be at all surprised if my daughter "borrows" that idea!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a child our tree was always a real evergreen with our school made ornaments (my brothers paper straw and glitter straw, our clothespin people, construction papaer chains). Then I was a teenager my Mom started making these fabulous sequin and bead ornaments. So also handmade, and so beautiful! But too heavy for a real tree. There was general outcry at changing to all artificial, so for the rest of our family together time (until the youngest moved out) we had two trees... on real with all family made ornaments and one artificial with the blingy, but also handmade.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your gorgeous comments ladies!
ReplyDeleteErica Louise, those cork reindeers were my Dad's idea. He is a very creative man!
Wonderful decorations. Love the cork and stick reindeer.
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