Embracing Nature: DIY Christmas Centrepieces and Wreaths

The holiday season is upon us, and there's nothing quite like bringing the raw beauty of nature into our homes to create a warm and festive atmosphere. This Christmas, let's ditch the store-bought decorations as much as possible and embrace the art of crafting stunning centrepieces and wreaths using natural materials. Not only is it a creative and sustainable endeavor, but it also infuses your space with the enchanting scents and textures of the season.

Begin your Christmas crafting journey with a foraging adventure. Take a stroll through your local park or wooded area, and gather an assortment of evergreen branches, pinecones, dried berries, seed pods and twigs. Look for unique textures and colors to add depth to your creations.

The beauty of crafting with natural materials is the endless opportunity for personalisation. Consider incorporating elements that hold sentimental value, such as ornaments from past holidays or small trinkets that carry special memories.

Whether you're hosting a gathering or simply enjoying the cosy ambiance, these DIY centrepieces will undoubtedly add a touch of elegance to your holiday celebrations. Happy crafting!

 

Holidays at Home

Like most of the people, I've stopped for a moment to reflect on this past year.  To be honest, I went through some major life challenges, and I needed time for grieving, learning my lessons and then getting back on track. Of course, with everything going on, the blog has been unfairly neglected. Since I've really missed blogging, I look forward to dedicating more of my mind and soul to it next year. At the moment, I am utterly enjoying my temporary home filled with love, passion, creativity, thoughtfulness and harmony. In conclusion: everything wasn't so bad after all... It never is. May you all have a blessed new year. Cheers, lads and lasses!

Classy Halloween

This year I decided to make my Halloween decor classy and slightly theatrical, but with just the right amount of macabre. The main idea was to visually tell little fragments of stories using motifs typically related to autumn and Halloween, as well as using some unexpected props to give it a personal touch. Instead of carving it, I decorated one of the pumpkins with studs which doesn't require much effort, but looks very chic and edgy. Also, I wrote verses of one dark poem by A.G.Matoš (one of the most significant Croatian writers sometimes compared to E.A.Poe) with a black marker on another pumpkin. Framing old, black and white photographs I acquired from my grandparents' archives and using transparent bottles and jars as candlesticks and vases all contributed to the mysterious atmosphere I was trying to accomplish. My Venetian masks and some other souvenirs also played a great role in creating this styling. I have to admit that sitting in a room with one corner transformed like this only adds to that particular cosy feeling you get this time of year... Well, I hope this post inspired you to look around the market or your attic and find interesting objects you would have otherwise overlooked. Happy Halloween, lads and lasses!

DIY Clay diamond and tealight holder

Waking up my inner sculptor (just kidding). A while ago I got this idea to make geometric home decor items out of clay. It's cheap and easy to work with. All you need is sand paper, a knife and some patience.  I'll admit I find clay modeling quite relaxing... Also, I couldn't resist including this cute and simple origami butterfly into the set because I just thought it goes so well with the flowers (mmm, the whole room smells like jasmine). If you feel creative and want to make something similar, here are the links to tutorials I liked and found useful: Clay Tea Light Holders, DIY Clay Diamonds and Origami Butterfly.  Hope you enjoyed this post!

Easter decor

Keepin' it simple.  I try to make different decorations every year, so this time I painted eggs using rubber bands which left interesting stripe prints. I also folded napkins into bunny ears and made some white pom-poms.  Now, I would like to use this opportunity to thank God for Pinterest.  Hope you all had a lovely time with your families and friends! 

Minimalistic posters with inspirational quotes

I love posters with minimalistic typography and inspirational quotes, but sometimes instead of using someone else's work for my walls, I make my own posters. It's a simple and effective way to add something new to your space without spending a fortune. I just print them out and use my old frames. This first one is a well-known expression English people say when they disagree with something, but  don't want to sound rude, and it occurred to me that, if you use it in the imperative mood, it becomes an inspirational quote. Something like "dare to be different" or "don't care what other people think, just do your own thing" and that kind of stuff. You get the picture. The second one is a saying that probably everyone knows, but the important thing is I really like how my design turned out.  It can't go more minimal than this, right? I know that a lot of people don't understand all the fuss around minimalism, but those of you who love and respect it, and have tried to make something like this yourself, know that it's not as easy as it seems.  (Especially if you're meticulous and like to implement the golden ratio into your work.) The last one means "less ego, more self-criticism" in my language (Croatian).  If people would exercise that kind of behaviour at least every now and then, the whole society could benefit greatly. Ah, well.

My Advent decor

Nature - the greatest inspiration for most of us creative souls. My idea was to use mostly natural materials for this Christmas story - paper, walnuts, pomegranate, pine cones, deer antlers, hedge branches, cinnamon sticks, orange, moss, rope and cork. The main theme was forest. There's something magical about the woods and Christmas, and they go so well together... Well, I guess fairy tales and fantasy books have influenced me a lot... These kirigami trees are really easy to make, you can find tons of tutorials on the web. The newspapers I used for the gift wrapping are 20 years old. I was lucky to dig them up because it's hard to find a clean, black and white page in the newspapers today.  Also, music sheets always make an elegant decor. Besides, what kind of Christmas would it be without music? So, here it is! My enchanted forest.

Don't think I forgot about the contest! I was looking through your Cozy and Cold Pinterest boards while listening to Dean Martin's Christmas album, and they were all so beautiful and wintery. I have to say, it was a tough decision to make, but the winner is... *drumroll* ...Tea Icheva! Congratulations! Please, leave your address in the contact email.