Winter décor, simple DIYs to cheer you up
I always feel a bit sad when I take down and pack away my Christmas decorations. Don’t you?
The void created makes the house look bare, boring and a little gloomy. So to keep the winter blues at bay, I enjoy adding a bit of cozy, winter décor to my home this time of year. As always, I focus on items that are easy, inexpensive and fun.
The simplest way to get started is to “shop your house.” In other words, look around at what you already have. Many Christmas items, especially those that are neutral in colour, can be repurposed as winter decorations.
For example, this year I decorated a tiered tray for Christmas and many of the items I used are also perfect for winter decor. I removed the red and green items and left the white bottle brush trees and a silver bucket filled with white pom pom “snowballs.” Then, I added some pinecones, a wooden bead garland and a jar filled with silver buttons.
It didn’t take much effort to transform the tiered tray and it looks wonderful.
Another budget-friendly way to acquire winter décor on a budget is to shop for neutral coloured Christmas items that are now on clearance. I just purchased a beautiful off-white pom pom wreath for 70 per cent off and I added a white and silver dollar store gnome to the centre with hot glue. It’s now a beautiful winter wreath and I absolutely love it.
A fantastic way to add unique and inexpensive seasonal décor to your home is to get crafty and do a few simple DIY projects. Pinterest can provide you with a ton of inspiration and the dollar store has wonderful cheap craft supply options. Choose a cohesive colour scheme and fill your home with snowflakes, snowmen and natural elements.
Wreaths are also easy to create and they are perfect for indoor and outdoor decorating. Recently, I picked up a large 18 inch wire wreath form from the dollar store for $2. Then I grabbed some bulky white “loop it” yarn from a clearance bin. I wrapped the yarn around the wreath form and added a couple of bottle brush tree embellishments. It didn’t
The Corner Brook Canadian Tire recently made significant contributions to youth sports in Corner Brook, donating $7,500 to Corner Brook Minor Hockey and $7,500 to Corner Brook Minor Soccer. Pictured, from left, Chris Grant, vicepresident of Corner Brook Minor Hockey; Darren Harvieux, president of Corner Brook Minor Hockey; Chris Kondracki, owner/operator of Canadian Tire Corner Brook; and Renee Sherstobetoff, president of Corner Brook Minor Soccer. take long to make, it was inexpensive, it required very little skill and it looks gorgeous.
Another DIY wreath option is to use a white Styrofoam wreath form and cover it in white pom poms. It takes a bit of time to make enough pom poms, but if you Google how to make them, you’ll see that it isn’t difficult.
You can leave the pom pom wreath plain or you can add ribbon and embellishments. It looks cozy and beautiful both ways.
Getting the kids involved in seasonal crafting is fun too. Consider making snowmen from spare socks filled with rice, spending an evening painting winter scenes on canvases or making paper snowflake garlands to hang from curtain rods. Crafting is a wonderful way to spend time together as a family and it’s a great way to teach creativity, relieve stress and build confidence.
Decorating for winter is the perfect way to make a home feel cozy after all the Christmas décor has been packed away.
hope I’ve inspired you to repurpose what you have, bargain shop for a few new items, and get a little crafty creating something great.
Gina Bell is a mother of three and can be found online at www.eastcoastmommy.com.