Driving home last night......

{Jack is my 12 yr old, Maris is my 15 yr old}
Turning into our neighborhood in front of our house...

Jack:  WHOAAA!!!! What's with that tree????!!!! {referring to a 40 ft spruce smack in front of our house}
Maris: What do you mean?
Jack: Look at it-- It's all lit up!!!
Maris:  Jack.....{sigh} We put lights on that tree weeks ago, it's been lit up since Thanksgiving...
**silence**
Jack:  I didn't even know we had that tree....

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I am so grateful I have both a boy and a girl!! I so enjoy the differences between the 2!!

These are for their stockings:

{fifiduvie-etsy}

I've already shown you that I'm some what of a Santa copy-cat {this post}. But I love great ideas--I just
don't want to pay big $ to bring them into my home! And I love the challenge of de-mystifying some big box's artwork, explaining the 'how-to' and possibly encouraging others to unleash their creative inhibitions and just going for it!  

A couple of years ago Pottery Barn sold a large canvas with a Santa face done out of glitter. I can't
 remember his exact cost, but, it was at least $150. Do you remember him?



Their version was 52" square done in silver glitter on unstretched canvas.



And this is mine! I used a stretched  28"x36" canvas from Michaels and red Martha glitter. {Because
a lot of the areas are really small, I highly recommend using Marthas glitters because they are so fine}.

 

I printed off the Santa image from the PB site and enlarged it to about 8x11 to use as my guide.
 I sketched the shadows {thats really the only part that you draw} with a pencil. Then I used a small
paintbrush to paint on Elmers in small areas.   



Then I shook the glitter on and moved on to the next area.



Mr. Claus hangs on a chalkboard wall in my kids playroom. I love his 1960's pop-art feel.
If I keep it up, I might just end up with a Santa in every room of the house!! 

I have so many people ask me what products I use on my naturally curly hair. So, just in case their are some curly sistas out there needing a little help... 

These are really, really good products for curly girls! I first got my hands on Lorraine Masseys book 'Curly Girls' years ago and I felt like the heavens had opened! Finally somebody understood how to take care of the curls correctly {where were you back in high school Miss Lorraine?!} I use the low-poo shampoo. They have removed all the harsh detergents that create lather {aka 'poo'} which doesn't clean the hair at all. It takes some getting used to, but it leaves my hair really hydrated.  

Then I heavy-handedly use the One Conditioner. Because it has been so dry and bitterly cold,
on my last visit to the salon I bought this: 

   
A really deep conditioner--yum!

After towel drying, I spray this in:



It sounds gross, I know. But it's actually sheep placenta--not human, and this is fantastic stuff. If I ever found out this wasn't going to be made any longer, I would stock-pile this in ridiculous quantities. You can buy it at Sally's in the bottle or at Wal-Mart in little vials {Sally's is a way better deal}. 

And then finally--I drench my hair in Bioterra Gel. I am not exaggerating when I tell you I have tried every gel made by every company, beauty salon, home shopping network, catalog, out there... 

  

I can't stand crunchy curls. So if you do, then you won't like my Bioterra. Instead, this gives you defined soft curls. I use a lot of this wonder gel so I buy gallons at a time when I visit Sally's {I have never been able to find it any where else}

And finally, if you live near Asheville and you want to try the best beauty salon/boutique with the coolest stylists and unbelievable customer service--then pop into WINK in Biltmore Village. {Sarah is my girl} These award winning ladies specialize in curly hair, but they work with all hair types.   

**I was not compensated for any of my kudos. I just wanted to share my affection for these great products!  
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I hope you all enjoyed a lovely weekend! Due to 5" of snow {and it's still coming down} we had lots of plans changed. But, thankfully Winter Formal happened before the snowfall {Thank goodness considering how much time it took to find a dress to fit this 'tall drink of water'}. She had a great time.

 

I showed you my 'interior design' tree yesterday. I wanted to show you how I finished it off with my Chandelier topper:

 

You've all seen the Urban Outfitters chandelier. I thought this would be perfect, so I did a litlle knock-off :



My daughter has this chandelier hanging over her bed. So, I got to see it in person.  I sketched out 1/2 of the chandelier.
 
  

If you don't feel comfortable with your sketching skills, then print out the above 'googled image' and enlarge it to the size you want {you only need 1/2 because you will flip it to get a mirror image}. Mine ended up being 15" both ways.
 


I then transferred my sketch to kraft paper {only 1/2!} I folded it down the middle and then cut out the 2 layers of kraft paper {when opened, this produced a 'whole chandelier'} 



I sprayed a little adhesive on the back and stuck it down to my 1/4" piece of scrap plywood.



I used a sharpie and outlined my pattern {twice}.

  

Using a scroll saw, I cut it out following the outline. 



I sanded the edges with some sandpaper. Then I cut 1 piece of the chandelier vertically straight down the middle continuing half way down through the bottom part. On the other piece, I only cut a slit vertically through the bottom 1/2.  



Then you can line up the slits and slide the 2 pieces together
 




I decided to spray paint it silver.

 

Then I used a little wood glue and glittered the 'lights'. And Ta-Da..



I used a thin wire and wrapped it around the middle of the chandelier and on to a tree branch.   
{My plan was to put a corded lightbulb in the middle, just like the original, but I ran out of time!}

It's the weekend again!!!  Ours is jammed packed with basketball games, Winter Formal {and we don't have the dress yet..} dress shopping {any one know where to send us?!} Hubby's birthday, 2 client color consults, a volleyball awards dinner, a Christmas party, and a rescheduled Christmas parade. Can this really all happen in 3 days????!!!