Foraging For Natural Christmas Decorations For Handmade Monday

Red Chillies Strung For Drying

I am still super busy with Christmas orders as well as making pressies for my own nearest and dearest, but seeing as I can't really show them to you without spoiling surprises I thought I'd do something a little different for this Handmade Monday post.

I'd like to share some of the nature inspired Christmas decorations I've been working on here and there this week. I love binging the beauty of the natural world into my home and what better time to go to town with this than Christmas!

Chillies - Edible Decorations

The red chillies at the top of the page are some I strung for drying yesterday. All you need is a needle and thread (and some chillies of course!) String them through the base of the chillies and hang somewhere warm to dry - the perfect Christmas decoration or gift that you can then eat during the year :)

Clove Studded Oranges - The Smell Of Christmas

Mmmmmm.. I love the smells of Christmas... pine needles, brandy, spices, log fires... and oranges of course (the traditional Christmas stocking staple!) Last night my other half was busy studding oranges with cloves - not only do they now look very pretty in various locations around the house but they smell gorgeous too!

Teasel - Sculptural Beauty

I love teasel, its such an elegant plant that always catches my eye when i'm out walking. Here's one I photographed in the spring looking green and lush and lovely (doesn't that seem so long ago!)

Here's how it looks now...

...a faded beauty... dry, brown, and perfectly ready for decorating the house with!

This morning I whipped the ever faithful white acrylic paint out and gave some of the stems we've collected a wintery 'snow kissed' look.

I'm not completely sure where they're going to go yet... I did intend to include then in a vase of other dried stems but now i'm rather tempted just to tie them with red ribbon and let them shine alone :)

Holly Hunting

This afternoon my other half and I, dogs in tow, went off on an expedition to gather a Christmas decorating classic - holly. We are lucky enough to have woodland nearby where holly is abundant...

 ...we were still careful not to take too much from one bush though! It is harder to find some with berries... I spotted this little bunch a while ago but haven't been able to relocate it...

Oh well, we still got some lovely glossy green leaves to decorate the house (and the table on Christmas day!)

Frosted Web

The last thing I wanted to share with you is this beautiful frosted spider's web I spotted in the garden during the cold snap we've had this week. Not a Christmas decoration as such, but still a wintery beauty.

Handmade Monday

I know this is the last Handmade Monday linky party of 2012 (visit Handmade Harbour today for more super crafting!). So, to all those who may not get the chance to pop back to my blog before the new year, I wish you a hearty merriest of Christmases :) See you again in 2013, I will have LOTS to show you!!

For those of you with spare moments on the final Christmas run up, I will likely be posting same time same place next week - as always, it will be lovely to see you :)

Thanks for dropping by!