The Latina Next Door

La Vida Divina for Less!

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DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath

DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath

Hello friends! I am back with probably the easiest DIY I have ever made (you’re welcome ?) and I couldn’t wait to share it with you. By now you should already know that I have a love affair with Dollar Tree…  I mean how could you NOT!?

But what if I told you there are items just as nice out there for even less? (Insert gasp)… I know!

Alright, if you like farmhouse decor then you definitely know about lamb’s ear wreaths…. And you probably know that they can be expensive.

Well, I just happened to be taking a detour in my local Wal Mart (when I should have been grocery shopping) and found lamb’s ear bushes in their craft section. And for only $0.97 a piece (insert second gasp!)

Here’s the proof.

DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath 2 DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath

*Some of the links below are affiliate links. For full disclosure, please go here*

 

Now they are a little small, but for the price it was fine with me!

I picked up several and you might have already seen me use them around the house like in my flower arrangement on my Buffalo Check Dollar Tree Tray and on my Fall Tablescape, but this time I wanted to do something a little different.

So I found a couple of 8 inch wire wreaths at Dollar Tree (they come in a set of 2 so it’s an awesome deal) and thought I would make 2 matching wreaths.

***JUST a reminder you can always see the video tutorial on my Youtube channel! Video is included at the end of this post!*

DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath 1 DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath

Then I pulled all of the leaves off my bushes. I had 4 bushes total so I made sure to use 2 per wreath.

DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath 3 DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath

I cut the leaf trios into individual leaves.

DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath 4 DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath

And then I used my hot glue gun to apply the leaves on the middle wire, slightly overlapping them over each other.

DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath 5 DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath

 

I made sure to go all the way around and cover the wire completely.

Related: Dollar Tree Succulent Pumpkin Planters

DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath 6 DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath

Then I did the same thing with the inner and outer wires. The only different thing I did with the outer ring was I made the leaves a little more fanned out as I applied them on.

DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath 7 DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath

After I went around all 3 rings I still had a few leaves left over and I just added the rest in. I made 2 wreaths and 2 bushes apiece was enough to create them.

Now you can always make them larger or include more bushes per wreath to make them even more full. But I was totally happy with them!

Then simply add a ribbon and hang in your home. Add a neutral ribbon for Fall or a red one for Christmas!

Each wreath costs less than $2.50 to make.

Isn’t it darling?!

DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath 8 DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath

Video tutorial below!

 

I hope you enjoyed this simple holiday DIY!

See you back here soon!

Yami Signature DIY Farmhouse Holiday Wreath

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DIY Easter Moss Bunny

DIY Easter Moss Bunny pin DIY Easter Moss Bunny
*I was compensated for this post. This post also contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links. See full disclosure here.*

I am so excited for today’s post as I have partnered again with Dollar Tree to bring you another easy and fun DIY project just in time for Easter.

Related: Dollar Tree Winter Decor 

Related: Dollar Tree Frozen Foods

I have never been really big on decorating for every holiday and I know that there are others out there who just don’t have the time, but you can still enter in the spirit of Easter with this simple DIY that can easily be added to your existing decor without having to drastically change everything else around it.

DIY Easter Moss Bunny Supply List:

(Supplies used were from Dollar Tree and my local craft store)

You can also check out the complete video tutorial on my YouTube channel as well!

 

First you will need to glue the embroidery hoops with hot glue.

DIY Easter Moss Bunny 9 1 DIY Easter Moss Bunny

Then start hot-gluing the floral moss.

It will get messy!

DIY Easter Moss Bunny 5 DIY Easter Moss Bunny

Stop before you get the the bottom and leave spaces for the ears.

Cut out a couple of ears from foam board.

DIY Easter Moss Bunny 10 DIY Easter Moss Bunny

 

They don’t have to be perfect since you are going to cover them with floral moss as well.

After you cover them attach them with hot glue on the embroidery hoop. Hold them until the glue dries completely (just make sure you don’t add any moss too the bottom of the ear for better adhesion).

 

DIY Easter Moss Bunny 6 DIY Easter Moss Bunny

 

Then after you have the ears attached, grab your unfinished wood plaque and using a combination of E6000 and hot glue, secure to the base. The reason I used both was so that it would have a strong hold with the E6000, but have the hot glue dry quickly so that it can support the bunny while the E6000 dried.

 

DIY Easter Moss Bunny 4 DIY Easter Moss Bunny

Then cover the rest of the exposed embroidery hoop. You can leave it like this but I went a step further and gave the bunny a tail by using a rose that I had removed from a floral bush.

DIY Easter Moss Bunny 3 DIY Easter Moss Bunny

I think it turned out adorable!


DIY Easter Moss Bunny 2 DIY Easter Moss Bunny

You can always stain the base to match your decor or even add ribbon or a bow to the bunny to give it a little extra detail, but this was perfect for me.

It now sits on my entrance cabinet in the foyer.

DIY Easter Moss Bunny 9 DIY Easter Moss Bunny

What do you think about this DIY? Would you try it in your own home? Now, I totally want to decorate some more things with moss!

Yami Signature DIY Easter Moss Bunny

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White Rustic Christmas Tree

Rustic White Christmas Tree White Rustic Christmas Tree

Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications • Alli~An Alli Event • Michelle~Our Crafty Mom Marie~DIY Adulation • Erlene~My Pinterventures • Beverly~Across The Blvd.

Debra~Shoppe No. 5 • Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled • Megan~C’mon Get Crafty Michelle~Michelle James Designs • Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister • Jeanie~Create & Babble • Sherry~Olives & Okra Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts • Emily~Domestic Deadline • Bonbon~Farmhouse 40

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna • Kelly~North Country Nest • Lynne~My Family Thyme Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts • Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me • Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads • Vanessa~DIY 180 Trisha~Blowing Away Out West • Kim~Everyday Parties •

Yami~The Latina Next Door • Lauren~Wonderfully Made • Valerie~Val Event Gal Terri~Christmas Tree Lane • Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess

Dru~Polka Dot Poplars • Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity • Jeannee~Centsably Creative Tania~Little Vintage Cottage • Sam~Raggedy Bits • Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought

*Some of the links in this post are affiliate links for your convenience. Please see full disclosure here.*

So today is the last day of our Blog Hop and we saved our Christmas trees for last. You should have already seen my Rustic Chic Christmas tree and my Simple Gold Christmas tree which I did for 2 other blog hops this season. Now for this post, I will be showing you my third and white christmas tree.

This tree is smaller and was provided by Treetopia during my Christmas in July campaign. And since I have a second fire place in this house I thought I would go ahead and put this one up as well.

Since I had been working on several DIY farmhouse style ornaments this year, I thought I would decorate this tree with just my DIY ornaments. I did this Rae Dunn inspired one below along with a jute wrapped & mistletoe glass ornament.

3 11 White Rustic Christmas Tree

I added these cute chalkboard and mini wood signs as well. You can see the video tutorial to make all of these here.

1 9 White Rustic Christmas Tree

And created a topper with a couple of floral bushes and ribbon.

DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament 3 White Rustic Christmas Tree

And I added burlap ribbon throughout the tree and then added burlap fabric around the bottom of the tree.

4 9 White Rustic Christmas Tree

Here is how it looks at night.

2 10 White Rustic Christmas Tree

I hope you like this super simple and white rustic Christmas tree.

 

Shop similar looks:


Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ornament ideas this holiday season!

12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop Dec. 1 12 FB Image White Rustic Christmas Tree


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A Simple Christmas Porch

Simple Front Porch 2 A Simple Christmas Porch
Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications • Alli~An Alli Event • Michelle~Our Crafty Mom Marie~DIY Adulation • Erlene~My Pinterventures • Beverly~Across The Blvd.

Debra~Shoppe No. 5 • Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled • Megan~C’mon Get Crafty Michelle~Michelle James Designs • Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister • Jeanie~Create & Babble • Sherry~Olives & Okra Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts • Emily~Domestic Deadline • Bonbon~Farmhouse 40

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna • Kelly~North Country Nest • Lynne~My Family Thyme Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts • Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me • Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads • Vanessa~DIY 180 Trisha~Blowing Away Out West • Kim~Everyday Parties •

Yami~The Latina Next Door • Lauren~Wonderfully Made • Valerie~Val Event Gal Terri~Christmas Tree Lane • Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess

Dru~Polka Dot Poplars • Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity • Jeannee~Centsably Creative Tania~Little Vintage Cottage • Sam~Raggedy Bits • Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought

*Some of the links below are affiliate for your convenience. For full disclosure, please go here.*

It’s the 11th day of our blog hop and we are sharing our front porches. Honestly, I was a little scared about this post at first since I have never had one of those Instagram worthy front porches. Don’t get me wrong, we ALWAYS decorate outside, but to the tune of thousands of Christmas lights and the cords that go along with. 

For the longest time I wanted mini trees flanking the front door, but I had found them just too expensive. However, recently I have been going a lot to Big Lots in search of affordable home decor options since they have really stepped up their game and I came across these gorgeous pre-lit and potted mini trees for the outside.

They came 2 to a set and were only $40 total! WOW! I had to snag them.


2 9 A Simple Christmas Porch

My front door wreath is new as well. It was provided to me by Treetopia when I was part of their Design Council for Christmas easier this year. It’s simple and rustic and I absolutely love its neutral colors and go well with our great room Christmas tree.

3 10 A Simple Christmas Porch

I felt like I needed to add garland to the top so we added a few hooks and I put up 2 simple garlands from Micheal’s. I doubled them up to make them look more full. Each one only cost me $3 EACH and they are still on sale here. Another awesome deal!

I wanted to add lights to them but I didn’t know what to do about having a power cord hanging on one side.

So if you have any suggestions do tell! 

Can you see the snow in the reflection???

We had snow SUPER early this year and our kids loved it!

4 8 A Simple Christmas Porch

And that it basically all we did this year, but I am super happy because it looks more “adult”. Of course we still had the colorful cross and reindeer for the kids. And they do look adorable at night.

Simple Christmas Porch lights A Simple Christmas Porch

I hope to eventually get a nice bench to add to the front porch (left side) so hopefully next year I can add even more decor. And I may even add some greenery to the sconces on either side of the door as well.

Either way, it definitely has been a great start to Christmas at our new home.

Simple Front Porch 2 A Simple Christmas Porch

Shop similar products:

 


Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ornament ideas this holiday season!

12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop Dec. 1 12 FB Image A Simple Christmas Porch


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Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting Rustic Glam Christmas Table SettingWelcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications • Alli~An Alli Event • Michelle~Our Crafty Mom Marie~DIY Adulation • Erlene~My Pinterventures • Beverly~Across The Blvd.

Debra~Shoppe No. 5 • Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled • Megan~C’mon Get Crafty Michelle~Michelle James Designs • Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister • Jeanie~Create & Babble • Sherry~Olives & Okra Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts • Emily~Domestic Deadline • Bonbon~Farmhouse 40

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna • Kelly~North Country Nest • Lynne~My Family Thyme Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts • Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me • Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads • Vanessa~DIY 180 Trisha~Blowing Away Out West • Kim~Everyday Parties •

Yami~The Latina Next Door • Lauren~Wonderfully Made • Valerie~Val Event Gal Terri~Christmas Tree Lane • Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess

Dru~Polka Dot Poplars • Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity • Jeannee~Centsably Creative Tania~Little Vintage Cottage • Sam~Raggedy Bits • Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought

*Some of the following links are affiliate links for your convenience. Please see full disclosure here*

We are winding down with just a few more days to go! I am actually really excited about today’s post because I get to show off an amazing DIY that you can easily replicate and love! I wanted to do a simple yet more upscale look for my formal dining table this Christmas. However, since I have been doing many rustic themed decorations throughout other areas of the house, I didn’t want to go too far off and do something that wouldn’t necessarily go with the rest of the house (even though my formal dining room is pretty much separated from everything else). 

That being said, I think I just found my perfect  balance of glam and farmhouse and I wanted to share with you my Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting. 

I knew I wanted a beautiful elongated arrangement for the focal point, so naturally I headed to my local Dollar Tree.

I created this amazing white washed faux “wooden” box for my arrangement and this is how I did it.

4 7 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

Supplies:

First you are going to measure the foam board to fit the floral foam.

9 1 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

Then you mark both ends and draw a line from one end to the other.

10 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

Then score the foam board, bend and score from behind to make your cut.

11 1 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

 

You will need the bottom, 2 sides and 2 ends. I made my sides 4 inches tall and the ends were measured to fit the outside of the 3 other sides combined. I made them the length of 3 floral foams.

12 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

Hot glue the pieces together. Make sure the bottom is on the inside. 13 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

Glue your end pieces on.

14 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

 

Add your contact paper all the way around. One roll will allow you to go all around seamlessly. Cut your corners and bring the contact paper in.

15 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

Fold the bottoms in and h0t glue them down to secure.

16 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

 

Then take foam brush with your acrylic white paint and apply a thin layer of paint (using long strokes) from end to end. Make sure the wood grain shows through.

17 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

Let dry.

Insert your floral foam and add your desired greenery. I used 3 bushes I got on sale from Michael’s and I just cut the stems out to create individual picks.

18 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

(Fore more Dollar Tree tutorials make sure to check out my YouTube channel as well. ?)

It looks sooooooo good! You can’t tell it’s not wood at first glance and you really have to get up close and personal to figure it out.

7 3 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

For the place settings can you guess what I used?

More Dollar Tree products of course!

6 4 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

 

The napkins rings were from Dollar Tree and they are 6 for $1. This plates are plastic disposable plates and they were 4 for $1!

Recognize that white pearlized charger? I used it in my Thanksgiving Table Setting and it is also from Dollar Tree!

The glasses are from Dollar Tree as well.

*DOLLAR TREE TIP! If you don’t see what you want at your Dollar Tree, you can order the items online and have them shipped to your local store for FREE!*

1 8 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

Seriously, that planter box looks so realistic! Oh and those silver tea light holders above were also from Dollar Tree.

5 6 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

 

2 8 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

Hope you liked how this turned out as much as I did! That burlap table runner is from BIG LOTS  – they have some amazing products for great prices as well I have recently found out.

Recreate this Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting Look for CHEAP – Click to Tweet!

3 9 Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

Shop this look here:


 

 

Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ornament ideas this holiday season!

12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop Dec. 1 12 FB Image Rustic Glam Christmas Table Setting

 


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DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath

 

Dollar Tree Wreath DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath

*Some of the links below are affiliate links, please see full disclosure here.*

Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications • Alli~An Alli Event • Michelle~Our Crafty Mom Marie~DIY Adulation • Erlene~My Pinterventures • Beverly~Across The Blvd.

Debra~Shoppe No. 5 • Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled • Megan~C’mon Get Crafty Michelle~Michelle James Designs • Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister • Jeanie~Create & Babble • Sherry~Olives & Okra Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts • Emily~Domestic Deadline • Bonbon~Farmhouse 40

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna • Kelly~North Country Nest • Lynne~My Family Thyme Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts • Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me • Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads • Vanessa~DIY 180 Trisha~Blowing Away Out West • Kim~Everyday Parties •

Yami~The Latina Next Door • Lauren~Wonderfully Made • Valerie~Val Event Gal Terri~Christmas Tree Lane • Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess

Dru~Polka Dot Poplars • Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity • Jeannee~Centsably Creative Tania~Little Vintage Cottage • Sam~Raggedy Bits • Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought

 

Happy Saturday! Whew! I cannot believe I have made it to day 9! Today, we are giving you some great ideas for your Christmas wreaths! Since I decided to go rustic chic for my main tree and decided to add farmhouse touches to my white christmas with DIY wood ornaments, I thought I would keep this wreath neutral and simple so that it would fit with the the rest of my neutral decor. 

Yes, you can get all this at Dollar Tree! They had some amazing holiday products this year and if you saw my Dollar Tree Christmas Haul video, you would know I was totally stoked with what they had.

Supplies for your DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath:

As you can see the wreaths from Dollar Tree while they are almost 18 inches in diameter, they aren’t very full.

1 7 DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath

 

So I attached 2 together with floral wire that I had on hand and fluffed them to look like one.

3 8 DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath

Then I cut stems from the bushes and created my own “picks”.

 

4 6 DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath

 

Afterwards I placed them where I wanted them to go BEFORE I glue them on, this way I could make any adjustments necessary.

5 5 DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath

I kept everything in natural tones and tried to create a certain pattern as I went around to keep everything consistent.


2 7 DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath

Then I thought I would add an ornament to hang from the center. I DIYed this ornament as well with the same method that I used to decorate my Dollar Tree candleholders. 

6 3 DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath

 

I decided to hang it on my mirror in the foyer using my favorite suction cup wreath hanger for a clean look.


8 1 DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath

I think it looks perfect and it really does not look like it was made from Dollar store items.

7 2 DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath

I love the frosted pine cones and the flocked accents.

How about you? Would you guess this is from the Dollar Tree?

Related: Dollar Tree Candleholders

Related: Dollar Tree Decorations for your Mantle 


Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ornament ideas this holiday season!

12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop Dec. 1 12 FB Image DIY Dollar Tree Christmas Wreath

 


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The Best Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe

soft sugar cookie recipe 683x1024 The Best Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe*some of the links below are affiliate links for your convenience, for full disclosure please go here.* 

Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications • Alli~An Alli Event • Michelle~Our Crafty Mom Marie~DIY Adulation • Erlene~My Pinterventures • Beverly~Across The Blvd.

Debra~Shoppe No. 5 • Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled • Megan~C’mon Get Crafty Michelle~Michelle James Designs • Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister • Jeanie~Create & Babble • Sherry~Olives & Okra Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts • Emily~Domestic Deadline • Bonbon~Farmhouse 40

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna • Kelly~North Country Nest • Lynne~My Family Thyme Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts • Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me • Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads • Vanessa~DIY 180 Trisha~Blowing Away Out West • Kim~Everyday Parties •

Yami~The Latina Next Door • Lauren~Wonderfully Made • Valerie~Val Event Gal Terri~Christmas Tree Lane • Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess

Dru~Polka Dot Poplars • Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity • Jeannee~Centsably Creative Tania~Little Vintage Cottage • Sam~Raggedy Bits • Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought

Hello there! I hope you are getting into the Christmas spirit because today we are talking all things Christmas cookies! Now that you know how to make the best dish for those holiday get-togethers and that special adult beverage for those of you who don’t like eggnog, it’s time to get out those cookie cutters cause I am going to share a cookie recipe you will love!

My kids love them!

My parents love them!

My kids’ teachers love them!

It took me a few attempts but I finally found the best soft sugar cookie recipe on Pinterest… and then I tweaked it just a bit to fit my own taste, cause that’s how we do here!

So here’s what you need:

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup unsalted butter (aka 2 sticks), softened at room temp
  • 1 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs, at room temp
  • 2  tsp vanilla
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 5 1/2 cup flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt

Directions:

1. Mix together butter & sugar. Beat until it is creamy. Add the eggs (one at a time), vanilla and sour cream and mix it all with a mixer until combined.

2. In a separate bowl mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Then slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in the mixer as it is blending. Mix it just until everything is combined.

3. Separate the dough in two equal parts, cover with saran wrap. Refrigerate the dough for a couple of hours.

4. Once the dough is fully chilled roll out dough on a bakers mat, parchment paper or even your counter. The dough will be sticky so be prepared to add anywhere from 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup more of flour as you roll and cut out the cookies. At this time heat y0ur oven to 350 degrees.

5. Cut with your desired cookie cutter, I used this snowflake one. Make sure the cookie cutter is either dusted with flour or powdered sugar to prevent it from sticking to the dough.

6. Bake for 8-9 minutes. And presto!

You can use 2 different types of icing for these and both work great. I used to use Buttercream, but now I prefer to use Royal Icing. I have included both recipes below:

Buttercream frosting:

  •  1 cup of butter or shortening (depending on your preference)
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 5-6 TB heavy cream
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • food coloring and sprinkles

Directions for the frosting:

Combine the shortening, heavy cream and vanilla with an electric mixer until smooth and then add your powdered sugar (and food coloring if desired). Make sure the butter is at room temperature and make sure you do not stick it in the microwave to soften or it will separate your frosting. Then frost on cooled cookies and serve right away or save for later!

Royal Icing Option (this is the icing I used in this video): 

  • 4 lbs. of powdered sugar
  • 3/4 C of Meringue Powder
  • 2 Tbsp of Clear Vanilla Extract
  • 1 1/3 C of warm water

Directions for the Royal Icing:

Combine the meringue powder and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl. Then combine vanilla extract with warm water separately.  Add the water to the sugar mixture mixing as you go until fully combined. Add your desired food coloring and ice your cookies. I like to use these Wilton squeeze bottles to help ice the cookies. It helps so much especially when you do them with little kids. 

I enjoy making these with the kids. They get so excited and love to decorate them.

best sugar cookie The Best Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe

These cookies are the perfect combination of a sugar cookie and a cake. Perfect taste and texture… They turned out so well! You have no idea how many times I have baked these for school. They are a hit among the kids (and the teachers as well).

Depending how large you want the cookies it can yield 40-55 from this recipe. If it wasn’t because I was making them for my daughter’s class I would have saved half the batter and stored it in the freezer. It freezes and defrosts great. 

best sugar cookie 2 The Best Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe

And there you have my kid’s artwork! They are pretty good at decorating, if I do say so myself. 😉 Must get it from their momma. ?

What kind of cookies do you bake this season? If you try these you gotta let me know how they turn out!

The cookie cutter I used is below!

 



Yami Signature The Best Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe

Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ornament ideas this holiday season!

12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop Dec. 1 12 FB Image The Best Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe


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Mini Hot Cocoa Bar

Mini Hot Cocoa Bar Mini Hot Cocoa Bar

Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications • Alli~An Alli Event • Michelle~Our Crafty Mom Marie~DIY Adulation • Erlene~My Pinterventures • Beverly~Across The Blvd.

Debra~Shoppe No. 5 • Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled • Megan~C’mon Get Crafty Michelle~Michelle James Designs • Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister • Jeanie~Create & Babble • Sherry~Olives & Okra Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts • Emily~Domestic Deadline • Bonbon~Farmhouse 40

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna • Kelly~North Country Nest • Lynne~My Family Thyme Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts • Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me • Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads • Vanessa~DIY 180 Trisha~Blowing Away Out West • Kim~Everyday Parties •

Yami~The Latina Next Door • Lauren~Wonderfully Made • Valerie~Val Event Gal Terri~Christmas Tree Lane • Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess

Dru~Polka Dot Poplars • Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity • Jeannee~Centsably Creative Tania~Little Vintage Cottage • Sam~Raggedy Bits • Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought

*some of the links below are affiliate links for your convenience, for full disclosure go here*

Hello there friends! It is day SEVEN of this Christmas Blog Hop and today we are talking Hot Cocoa Bars! I have never really had a hot cocoa station at my house before, however, my 5 year old daughter who just debuted her first video on YouTube, absolutely loves hot chocolate so I thought it would be fun to use my galvanized tiered tray that I purchased at Hobby Lobby a while back to set something fun up as a mini hot cocoa bar for the kiddos and for anyone who comes by this season.

I filled mason jars up with hot cocoa and marshmallows. I am a simple girl, give me hot cocoa with marshmallows and I am good to go! If you have been following me on Instagram, you know that I recently tried adding a candy cane to my hot chocolate and NOPE, I did not enjoy it. ?

3 7 Mini Hot Cocoa Bar

I also added this mason jar filled with Hershey kisses in case anyone wants their hot cocoa extra chocolaty or happened to walk by and need a “fix” LOL!

2 6 Mini Hot Cocoa Bar

I added one of my DIY mini wood sign ornaments as a topper for fun. As you can see there are candy canes, but those are more to make the tray look pretty or to just eat on their own, boy do my kids love them!

1 6 Mini Hot Cocoa Bar

And finally I enjoy my hot cocoa in these cute “JOY” mugs I also purchased at Hobby Lobby. They are simple, but the gold “joy” makes it so classy. Love it.

4 5 Mini Hot Cocoa Bar

I also added a few sprigs of pine to give it a more festive touch and added some nuts and graham crackers to snack on, but that is pretty much it! The kids love sneaking a candy cane or kiss from the mini bar and I just think it looks so cute.

Perhaps I will make something more substantial next year, but for now this one sits on my kitchen counter overlooking the breakfast area and keeping room.

How cute is this Mini Hot Cocoa Bar for the Holidays?! – CLICK TO TWEET


Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ornament ideas this holiday season!

12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop Dec. 1 12 FB Image Mini Hot Cocoa Bar


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Christmas Party Game

Holiday Rice Game Christmas Party Game

Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications • Alli~An Alli Event • Michelle~Our Crafty Mom Marie~DIY Adulation • Erlene~My Pinterventures • Beverly~Across The Blvd.

Debra~Shoppe No. 5 • Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled • Megan~C’mon Get Crafty Michelle~Michelle James Designs • Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister • Jeanie~Create & Babble • Sherry~Olives & Okra Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts • Emily~Domestic Deadline • Bonbon~Farmhouse 40

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna • Kelly~North Country Nest • Lynne~My Family Thyme Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts • Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me • Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads • Vanessa~DIY 180 Trisha~Blowing Away Out West • Kim~Everyday Parties •

Yami~The Latina Next Door • Lauren~Wonderfully Made • Valerie~Val Event Gal Terri~Christmas Tree Lane • Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess

Dru~Polka Dot Poplars • Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity • Jeannee~Centsably Creative Tania~Little Vintage Cottage • Sam~Raggedy Bits • Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought

Hello again! Are you hanging in there with all this Christmas inspiration coming your way? Today is another fun day because we are talking holiday games!

My game is one that can actually be played at baby showers and wedding showers etc… and it is ALWAYS a big hit! Even the men get involved, mostly because they think they can do better, but they can’t! NOPE!

My mother introduced this game to me and we have played it with friends ever since. So if you are up for something a little different check out my version of a fun Christmas Party Game!

My daughter and I also made a video and we had a blast! To watch it go here or scroll further down! 

What you need:

  • Large bowl
  • Uncooked rice (4-5 cups or more depending on the size of the bowl)
  • Tiny safety pins (Size 00)
  • Bandana or blindfold
  • Timer or stopwatch

 I like to use a large glass bowl, but you can use what you have on hand.

1 5 Christmas Party Game

You want a handful of the smallest safety pins, size 00 (the ones pictured below are still too big, but it’s what I could find since our move… yes, we are still unpacking, UGH!)

2 5 Christmas Party Game

I typically add double this amount of pins.

So what you do is blindfold the player, set your timer to 30 seconds and see who can get the most pins out of the rice!

3 6 Christmas Party Game

The winner gets a Christmas gift/surprise. And if you have a tie, then you go to sudden death where you have them go again (separately) and this time find as many in 20 seconds… and so on…

The rice is still salvageable. If you don’t wash your rice with warm water before you cook it, you should be. Regardless of whether or not we play this game, I always wash my rice, plus the heat from the cooking kills any bacteria – just be sure to remove the pins first! ?

And that is basically all there is to it! Easy peasy, for a whole lot of fun! You won’t believe how competitive everyone will get! It’s hilarious!

Our video:

 

 

Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ornament ideas this holiday season!

12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop Dec. 1 12 FB Image Christmas Party Game

 


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Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box

dollar tree lighted shadow box Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box
Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications • Alli~An Alli Event • Michelle~Our Crafty Mom Marie~DIY Adulation • Erlene~My Pinterventures • Beverly~Across The Blvd.

Debra~Shoppe No. 5 • Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled • Megan~C’mon Get Crafty Michelle~Michelle James Designs • Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister • Jeanie~Create & Babble • Sherry~Olives & Okra Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts • Emily~Domestic Deadline • Bonbon~Farmhouse 40

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna • Kelly~North Country Nest • Lynne~My Family Thyme Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts • Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me • Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads • Vanessa~DIY 180 Trisha~Blowing Away Out West • Kim~Everyday Parties •

Yami~The Latina Next Door • Lauren~Wonderfully Made • Valerie~Val Event Gal Terri~Christmas Tree Lane • Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess

Dru~Polka Dot Poplars • Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity • Jeannee~Centsably Creative Tania~Little Vintage Cottage • Sam~Raggedy Bits • Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought

*some of the links below are affiliate links, please see full disclosure here*

Hello there! We are back at it today with Day 5 and for this day’s post we are sharing our Dollar Store crafts. You know love me some dollar stores, specifically Dollar Tree. I have already made several DIY decorations for Christmas and I decorated almost all of my Rustic Chic Christmas tree with their ornaments. Plus I just made the most ELEGANT candle holders EVER, you won’t believe! 

So this time I wanted to make a lighted shadow box that also acted as a Christmas countdown. Everything except the snow was bought at Dollar Tree and honestly it was because I had it leftover from my previous Dollar Tree project.

Okay, so here is how I made it…

Supplies for this Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box

5 4 Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box

First you want to remove everything from the frames. You are going to use one of the cardboard backs with the “standing tab” for this project. Cut out the gift bag the same size as the back so it fits inside the frame.

6 2 Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box

 

Adhere the gift bag art piece onto the back cardboard piece of the picture frame (you can use glue or double sided tape). 

Once you do this punch a hole at the top right corner and pull the LED lights through completely.

7 1 Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box

 

Then place the back into the frame (backwards) and adhere with E6000 glue. You want the tab to come out the nice side of the frame (how it was pictured in the first image above). 

Using both the frame tabs and tape secure the lights to the outer boarder of the frame. Pull the excess cord out.

8 Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box

 

Add your fake snow (this optional but I wanted it to seem like the car was driving through snow).

9 Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box

 

Then use the e6000 to glue the other frame onto this frame to seal in the snow and create the shadow box. You want to keep the mat board so that it covers the lights.

DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament 1 Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box

Then just glue the battery pack and tape the cord to the back.

DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament 2 Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box

You can definitely leave it like this. But since the art piece had a little moon (pointed out below), I thought I would use it as a countdown to Christmas. So I added some stickers and use the moon as my number placement.

11 Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box

The kids love changing the stickers for me and counting down!

dollar tree lighted shadow box Christmas Lighted DIY Shadow Box

And that’s it! This project cost me $5 and I love how it turned out. What do you think?

I have even more ideas to create my own shadow boxes now!

Create a Lighted Shadow Box for Christmas using Dollar Tree products

> CLICK TO TWEET! <


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Dollar Tree Christmas Candleholders

 

Dollar Tree Christmas Candleholders Dollar Tree Christmas CandleholdersBling on the Holidays oneline JPEG Dollar Tree Christmas Candleholders

A Very Sparkly Craft Blog Hop

On the first Monday of each month, a group of DIY and crafty bloggers join forces to bring you the #BlingontheCrafts blog hop. Each blogger creates a glittery, sparkly, shiny, shimmery, sequined, or “blingy” craft to share that goes with a monthly theme.

December’s theme is Holidays. Each blogger chooses their own craft to make as long as it shines and is holiday themed.

If you’d like to participate next month, you can request to join our Bling on the Crafts Facebook group.

So, I may have gone mad, but I think I joined ALL.THE.BLOG.HOPS!  Here I am with another Dollar Tree craft (you may recall this one) and this one is super sparkly and rather elegant I might add… plus it’s SUPER simple to make!

We are making candleholders that are so chic and elegant, your guests won’t believe it.

*Some of the following links are affiliate links for your convenience, for full disclosure go here*

Here is what you will need for these Dollar Tree Christmas Candleholders:

1 4 Dollar Tree Christmas Candleholders

 

  • Glass Cylinder Vase from Dollar Tree
  • Silver Glitter Ribbon from Dollar Tree (or washi tape)
  • Self Adhesive Wall (or window) Decor  – I got mine at Hobby Lobby
  • Glue or tape

Simply remove the wall decor and place on the vase.

2 4 Dollar Tree Christmas Candleholders

Add glittery ribbon at the bottom of the vase.

3 5 Dollar Tree Christmas Candleholders

Related:  Dollar Tree Farmhouse Christmas Trees 

You can leave them like this or you can add height to them by gluing another candleholder (this one also from Dollar Tree) to the bottom (if you choose to do this, use E6000 as it has a strong hold). Then just add your candles!

4 4 Dollar Tree Christmas Candleholders

The best part about these is that they aren’t permanent, you can totally change these up for any occasion!

Love this? Make sure to >>> pin this and share with your friends…

I also decorated a glass ornament for my DIY Dollar Tree neutral wreath using this method as well. You can see how it turned out here!

Dollar Tree Christmas Candleholders so elegant you won’t believe it! – CLICK TO TWEET

Are you ready to see all of the sparkly crafts our bloggers have made for this month’s #BlingontheCrafts hop!?

 

 


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Simple Gold Christmas Tree

Welcome To Our First Annual Christmas Tree Decor Blog Hop!!

We have 52 talented bloggers joining up to share their decorated Christmas Trees with you! So grab a cup of your favorite beverage, settle in and get comfortable because you are going to love the beautiful Christmas Tree Decor shared today!

Christmas Tree DecorBlog Hop 1024x512 Simple Gold Christmas Tree

*some of the links below are affiliate links, for my full disclosure please go here*

Let’s Meet The Hosts!

Michelle | Our Crafty Mom | Allison | Upright and Caffeinated

Angela | Simply Beautiful By Angela

Angie | Knick of Time | Annie | All Things Big and Small

Brittany | Our Home Made Easy | Chloe | Celebrate and Decorate

Cindy | County Road 407 | Colleen | Life on Kaydeross Creek

Denise | My Thrifty House | Eileen | Sand Dollar Lane

Erlene | My Pinterventures 

Jaclyn | The Dotted Nest | Jeannee | Centsably Creative

Vicki | 2 Bees In A Pod |Jennifer | Oh Fiddle Dee Dee

Jessica | Designers Sweet Spot | Jolene | Create Pray Love

 Kim | Day to Day Adventures

Kim | Made In A Day | Kristie | Teadoddles

Leanna | Faeries and Fauna | Lorelai | Life With Lorelai

Lynn | Lynn’s Everyday Ideas | Maria | Simple Nature Decor

Marie | The Inspiration Vault | Mary | The Boondocks Blog

Meegan | What Meegan Makes | Meg | Green With Decor

Melissa | Welcome To The Woods | Donna | Modern On Monticello

Morgan | Charleston Crafted | Nancy | Slightly Coastal

Nicole | Madness and Method | Pam | P.S. I Love You Crafts

Sam | Raggedy Bits | Sharon | Little Bits Of Everything

Shirley | Intelligent Domestications | Stephanie | Abbotts At Home

Wanda | From House To Home

Yami | The Latina Next Door | Jenn | Loveland Lodge

Christene | Keys To Inspiration | Libbie | A Life Unfolding

Jaclyn | One Thousand Oaks | Jennifer | 2 Bees In A Pod | Sarah | The Project Pile

Hey friends! I have been so busy decorating the house this year and it seems like there are just too many Christmas trees! LOL! I have joined another lovely blog hop to share my second tree, since I already shared my Rustic Chic Treetopia tree we have in our great room.

As you know, we are in our “new to us” home and my budget is a little tight so I have kept our trees pretty simple and hopefully plan on getting more “fillers” during the “after” Christmas sales this year… you know I love a sale!

So, for this tree I decided to use some of my old ornaments from last year, but since those colors were kinda outdated, I chose to stick with just the gold ornaments. The tree sits in my front office towards the front of the house since it has a gorgeous bay window. But let me be frank! I have NEVER considered myself to be a great tree decorator.

Nope!

Mediocre at best… I look at everyone else’s and ask my tree, “why can’t you look like that?!”

Yes, we have had that conversation and just like my kids, my tree ignores me. Ha! 

So far, we haven’t done much in this room except paint and change out the curtain hardware. This will be my first time sharing, but this is what the walls looked like before!

5 2 Simple Gold Christmas Tree

? I know right!?!?!

They were hideous and they had to go. I ended up painting them Pure White by Sherwin Williams since I had left over paint from my kitchen project in my last home… I hadn’t had white walls since I lived in a rental with my parents… LOL!

But it totally transformed the room and at least now I can display my tree!

2 2 Simple Gold Christmas Tree

The window treatments I got from Homegoods and the bamboo blinds are the Home Decorators Collection Driftwood Flat-Weave Roman Driftwood shades from Home Depot. They have that grey wood tone, were super easy to order and were delivered quickly.

Measuring was a breeze and the fit like a glove! They look AMAZING and were super affordable.

The perfect shades for a beachy farmhouse look. ?

We are still trying to figure out how to install the middle one since there literally is no place to attach it (but that post is for another day ?).

Anyways,  some of the ornaments I used were these DIY ornaments I made out of Easter eggs last year! They have held up pretty well.

4 2 Simple Gold Christmas Tree

And I actually tried tucking in my ribbon differently… it’s apparent I need practice.

3 3 Simple Gold Christmas Tree

And my ornaments are ALL plastic… at least until my kids get older. LOL!

1 2 Simple Gold Christmas Tree

 

The skirt is simple and gold and with a fur trim which I like. It’s simple and classy and goes well with the “front” of the house since my formal dining room sits to the opposite side. So I am happy with it!

A Simple Gold Christmas Tree in the Annual Christmas Tree Decor Blog Hop –

Click to Tweet

Related: DIY Christmas Decor Using Dollar tree items

I hope to beef it up some next year, but thank you for visiting and don’t forget to check out the others below and subscribe to my blog (to the right or down below) to stay updated with all the projects I am doing to my home.

Now let’s check out the rest of the beautiful Christmas Trees!


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“Crack” Potato Casserole

crack potato casserole Crack Potato Casserole

Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications • Alli~An Alli Event • Michelle~Our Crafty Mom Marie~DIY Adulation • Erlene~My Pinterventures • Beverly~Across The Blvd.

Debra~Shoppe No. 5 • Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled • Megan~C’mon Get Crafty Michelle~Michelle James Designs • Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister • Jeanie~Create & Babble • Sherry~Olives & Okra Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts • Emily~Domestic Deadline • Bonbon~Farmhouse 40

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna • Kelly~North Country Nest • Lynne~My Family Thyme Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts • Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me • Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads • Vanessa~DIY 180 Trisha~Blowing Away Out West • Kim~Everyday Parties •

Yami~The Latina Next Door • Lauren~Wonderfully Made • Valerie~Val Event Gal Terri~Christmas Tree Lane • Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess

Dru~Polka Dot Poplars • Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity • Jeannee~Centsably Creative Tania~Little Vintage Cottage • Sam~Raggedy Bits • Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought

*This post may include some affiliate links, please see full disclosure here*

I hope you have been enjoying the Blog Hop so far! We are rolling along and starting on Day 4! I already brought you something sweet with my dessert… So today I want to share a potato casserole that is a huge hit every time I make it.

I make it for birthdays, baby showers, holiday get-togethers and it is perfect if you want something easy and tasty to bring to those holiday potlucks. 

It’s called “Crack” Potato Casserole…. it was actually named that at a baby shower I hosted because people kept coming back for more.

WARNING: This is not a dish for those “watching their diets” ?.

Ingredients for the Crack Potato Casserole:

  • 1 Bag of Frozen Country Style Hashbrowns (30-32 oz)
  • 1 can of Cream of Mushroom
  • 1 can of Cream of Chicken
  • 2 cups of Shredded Cheddar Cheese
  • 1 cup of Sour Cream
  • 1 small onion
  • 1 stick of butter
  • 3 cups of Plain Kellogg’s Corn Flakes Cereal
  • Salt & Pepper to taste

Let’s get started!

Pour the frozen potatoes into a large casserole dish and let thaw while you work…

First you want to chop the onion and sauté them in a pan with half the stick of butter. You can lightly season these with salt & pepper. (I usually don’t since there is so much flavor & sodium in the rest of th ingredients, you don’t really need to).

 

1 3 Crack Potato Casserole

Mix in the onions with the potatoes.

 

2 3 Crack Potato Casserole

Mix the can of cream of mushroom, can of cream of chicken, 1 cup of sour cream, and 2 cups of cheddar cheese in a large bowl.

3 4 Crack Potato Casserole

Spread the mixture on top of the potatoes.

4 3 Crack Potato Casserole

Crush 3 cups of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes and pour all over the top. Melt the 1/2 of stick of butter and pour over the flakes (you can always add more butter if you want).


5 3 Crack Potato Casserole

 

Cover the pan with aluminum foil and punch a few holes to let the steam out. Bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour. Uncover and keep inside for about another 5 or so minutes so the top can get crunchy…

Remove and serve!

Your guests will totally love these potatoes (especially since my dad does and he’s not one to try and like new things, LOL!)

Make this Crack Potato Casserole for your next holiday party! Your guests will ask for more! – CLICK TO TWEET


crack potato casserole Crack Potato Casserole

 

Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ideas this holiday season!

12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop Dec. 1 12 FB Image Crack Potato Casserole

 


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Rustic Farmhouse Snowman Ornament

Rustic Farmhouse Snowman Ornament Rustic Farmhouse Snowman Ornament

Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications • Alli~An Alli Event • Michelle~Our Crafty Mom Marie~DIY Adulation • Erlene~My Pinterventures • Beverly~Across The Blvd.

Debra~Shoppe No. 5 • Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled • Megan~C’mon Get Crafty Michelle~Michelle James Designs • Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister • Jeanie~Create & Babble • Sherry~Olives & Okra Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts • Emily~Domestic Deadline • Bonbon~Farmhouse 40

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna • Kelly~North Country Nest • Lynne~My Family Thyme Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts • Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me • Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads • Vanessa~DIY 180 Trisha~Blowing Away Out West • Kim~Everyday Parties •

Yami~The Latina Next Door • Lauren~Wonderfully Made • Valerie~Val Event Gal Terri~Christmas Tree Lane • Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess

Dru~Polka Dot Poplars • Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity • Jeannee~Centsably Creative Tania~Little Vintage Cottage • Sam~Raggedy Bits • Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought

So for today’s theme, we are supposed to share snowman crafts….. I will be honest, I am not and have never been a fan of snowman decor for the holidays… It’s just not my thang!

However, I felt that there have to be other awesome people in this very same predicament so I wanted to see what I could make that would make me like something… anything…. snowman related… and I think I made a little something that worked. 

Going along with my rustic farmhouse theme from my Treetopia Christmas tree and my DIY ornaments I thought I would try to do a snowman one as well. This is probably the MOST EASIEST ornament EVER! LOL!

Supplies for a Rustic Farmhouse Snowman Ornament:

  • Unfinished Wood Ornament (I used this stain)
  • White Rope Cord ( I got mine from Michael’s in the bins at the from of the store)
  • Glue Gun

1 1 Rustic Farmhouse Snowman Ornament

Once you have your wood ornament stained, begin creating a circle with the rope cord, hot-gluing it onto itself as you go… (it will get hot glue all over your fingers! Just try not to burn yourself…. ?)

2 1 Rustic Farmhouse Snowman Ornament

Create 3 different circles –  small, medium and large in size. Then hot glue them onto your ornament.

3 2 Rustic Farmhouse Snowman Ornament

 

And that’s basically it! It’s rustic, minimal, could even be considered abstract, BUT I think the fact that it’s so simple is what I like the most… plus it goes with any farmhouse themed Christmas and I’m good with that!

I hope you liked this take on snowman decor for the holidays! Have you made anything with rope? I want to try more things now!

 


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DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament

DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament

*Some of the following links are affiliate links for your convenience, for full disclosure please go here*

I am so excited because it’s finally December! I will be bringing you one post every day for the next 12 days for the annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop where I join 50 other talented ladies to bring you Christmas inspiration and cheer! Last year I made this ornament out of an old Easter egg, LOL! But today’s post is a tutorial on how to make an adorable DIY Farmhouse Christmas ornament wood sign. It will cost less than $1 to make because you will already have most of the supplies at home.

Related: If you want to see 4 more Farmhouse ornaments check out my latest video, where I share how to make them and they all cost $1 each! Check it out HERE

So let’s get to it! 

Supplies for your DIY farmhouse Christmas ornament:

You want to cut your dowels down to 3.75 inches, sand the edges (they won’t need much), then stain them with your wood stain of choice. Wipe off the excess stain and let dry overnight.

1 DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament

Glue your dowels together with the E6000 glue. This is how I did mine since I wanted a square shape and they were all the same length.

2 DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament

Print out what you want on your mini sign. You can find a lot of free printables on Pinterest or you can make your own.

3 DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament

Cut them out and glue them onto thin cardboard for a little more sturdiness. I used a combination of cereal boxes and an old calendar etc.

Use the E6000 to glue the paper adhered to the cardboard onto the wooden frame.

Then cut your ribbon and glue to the back of the sign.

4 DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament

Quick tip: I like to place clear tape across the back of the ribbon  to hold it down while it dries and then I just leave it there since it’s going to get covered anyway.

You can leave it like this, but I added another cardboard layer to make it cleaner on the back.

5 DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament

And that’s it! There you have it! An adorable mini farmhouse wood sign that you can hang on your Christmas tree and everyone will love!

DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament Wood Sign – CLICK TO TWEET

6 DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament

 

 

Let the Christmas Festivities Begin!

Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter!

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications I Alli~An Alli Event I Michelle~Our Crafty Mom I Marie~DIY Adulation 

Erlene~My Pinterventures I Beverly~Across The Blvd. I Debra~Shoppe No. 5 I Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled

Megan~C’mon Get Crafty I Michelle~Michelle James Designs I Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister I Jeanie~Create & Babble I Sherry~Olives & Okra

Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts I Emily~Domestic Deadline I Bonbon~Farmhouse 40 I Susanne~Pearl Street Designs 

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna I Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts I Kelly~North Country Nest I Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me I Lynne~My Family Thyme I Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads I Trisha~Blowing Away Out West

Tomika~Life In Pumps I Rachee~ Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess 

Jaime~Love Jaime I Serena~The Weekend Jaunts I Terri~Christmas Tree Lane I Jessica~A Southern Mother 

Sam~Raggedy Bits I Surya~The Busy Mom Club  I Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity

Valeria~Val Event Gal I Yami~The Latina Next Door I Jeannee~Centsably Creative I Tania~Little Vintage Cottage

 Lauren~Wonderfully Made I Vanessa~DIY 180 I Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought I Kim~Everyday Parties I Erica~Erica Ever After

Dru~Polka Dot Poplars

DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament

Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ideas this holiday season!

12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop Dec. 1 12 FB Image DIY Farmhouse Christmas Ornament

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Rustic Chic Christmas Tree

Where to find cheap pillow covers 14 Rustic Chic Christmas Tree

This is a sponsored post brought to you by Treetopia. Some links below are affiliate links for your convenience. All opinions are my own, for full disclosure go here.

It is Tuesday, November 21st and I am super stoked today because I finally get to start sharing all things Christmas! I was invited to be a part of the 2017 Design Council for Treetopia for this post and I am excited to join these amazing & talented bloggers to provide you all a range of holiday decor inspiration this week!

 

Treetopia Design Council Announcement Banner Rustic Chic Christmas Tree

 

Treetopia is also hosting their 6th Annual Secret Santa Sweepstakes so make sure you scroll to the end of this post for the directions on how to enter!

Rustic Chic Christmas Tree, Blog Hop & Sweepstakes – Click to Tweet

Back to my tree… 

It has been exciting, yet challenging, trying to figure out how to decorate this year in my new home especially since there are many areas that still need to be updated and changed to suit our style. However, one of the things we love most about our new home are the 2 stone fireplaces. So I decided to go with what I like to call a “Rustic Chic Christmas” look this year.

I wanted to keep things simple and neutral with little pops of red here and there.

Treetopia provided me with this gorgeous  Balsam Spruce Christmas Tree.

It is 8 feet tall and is pre-lit with clear lights. It’s so full and I love how it already comes with an ON/OFF foot pedal so you don’t have to plug and unplug the tree every time.

I decided to not use a tree skirt this year and go with a tree collar instead. I found mine at Hayneedle. They have since holdout of this particular style, but these are still available.

I love the natural element it brings and I don’t have to worry about the kids getting “tangled” on the skirt as they hang out around the tree.

tree collar Rustic Chic Christmas Tree

I wanted my ornaments to be mostly white with little pops of red throughout.

You can purchase several of my ornaments here.

6 1 Rustic Chic Christmas Tree

And if you have joined me for my previous Halloween and Christmas in July posts, you know that I love making my own decorations for my trees and this one was no different.

I had several mini embroidery hoops that I decorated with some holiday greenery, ribbon and hot glue.

1 1 Rustic Chic Christmas Tree

I separated the hoops, removed stems from a cute mistletoe greenery bush and hot-glued away.

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They turned out perfect!

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And then of course I had to get my little decorating committee in on some fun. They love this time of year and appreciate being involved.

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This gorgeous wreath was also from Treetopia and it is the Winter Harvest 24″ wreath.

The white and natural elements like the pine cones looked perfect alongside the Christmas tree decor. I also managed to find some decor from the previous year in order to fill my bookshelves.

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The star stand on the mantle and the deer head silhouette artwork were also DIY’s and you can see how I made those here. 

 

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I think my rustic chic christmas tree came together perfectly.

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SWEEPSTAKES TIME!

Spread the cheer of Christmas with Treetopia’s annual Secret Santa Sweepstakes hosted on their Facebook page! You and your loved one can get a chance to win a tree and an ornament set by choosing your favorite look from our 2017 Design Council and telling us why it suits your holiday style. Ready those sleigh bells and sing your way through the merriest time of the year!

Sweepstakes ends on November 25, 2017!

ENTER TO WIN NOW!

What is your Christmas style? Are you keeping the same from last year or are you going to make a change! Let me know what you will be doing below.

Don’t forget to subscribe below for more updates and don’t forget to check out my new YouTube channel for great tutorials on DIY decor!

 

Yami Signature Rustic Chic Christmas Tree

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