Condo Blues

Sunday, November 15, 2020

How to Make a Wine Advent Calendar

I like the concept of wine and beer Advent calendars for adults but the contents inside is often lower shelf booze - meh. Not to mention, the good wine and novelty Advent calendars sell out almost immediately when they are put on the store shelf.

What to do? What to do?

Make a quick and easy gnome Advent calendar using a Christmas tree!

how to make a quick and easy Advent Christmas tree calendar

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How to Make a Christmas Tree Advent Count Down Calendar

Thursday, November 12, 2020

Funny Christmas Sweaters and Friday Favorites Linky Party 555

The Ugly Christmas Sweater trend is fun for the holidays, especially now that there are so many over the top so ugly they are kitschy fantastic sweaters out there in shopping and DIY land. 

But I don't have one because I hate the way busy prints look on me.

And honestly, I'd rather have a funny or clever Christmas sweater or shirt than an "ugly" one.

So I made one for my store  LNWCreativeGifts! Instead of writing Ho Ho Ho like regular people, I put in Santa's super short scientific notation of Ho cubed. You can get my funny Christmas Ho Ho Ho shirt here on your choice of many different t shirt and sweatshirt  styles for men, women, and children. How cute would this be for a family Christmas card photo? (Disclosure: I am including affiliate links for your convenience.)

Time to link up your best projects, home improvements, recipes, and creative ideas!

Tuesday, November 10, 2020

How to Make Easy Embroidered Christmas Stockings

I bought a couple of color your own Christmas stocking kits  (similar to these color your own Christmas Stocking kits) thinking it might be a cute reusable gift wrap idea. (Disclosure: I am including affiliate links in this post for you convenience.) I wasn’t too jazzed with the colors or quality of the three markers that came in the kit which I expected since it came from a dollar store. No big deal. I planned on coloring it with craft paint and adding a few easy embroidered accents and outlines for fun.

 

how to make christmas stockings
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Sunday, November 8, 2020

How to Make Bottle Gnome Christmas Decorations

Many folks in the Scandinavian countries like to decorate their homes with gnomes for Christmas. There is a tradition where they enjoy an appetizer of rice porridge for Christmas Eve dinner and put a small bowl of it outside for the gnomes to thank them for protecting the family and helping them prosper during the year. 

The gnomes get very upset  and will play tricks on you if they are not rewarded with their Christmas porridge!

So personally, I think it is best to decorate with the not so fickle recycled variety and make quick and easy bottle Christmas gnome decorations. Although, just like the Irish leprechaun,  gnomes don’t go away after the holiday and you can decorate with gnomes all year round if you like.

 

how to make Christmas gnome decorations
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This is a very forgiving Christmas craft project because the way you make your gnome is only limited to your imagination and what craft supplies you have on hand or want to use for this project.

Thursday, November 5, 2020

DIY Cotton Bath Puff and Friday Favorites Linky Party 554

While everyone else was baking sourdough bread during quarantine, I was making hot process soap. I took notes on what I did right and wrong and while I can't quite get it as thick as commercial liquid soap like I want, it cleans and lathers beautifully especially when I use a plastic bath puff. While a loofah is zero waste because I can compost it, it doesn't perform as well as a mesh bath poof that has to be tossed after awhile due to bacteria buildup. I tried washing one once and it fell apart.

I hadn't crocheted since I was a kid and recently picked up a hook to make a dishcloth. I looked for more quick beginner crocket projects on Pinterest (follow me @condoblues on Pinterest pretty please?) and found the answer to my zero waste bath puff problem - crochet a bath puff from cotton yarn!

how to crochet a bath puff

I followed this crochet shower puff pattern from Hooked on Patterns and it was pretty easy once I got the hang of it. My shower puff isn't perfect but still not too shabby for the third thing I crocheted as an adult. Best of all, I can wash it in a mesh lingerie bag in the washing machine when I need to - no more bath puffs in my trash can ever again!

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Monday, November 2, 2020

How to Make Outdoor Christmas Tree Decorations

For the last couple of Christmases, I’ve struggled to find something to go with two lighted Christmas dachshunds decorations we display outside because an odd number of decorations grouped together is more pleasing to the eye than an even number. Since I bought those dachunds to celebrate of all things Lacey, why not put our fake dogs where our real dog likes to be - snoozing under the Christmas tree. In fact, we usually keep a spot under the tree clear of presents so Lacey can lounge on the fancy blanket surrounding it (although you may call it a Christmas tree skirt.)

I went with a more modern Christmas tree design because I really wanted to show off what makes my DIY tree different – the ornament windows. Also I can’t draw a traditional Christmas tree shape for beans.

 

quick and easy diy outdoor Christmas tree decor with ornament windows
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Quick and Easy DIY Outdoor Christmas Tree with Ornament Windows