Make your own bright light ornaments!

Bright Light Ornaments

MATERIALS 
- Glitter
- Lightbulbs
- 24-gauge wire
- Glue
- Paintbrush

DIRECTIONS
Use paint brush to cover glass bulb with glue. Sprinkle glitter onto bulb. Wrap wire around neck of bulb 5 times and tie, leaving one inch of wire remaining. Knot end of the wires to create a loop. Hang.

Read more: http://www.rd.com/slideshows/adorable-cheap-homemade-christmas-gifts/#ixzz2n7zbZcMT

Alternative Christmas Tree Ideas

One of my favorite things about Christmas is setting up the tree. I'm a college student and I wont be spending my Christmas here in Rexburg, I'm graduating and will be moving soon so I don't to spend a lot on decorations that will just take up more space as I move. I also live in a studio apartment with limited space. I see no point in spending so much money on buying a tree and decorations for just a couple weeks of prettiness before moving. My husband actually came up with the idea for our "tree" this year and it only cost us $5! We bought two strands of lights at Walmart for $2.50 each then used tape put the lights on the wall in the shape of a tree. Then I used wrapping paper to add the finishing touches, "ornaments," the trunk, and the star on top (wrapping paper is from Walmart also, $.99/roll).

Christmas light trees can also be made in different shapes, like the fancier ones below. 

 

I have been here for one other Fall semester and lived with roommates then. We didn't decorate much inside our apartment but one roommate got silly and creative and brought home a piece of sagebrush one evening. She then attached it outside our door and decorated it. It was our Christmas tree that year and absolutely free. 

Another idea I have seen and hope to try one day is to make a tree completely out of Christmas ornaments. It's made by attaching string of different lengths to ornaments and hanging them from the ceiling in the shape of a tree. It can be relatively cheap depending on where you buy your ornaments. 

  

If your have ever made your own alternative Christmas tree or have other ideas of your own, let us know in the comments.

Holiday Recipes

Here are some holiday recipes to keep you warm and fuzzy!

Pecan and Honey Diamonds

Cost per serving: 47¢

These bite-sized delights won't last long! Save time by making them in advance--they'll keep in an airtight container at room temperature for two to three days.

Ingredients

·         CRUST:

·         2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

·         2/3 cup confectioners' sugar

·         1 teaspoon salt

·         12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled, cut into 12 pieces

·         FILLING:

·         2/3 cup honey

·         1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

·         1/4 teaspoon salt

·         6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces $

·         2 tablespoons heavy cream

·         3 cups pecan halves

Preparation

1.     1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a 9-by-13-inch baking pan on bottom and 2 long sides with a sheet of heavy-duty aluminum foil, making sure that foil is smooth and overhangs top of pan by at least 4 inches on both sides. Mist foil with cooking spray.

2.     2. Make crust: Combine flour, confectioners' sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse once or twice. Add butter and process until dough forms a clump when squeezed, about 30 seconds. Sprinkle mixture across bottom of pan and press into an even layer, making sure there are no cracks. Bake crust until it looks dry, 18 to 20 minutes. Place on a wire rack.

3.     3. Make filling: Reduce oven temperature to 325ºF. Combine honey, brown sugar and salt in a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes without stirring. Add butter and cream and simmer, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in pecans.

4.     4. Pour hot filling evenly over crust. Use back of a spoon to distribute nuts evenly. Return pan to oven and bake until filling is bubbling and slightly browned, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack and cool completely. Run a small knife between pan and pastry on sides without foil. Lift foil from pan onto a cutting board and use a serrated knife to cut into 30 diamonds.

POPOVERS! 

Ingredients

Popover Batter

3/4

cup water

1/4

cup butter or margarine

1

cup Original Bisquick® mix

4

eggs

Apricot Butter, if desired

1/4

cup unsalted butter, softened

2

tablespoons apricot preserves

Honey Herb Butter, if desired

1/4

cup unsalted butter, softened

2

tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1

teaspoon honey

Molasses Butter, if desired

1/4

cup unsalted butter, softened

2

teaspoons mild molasses

Directions

·         1Heat oven to 400°F. Generously grease 32 mini muffin cups with shortening.

·         2In 4-quart saucepan, heat 3/4 cup water and 1/4 cup butter to rolling boil. Reduce heat to low; add Bisquick mix all at once. Stir vigorously with whisk about 1 1/2 minutes or until mixture forms ball. Remove from heat. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time; continue beating until smooth.

·         3Drop dough by level measuring tablespoonfuls into muffin cups.

·         4Bake 23 to 27 minutes or until deep golden brown.

·         5Meanwhile, stir together ingredients of desired flavored butter(s) to serve with popovers.

Gift ideas

I stumbled across this website that is great for couponing. However, right now with the holidays they post a lot of fabulous deals for great and inexpensive gifts for Christmas. Here is one of their recent posts. Grab one of these holiday aprons for less than $8 FREE SHIPPING!!!!

Here is another idea I saw on the site earlier last month. It is three of these for less than $3 FREE SHIPPING! ...These might ship after Christmas so think about birthdays in the coming months or something!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003NTKMLW/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Just a few ideas! Have anymore great resources? FREE SHIPPING is always a win win when shopping online!

DIY projects

Remember our DIY projects as seen below?
I attempted a few of these this holiday season to give you the insight into the turnout of the project.

I went to the dollar store and bought a few decorative ornaments as well as some ribbon. I ended up taping my ribbon from the top of a window pane so they hang over my window pane. My suggestion is to make each ribbon a different length. It adds great depth to the look. My neighbor did this as well with smaller ornaments, leftover from her tree and it looked just as great! Keep it cheap!

I didn't want to spend the money on the burlap for this project so I used leftover white cardstock that I have and used my cut out machine to cut out letters from red cardstock. If you don't have a cut out machine you can always cut out each letter. A lot of craft stores also have a cutout machine, like Porters. I made my sign to say MERRY CHRISTMAS instead. I also made one saying NORTH POLE. I ended up using these for a ward party and had them leftover for my house afterwards. Again, keep it cheap!

This is my favorite so far. I went to Porters and bought these little people. I had a bunch of leftover fabric from my stockings (see below) and just recently started on this project. I used my hot glue gun but if you don't have one just use any type of glue. I haven't made the stable yet but the stable pieces are found at Porters as well. Just make them as you go and turn it into exactly what you want! I really suggest a hot glue gun because it dries so much faster than any other glue and will stick much stronger than typical elmers.

 I made my own stockings this year from this pinterest idea. Images of my actual ones are below:

This was the pinterest idea from the original blog post

I went to Wal-mart and bought a little burlap and cream fabric as well as some decorative designs such as buttons, floral ribbon...etc. I had a $1 stocking from last year that I used to measure this one. I didn't use any other kind of pattern so if I can do it you can too! This is my daughters and I plan on putting a monogram letter for her first name on it with more decorative things such as dark brown buttons, etc. I still haven't attached the string that holds them to the mantle but so far here are my four:

My neighbor also made her own stockings with me but she did a reverse type with the burlap as the base and the cream as the top that folds down. Those were super cute as well so get creative and crafty with them! I'd love to hear how yours turn out!

Christmas Tree Permit

My wife and I are planning on harvesting our own Christmas tree this year. We would like to share our experience with you.
In the state of Idaho you are able to purchase a Christmas tree permits which allows you to harvest your own Christmas tree.
Last you we purchased a tree from a lot here in town for $39.00. The tree didn't look too great, although it was convenient to go pick one up just a few blocks from our home. This year we thought we would investigate how much it would cost to harvest our own tree. Permits cost $10.00 and have been on sale since November 23. Vendors who sell the permits will provide information on where to harvest your tree. Further information can be found at: http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/boise/passes-permits/forestproducts/?cid=STELPRDB5043600.

My wife and I will be going out to look for a tree this coming saturday, December 7th. We will fill you in with details and pictures from our trip. In the meantime check out this sweet video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvXhcsQJaFI&noredirect=1

**UPDATE**

My wife Amber and I packed up last Saturday morning and headed for the hills... in the middle of a snow storm. We didn't have great luck finding a Christmas tree. My plan was to head up to the nearest national forest access road about 20 miles outside of Sugar City. We had gone to pick huckleberries there this summer and thought that it would be an easy spot to get to, not too far from town and if we got stranded we could walk out pretty easy. Just past the Teton Dam sign on highway 33 there's a sign on the right hand side of the road that reads 'National Forrest Access', We followed the road for about ten miles. As we went high and high the snow on the road got deeper and deeper. We have a four wheel drive with snow tires and I wasn't worried about getting stuck. Amber said she had a bad feeling so we turned back. We decided we would decided we would try Green River Canyon, just a few miles up the road. There's a hot spring up there that's open year round, we thought maybe the roads would be plowed and we could get closer to the trees. No such luck we ran into the same issue. So this is what we've learned:

• The Christmas Tree permit is the way to go. We ended up spending $40 for a less than perfect tree from broulims. The permit only costs ten, plus your gas. 
• Go Early! The permits went on sale this year November 23rd. If you get up in the hills before the snow gets deep you can easily snag a great tree.
• Go prepared for harsh conditions.
• bring extra food, water and blankets.
• take snow chains if you have them.
• bring a hatchet or axe
• Tell people where you are going and when you'll be back

Great Deals for Decorations

If you aren't the crafting type but want to save money there are still many of options for you. One of the easiest ways to save money on Christmas decorations is to look out for sales. Walmart and Kmart often have sales as Christmas approaches where cheaper decorations can be found. Christmas décor goes on sale (a lot of it for half price or more) beginning the day after Christmas. If you’re willing to wait until next year for those have-to-have-but-not-at-that-price decorations right after the holiday is the time to buy them.

If you are looking for decorations that you don’t intend to reuse or keep for future Christmases a $1 store is a great place to shop, the Dollar Tree here in Rexburg. They have small strands of lights, tinsel, ornaments, small nativities,  wrapping paper, and many other knick knack type decorations as well. I think the $1 store is a great place to purchase decorations with roommates for cheap.

The DI (Deseret Industries), Thrift store, Goodwill, etc. is also a good place to shop for great priced decorations. They might be older or in slightly rougher condition but they are still useable after a little sprucing up. I found a small nativity like the one pictured below at the DI Rexburg. It was covered in a thick layer of dust, but for $1.25 and after a good wash it’s great!