Ok, we have a fun little craft for you guys, complete with an easy how-to, and some festive photos.
But first of all, we finally got our tree decorated this weekend…
We’ve shared a bunch of different trees with you guys over the years, and each year it has been fun to switch a few things up with a new “theme” like classic silver and white, citrus inspired lemons and real dried oranges, pastel pink and soft green with silver bows, crafty paint strip ornaments and ribbons, and a fun white to pink to to red gradient tree from last year.
But this year there was a new theme in town: family. We just wanted to fill our tree with meaningful ornaments. Things that were one of a kind, homemade, personalized, given to us by someone special, and otherwise memorable to us. It was actually the first year that we had enough to fill a big tree (we usually relegate them to a smaller tabletop tree), which was good timing since we have a big girl around who’s really into helping these days.
And since handmade ornaments were a big part of the mix, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to try my hand at making three dozen new ones, all with a woodsy yet colorful spin.
The first step was trudging around outside looking for a fallen branch that was about 3″ in diameter. After finding it and yelling “eureka” (true story) I brought it into the garage and fired up the miter saw (picture me grinning like a fool while whispering “don’t cut your fingers off”). It was actually pretty simple to keep the blade straight and make a bunch of vertical cuts, so I was able to slice the whole branch up to make nearly three dozen little round slices.
One half of the branch was a little more gnarled on the inside than the other, so it was funny that around half of them had cool weathered holes in the middle while the others were smoother and less holey. The next step was letting them sit/dry out for a while (I actually made these slices about two weeks ago) because I didn’t want to paint or seal damp wood for fear that it would become a crumbly rotten mess. So if you don’t have time to do that, maybe try hunting down pre-cut wood slices, or see if there’s some method for speed-drying them (maybe sitting them in a box of rice or something?).
Late last week I couldn’t stand waiting anymore, so I sanded them all just to make them extra smooth, and finally broke out three paint pens. I tried my hand at three different designs. We’ll call the one on the left “arrow” (I started by drawing the one in the middle and then just added two others flanking it). The one in the middle can be called “fraction” (I just made a wide-ish pizza slice on each one and colored it in). And the one on the right can go by “dipped” (I experimented with thinner or thicker “dippings” on different angles, just to change things up).
I really liked the idea of letting a lot of the wood grain show through (as opposed to painting or coloring the entire front) but the little pop of color is really fun – and super simple. As for the exact paint pens I used, I had luck with a red and green Sharpie paint pen, and a turquoise Elmer’s Painters pen (they’re a few bucks each at places like Michael’s or JoAnn).
About twenty minutes later, I had this collection of lovelies.
Then I took them outside and said “remember when you guys lived out here?” and gave them a good spray coat of Aileen’s Gloss Finish Sealer (on the front and the sides, and later on the back when they were dry). Sealing wood slices can help to keep them from flaking and it also gives them a nice little polished look, which is a cool juxtaposition to their rugged edges and gnarled centers.
After they had fully dried for 24 hours out in the garage, I brought them back in and drilled tiny pilot holes into the top of each one (I strategically chose what part should be the top so all the arrows would be straight, but some of the fractions and dipped ones would be slightly off-kilter since I liked the interest that those angles would bring to the tree). Then it was as simple as sticking eye-hooks into each of those pre-drilled pilot holes at the top and screwing them by hand.
I already had some old metal ornament hooks to slip through those eye-hooks, so that was all they needed to finally find their way onto the tree.
I think the red ones are my favorite. They really pop with the green background. And the total cost for three dozen wood slice ornaments = $11, which breaks down to around 30 cents each (that total includes all three paint pens, the spray sealer, and the eye hooks). Psst- You can check out a bunch of other wood slice ornaments here.
These new guys are in good company with a bunch of other ornaments that we’ve made over the years (like the green zebra you can see in the top right of that shot above) so that gives us the warm fuzzies. In fact, it’s probably a good time to toss out some links to those other homemade ornaments:
- Here are some faux antler ornaments along with a bunch of colorful “ceramic” animals (and some swirl-painted glass bulbs) from 2011
- Here are a few “snow” covered and feather filled glass ornaments from 2008
- Here are some real dried orange slice ornamets from 2009
- Here are a few baby’s first Christmas ornaments from 2010 (with Clara’s silhouette and hand prints on them)
Oh and a bunch of people saw a peek at the tree on Instagram and Facebook before it was decorated, noticed that it was new, and asked if it was real and where we got it (we got it up about a week before we added ornaments and just gazed at it naked for a while. The tree was naked. We were fully clothed. Except for Burger).
Anyway, back to where we got the tree. It was a hand-me-down from my mom (the box is long gone and we didn’t see any brand markings on it though – so if anyone has something similar and knows the brand we’d love that info to pass along) and we’re completely enamored with it. In fact, we’ve already donated our old tree, which we faithfully enjoyed since 2008. It’s hard to tell in photos, but this one is pretty real looking and sort of droopy-in-a-good-way (it’s feathery on the ends, which makes for a nice effect). Especially all lit up in that bay window of ours. Just ignore the blue trim – I’m waiting for Santa to come paint that for me.
But back to the decorating process. It was the first year that Clara had a real active interest in helping us the entire time, and she was even able to hang the breakable ornaments since she’s a careful steady-handed gal (zero ornaments were harmed in the making of this tree, although I did have about five mini-heart attacks, but I was so glad I let the bean do her thing in the end).
It pretty much worked out to be broken down into three rough zones. Clara took the bottom, I took the middle, and John got the top thanks to his long legs and added wingspan.
As for what went where, it was really just a free-for-all. I placed all of the ornaments out on a little white pedestal table off to the side of the tree, and we all just took turns grabbing whichever one caught our eye. We taught Clara just to do one per branch, but that was really the only direction we gave her – along with “don’t forget the sides and the back.” As we hung them, Clara would ask us where each one came from, so we had fun telling her about one that came from our honeymoon, one that we got in Hawaii with her, a few that were made by readers and given to us last year during our book tour, some that we had made in past years, some that were given to us by family members, etc.
I worried I’d forget a bunch of their origins, but when the entire table had been cleared and the whole tree was full, I don’t think there was a single ornament origin that we couldn’t recall. It’s funny how that stuff sticks with you.
And someone was VERY PROUD of herself.
Here she is posing in front of “her tree.”
And here’s the tree at night in all of its reflecting-in-the-bay-windows glory. The funny thing is that the old owners of the house must have put their tree right in this spot when they lived here. I never would have known that except when we moved in and I redid the floors, I remember finding a bunch of faux pine needles in that corner when I swept things up.
Oh and here’s the 411 on those festive reindeer – they were such an easy project back in 2011. And the tree skirt is just two faux sheepskin rugs from Ikea that we steal from other places in the house and shove under there each December.
So there you have it. A tree without a theme, except for a sweet memorable/handmade hodge-podge. Complete with a tiny tin hamburger.
What are your trees looking like this year? Any fun themes or color schemes? Do you go real or faux with them? Did anyone else make any ornaments? I’d love to get Clara in on the fun next year, so I’m already thinking about some baked ones (either clay or even gingerbread ones) that we could seal/paint/hang together. Could be fun…
Psst – You can peruse a ton of other holiday projects right here.
Update – Wanna know where we got something in our house or what paint color we used? Just click on this button:
Update Number 2: Plus you can check out all of our favorite holiday decor finds here – many of which are under $15!
Allie says
I love those ornaments! And I’ll have to steal some of your other handmade ornament ideas for next year! Here’s some cheap ways I completely changed our Christmas décor from red and green to white/silver/gold/green/aqua this year:
http://cutekiduglyhouse.blogspot.com/2013/12/8-ideas-for-christmas-cheapo.html
I have to say that it makes me feel better that you guys keep the Christmas décor low key. I like to add some fun Christmas elements to my normal décor, but sometimes feel intimidated, like I’m not doing enough, when I see some blogger’s homes that look like a Christmas Wonderland.
YoungHouseLove says
Really cute! Thanks to everyone for sharing links and ideas and traditions!
xo
s
Sarah says
Sherry, when you turn around it looks like you’re not preggo! You look great!! Jelly!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks! You’re so sweet! Thee are some angles that aren’t so flattering… Haha!
xo
s
Rachel says
This is the way our family decorates the tree. My mom always buys an ornament on vacation (or sometimes a small toy with an added string if an ornament can’t be found) and writes the place and date on the back in sharpie. There are also ones I made as a kid including some cardboard thing about 8 inches long with about a pound of glitter and several FEET of string for hanging. It is proudly on the tree to this day. When I bought a house my mother brought me a selection of her ornaments to start my collection.
Lisa says
My daughter is almost 4 and this is the first year she got in on the tree decorating action. I was quite impressed with how the minute I opened the boxes of ornaments she just started pulling them out and hanging them up! It’s amazing what a difference a year makes. Unfortunately her 1.5 year old brother can reach all of the same spots as her, so almost as quickly as she had hung the ornaments he was ripping them off. So now the bottom third of our tree is completely bare. Oh well, maybe next year we can have a pretty tree :) Yours always looks lovely, but this might be my favorite!
Emily @ Life on Food says
We are not getting a tree this year because we are only going to be home 5 days all month. Practical but still sad. I don’t think there is anything prettier than a decorated tree with white lights at night. Yours is lovely.
Kelly says
Growing up in PA, but now living in CA, the holiday spirit is much less for me because the weather is better here and I don’t get to see the leaves change, snow, etc. So, some years I put up my fake tree, others I just don’t anything. Depends on the mood (I visit my family during Christmas anyway.)
This year, I did dig out my tree and my porcelain Christmas village, complete with little tree, animals and faux snow. It looks nice in my new apt.
All of my tree ornaments I have amassed over the years from my mother. Each year growing up, she would put an ornament on each present for my sister and I. That way when we grew up and got married, we’d have enough to start our first tree as a married couple. Needless to say, I’m still single at 39 and she’s still buying me ornaments. I have enough for 3 trees now. God Bless my mother. Hahaha!
Bek says
This year for the last few months I have been working in a Christmas Shop! So with my awesome discount I bought a new tree! Our previous one was a cheap donated one from a friend. So it’s nice to have a big really full tree that will lazy a long time to come! And after seeing your house Christmas decor I was inspired to go but a wreath aswell!
My theme this year was gold and purple. Just with simple round ornaments and lights! Another bonus of working in a Christmas shop is that I’m now a pro tree decorator!! I love my tree.
But I love love your tree and the meaning behind it! You also get extra awesome mum points for letting Clara do her own thing and decorate her ‘section’.
Deanna says
Looks awesome! And the photography skills can’t be beat (cleverly hidden BUMP)! :) Good for you guys! So thrilled for your family! Thanks for sharing!
Katie says
We usually do family tree full of special ornaments but this year with an energetic 15 month old we switched it up a little and made a toddler themed tree.
Our little lady is loving anything that sparkles lately so I made garlands of stars with gold paper and a bunch of colorful glitter birds courtesy of Martha Stewart. She is completely obsessed with dogs so I used your faux ceramic animal project and created faux ceramic dogs. We also added a few shatter proof bulbs and felt snowflakes.
She loved “helping” to decorated and was very focused and serious about the whole event. Perhaps she is a little too excited about decorating the tree now because we keep finding little things tucked away in the branches including dog toys, play food, and my personal favorite squares of toilet paper :)
Christina says
Our tree is ‘random’ each year with ornaments from our childhood, ornaments we’ve collected on our travels, or ornaments that represent an event from our life together. It kinda tells the story of ‘us’.
One year I even made a scavenger hunt for guests at our Christmas party. It was a fun way to share the stories of some of our favorite ornaments.
Christina @ The Murrayed Life says
This is by far my favorite tree you’ve ever done!!! I’ve always been one for meaningful trees over themed ones, and yours comes together especially nicely. I love it all!
Kim says
Very pretty tree – especially the night time picture. I like that you went with the family ornaments – I think those trees are much better then a theme tree. BUT reading your old tree descriptions I saw “Circus” and not “Citrus” and I spent 5 minutes trying to figure out how it was a circus tree. DOH!
YoungHouseLove says
So funny!
xo
s
Natalia says
so beautifull!! we have a very small fake tree, with a very humble decorations, this year i made some clay stars and another ornaments and i had some much fun doing it.
Sophie says
Our tree is always kind of similar to yours this year.
My parents bought me an ornament every Christmas until I was about 15 and my brother too, so those are always on there (cute matching snowmen, reindeer, I had a ballet dancer when I took up dance at about age 4)
It’s super bright and fun, and extremely sentimental, with a mix of all our childhood ornaments, ones made by my mom and ornaments that belonged to my grandparents years ago that got handed down to us.
I’m so used to it, so to me, this is the only want to do a Christmas tree! :)
stacy says
My tree is currently up with lights on but not decorated. We have 2 cats, a dog and 2 little ones so I came up with a plan, along with Santa’s help. Our tree will get decorated on Christmas by Santa and his elves (i.e. me and my husband) and the kiddos will wake up to a decorated tree. Then I don’t have to worry about ornaments all over the house or getting broken. Last year I came home and my entire tree was undecorated – even the ones at the top. So this saves me all that work. I usually take my tree down the day after Christmas so I think this may become our new tradition.
Eliza says
LOVE your tree! We get a real tree each year, only because that is what we did growing up and I just love the smell. I love our tree because it is full of special ornaments–ones my husband, my two sons, and I have picked out over the years, ones my boys have made, and ones that have been gifted to us by relatives. There’s nary a plain glass ball to be seen and I love it that way!!! Btw, recognize the scooter one from Target–got a bike one for my hubby that is very similar! And that bay window was just MEANT for a tree. Maybe you should keep a lit tree there year-round (can you say fig leaf tree?!) :-)
YoungHouseLove says
Haha! I said the same thing! Can’t we just leave it up year round?!
xo
s
Bailey says
What a beautiful tree! I demand a real tree because the smell of a Christmas tree is half the fun of having one!!
Bailey
http://akabailey.blogspot.com
Caitlin @ Desert Domicile says
Your tree is so gorgeous! I love all of the handmade ornaments you made this year and in years past. Did Clara make one for Captain Barnacle?
YoungHouseLove says
I’d love to do a few more ornament crafts with her involving CB! She also has some they make at school that I can’t wait to hang!
xo
s
Shelley says
We’re having a Scandinavian themed tree this year. My heritage is Swedish…my husband’s Norwegian. A mixed marriage!! LOL! We hit IKEA for much of it. We have Tomten and red and white hearts and some strange straw-like ‘puff’ balls…but the homemade crocheted snowflakes and real wheat laid in the branches (we live in farm country and I saved a bunch) really make it look rustic and gorgeous…if I do say so myself!
Eileen says
We just put up our Christmas tree on Sunday. I got it off of QVC our first married year, a 7ft fiber optic one. It’s almost 10 years old, a bit thin in some places, and the cats have chewed a few of the ends, but it’s still pretty cool to me. All you have to do is change the color wheel and have completely different color scheme! I dread having to replace it because all of the ones I see online look kinda cheesy (ours has the light ends in round groups, so it looks like normal string lights without the string).
I do love your whispy ended tree though, very realistic and pretty. It’s probably not the exact same one, but this one from Home Depot has a similar vibe: http://tinyurl.com/nyed2m9
YoungHouseLove says
That looks just like it! Even the stand is similar! I don’t think she got it from Home Depot though, but maybe it’s the same manufacturer.
xo
s
Shannon says
This is my favorite of all your trees! At my mother-in-laws house, the “kids” (all over age of 35) complain that the other “kids” have more ornaments than they do. “Tiffany. Look at Tiffany. She has all of these ornaments from when she was little. I must have been busy in the attic peeling eggs.” Smack talk every year. One of my favorite things. :-)
Jamie B says
The Clara Area = The Clarea ?
The wood ornaments are adorable!!!
YoungHouseLove says
Ha!
xo
s
Victoria says
So charming and I love that each ornament has a “history”. That bay window is the perfect place for the tree. Clara did a wonderful job and she should be proud. She is getting to be such a big girl, so pretty and so smart.
I have a nice artificial tree and ornaments passed down from my mother but my cat loves to break ornaments and climb the tree so I gave up on the tree idea for now. As I said before, my clever husband, also named John, made a mobile from driftwood and put some of our more interesting ornaments on the branches and hung it from the ceiling. It gently moves in the air currents and sparkles like crazy. We would love to put lights on it but can’t figure out how – there is no outlet anywhere near and a cord would look ugly anyway. Anyway, it looks festive. The hubby is a keeper.
rea says
you christmas tree is beautiful!
Hannah Rose says
Where did Clara’s sweater come from? It’s so adorable!
YoungHouseLove says
H&M! She loves that thing!
xo
s
Stephanie says
When I was really little I used to help decorate my grandparent’s Christmas tree. They used to talk about de-Stephanizing the tree because all the ornaments were down at the bottom.
Liz says
Very pretty! I think sentimental trees are the best! The one year my mom decided to create a “fancy tree” aka no childhood ornaments, Christmas didn’t feel the same.
Angel says
This is far and away the best tree you have ever done. Feels homey and real. More stuff like this please! Love it :)
Ethne @ Wom Mom Blog says
We always do a family-ornament tree. Mine from childhood and a collection started for our kids. I love to look at them each year. We could always make it a themey tree by adding different colors of garland, but we usually stick to red and silver or gold. Love your tree this year. My favorite yet!
jen says
Hi guys,
good job with the tree. our three year old helped a lot this year, so things on ours are a little sporadic, but she loves it so we do too.
Question for you, I have an etsy shop that Im trying tog et word out on, I comment on your blog from time to time, but have never included my shop in a link with my name. I did this time. Do you guys mind? I wasnt sure if that was against any policy. If its not cool, let me know, and I wont do it again.
Merry Christmas, and congrats on that little boy of yours. We have an almost 4 year old little girl, and had a boy in June. Its so fun.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Jen! We love checking out new shops!
xo
s
Alexis says
Ahh…haha…holiday music playing on Pandora and the opening line “Oh Christmas tree” perfectly lined up with me opening this page. I thought you had embedded the song in the post! It was a nice touch. ;) Looks great. :)
YoungHouseLove says
So funny! I wish we were that crafty!
xo
s
Emylee says
ok sherry, are you right or left handed?? or both? these pictures have me fooled and I can’t figure it out!
also, your insta post earlier of “burger the halls” had me fooled (again) thinking you posted the bun’s initial next to your S, J and C ornaments. but I was like noooooo, it’s for BURGER. I guess it could be for Baby Bun….hahaha. Clearly I’m going stir crazy being snowed in.
YoungHouseLove says
I write with my right hand but I play some sports leftie and can paint/cut in with both hands! I’m DIY ambidextrous I think ;)
xo
s
Callye Lawrence says
Wow. So beautiful! And Clara is just too cute.
sarah @makingitmyhome.blogspot.com says
aaaah, totally love the idea of having themes for the tree each year
Ashley says
Doncha just love white lights and family ornaments? That’s my cuppa tea!!!
Mary says
When my son was young, he once told me that we should call our Christmas tree a “memory tree” because of all of the ornaments we had collected over the years from some very special people. Like Clara, he enjoyed hearing the ornament stories each year when we decorated the tree, too. That will be a special memory for you as your little one(s) :) grow up!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so sweet!
xo
s
Susan says
Hey Sherry,
Your tree looks a lot like this one:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/National-Tree-Company-7-5-ft-Feel-Real-Frasier-Grande-Hinged-Tree-with-1000-Clear-Lights-PEFG4-308-75/204161819?cm_mmc=sem|psocial|fbx|dynamic#.UqexNuI5OS0
What do you think?
YoungHouseLove says
Yes! I think that’s it since even the base is similar! Although Mom didn’t get it from Home Depot, so maybe other stores sold that model/make?
xo
s
Diana says
I just saw last night that you did themed trees in the past which surprised me since you appreciate simplicity (like me). I really like this year’s “theme” though. We’ve never done themes, just all the ornaments we own. Growing up my Mom kept a separate box for each of us (6 girls) of all the ornaments we received so when we each moved out we all had our own box to take. I love having the same ornaments on my tree now that I had growing up! So many memories. I do supplement with basic green & blue bulbs that I’ve had since we got married. Kinda ties it together but still very nostalgic. =)
simple green moms says
LOVE YOUR TREE! Love it so much…oh my gosh can i go redo my tree to look just like your right now?!
Thanks for sharing!!! =)
Julie says
I love your tree and those wood ornaments. And I totally cracked out when I read this “Then I took them outside and said “remember when you guys lived out here?””.
Evie says
Your tree is soooooo pretty. After the pics showing Clara putting ornaments on, my favorite shot is the one at night. Just wonderful!
Favor……could you take a nighttime shot of your kitchen showing your three new lights glowing it up? I’d love to see that!
YoungHouseLove says
Yes, we’re planning to take one for our next kitchen post since that has been a common request! Can’t wait!
xo
s
Veronica says
Love it! This tree has so much charm and it’s great that Clara could help out.
Our tree this year is actually a ‘wishing/blessing tree’ that we used at our wedding in early November.
http://cdn-s3-1.wanelo.com/product/image/2442592/original.jpg
Not a traditional tree but it works! It’s full of ornaments & red ribbons :)
YoungHouseLove says
Really pretty! Thanks to everyone who shared festive links and stories about their traditions and decorating. Loved reading all the comments and feeling warm and fuzzy!
xo
s
Megan says
Love the tree! Did you ever find out anything about it from your readers? I’d love to get something similarly realistic :)
YoungHouseLove says
Yes it seems like Home Depot has one that’s super similar! If you scroll back a few comments (on this same page) you should see someone who linked over to it with my comment under it! Hope it helps!
xo
s
Sarah says
I can’t speak for everyone else, but let me just say that I’m dying for a baby bump profile shot. Sherry, can you turn to the left (to the left! A la Beyonce)? Would love to see you show off that Baby Boy Petersik bump! Congrats again on your little bun. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Ha! I bet one will slip in there any day now. This little boy is growing everyday!
xo
s
Michelle @ A Healthy Mrs says
Love this theme! The tree looks beautiful & it’s so nice that Clara is old enough to take an interest!
Janelle says
You just inspired me! I create tshirts for my family every Christmas and this year’s shirt has an initials-carved-into-wood theme… so I’m going to DIY some of these wood disc ornaments to match the shirts and hand them out as gifts. YAY!
Thank you so much for inspiring everyone and showing us that even tricky things can be done by everyday people. I’m so happy to catch a glimpse into your lives. You’re such positive, happy, loving, generous people and you make the blogosphere an infinitely better place!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, thanks so much Janelle! You’re so sweet. Good luck with those wood ornaments!
xo
s
Julia says
This is my favorite tree of yours! I have a tree that is a mish mash of ornaments–I have everything from Harry Potter to my son’s first Christmas ornaments. Every year my mom would take us (myself and my brothers) to Hallmark and we would pick out an ornament. My great aunt would make one for each of us and my aunt would send us one from FL (we are from MA). When I moved out I got my box of ornaments. I have more than enough to fill a good sized tree!
I pick them up throughout the year when my husband and I go on little trips. It is kind of a sickness–I love my ornaments!
Our tree was always like this while I was growing up. My mom’s good friend always had the perfect tree with the color coordinated ornaments and ribbons–it was so beautiful. One day she was at our house with her daughter and her daughter said, “why can’t our tree be more like Kathy’s.”
We have been so busy this year and have not even had a chance to pick out a tree yet but I plan to decorate with my 3 year old son and tell the stories behind all of my treasures!
Josh R says
Perfecto! I love it! Sooo magazine cover! ;-)
Shelley @ Green Eggs and Hamlet says
We’re in Sydney, Australia (instead of our home of Denver, Colorado) this year over Christmas so I’m not decorating. But normally we have a small tree that I decorate with all “H” ornaments (the letter, not just things that start with “H”) that I’ve started collecting since we got married last year. Our last name begins with H, so that’s why.
Our main tree is filled with memorable, family, hodge-podge ornaments like yours and I have to say that kind of style is my favorite. The theme/decorated trees are pretty and creative but I just love something about a personal tree, it’s so meaningful. All that to say, your tree this year is my favorite of all of them!
Cindy @Made2Style says
Such a beautiful tree! If you didn’t say I would have totally thought it was real!