Oh What Fun It Is To... Create! {AP's DIY Sneak Peek!}

If you've been following along and linking up with myself and the other fabulous co-hosts {Erin, Nina, Molly and Meredith} of the "Oh, What Fun It Is To...." link-up, you know that today we're linking up with the amazing and incredible Mama of two (almost three!) sweet boys, Meredith, from over at The Tichenor Family blog. I am truly in awe of this Mama's crafty ways and I cannot wait to see what she shares with us today during the "Oh, What Fun It Is To... Create!" segment! I mean, have you seen her adorable Reindeer Pillows? Just awesome. 

I really got my craft on this holiday season. More so than ever before, really. I think much of it is due in part to Pinterest and some of the incredible and inspirational blogs that I read on a day-to-day basis. So many of you inspire me to do more, make more, bake more and create more that it's pretty much pure craziness! This is also the first Christmas in our new house that doesn't leave me newly postpartum with an infant in my charge. So, really? It's our second Christmas in our new home but the first where I truly feel like... I have it all together. Most days.

So, today I thought I'd share with you some of the DIY crafts that I've worked on over the past few weeks. Some I've already blogged about and I'll include the links to the DIY posts I've written. Others are making their way to the blog for the first time ever, so make sure to grab a cup of coffee and stay a while! 

First up, the Berry Monogram Letter inspired by this pin.

Although a touch time consuming and tedious, this craft was easy and a lot of fun! Here's what you'll need: 

1 large letter of your choosing (mine happened to be a wooden letter from JoAnn Fabrics)

6-8 "clumps" of holly from the floral department (in this case from Hobby Lobby)

Ribbon

Hot Glue Gun & sticks

What you'll do: 

1. Cut the berries from the branches of the holly. You don't need to cut each individual berry off, but rather by the smaller, individual branches. You will use loose berries to fill in the bare spots later so make sure to save a few hand fulls of those!

2. Begin gluing down your berries by first hot gluing a line or two of glue onto your letter. Place your berries on top of the glue and press down so to "flatten" the berries a touch. Hold for a minute until berries feel secure. 

3. Go crazy. Repeat this process until your letter is covered to your liking. Step back and check for uneven areas and bare spots. Fill in with extra loose berries and additional individual branches. 

4. Attach your ribbon according to the shape of your letter. I love how the Pinterest "D" only required a looped bow, but for those of us with "two-pointed" letters, we don't have it that easy. I hot glued each end of the ribbon to the back of my letter. Once hung, I tied an additional bow to the nail, so to create the decorative "bow" atop the letter. Pretty fancy, huh? 

Next up, the framed wreath, inspired by this pin. 

This craft was SO incredibly easy. All it involves is a pre-made wreath of your choosing, a small bit of ribbon and an open frame. Each of these items can be purchased at your local craft store. All I did was position the wreath in the center of the frame and loop ribbon around the top of the frame. I then secured the ribbon by hot-gluing it to the back of the wreath. Once dry, I hung the frame on the wall at the foot of our entryway staircase. Like I said, Loyals, easy peasy.

Once the holidays are over, I will replace the wreath with a simple "M." I love the idea that I will be able to change out the focal point of the wreath with each season or holiday!  

Moving on.. The infamous Ornament Wreath, inspired by this pin. 

I recently blogged all about the DIY How-To when it comes to creating this adorable holiday accent. Click here to read all about it! 

My next little crafty DIY project was something that I whipped up quite last minute after remembering that I had read about it last year on some other crafty blogs! I truly have no reference point for this craft as I just kind of went with what I had remembered/made up in my head. So typical, AP, so typical. 

Embroidery Hoop DIY Clothespin Card Holder

What you'll need: 

The largest embroidery hoop you can find

Roughly 30 standard clothespins

Hot Glue Gun and sticks

Spray-paint (not necessary, but I had some lying around!)

What you'll do: 

Start by hot gluing your clothespins down to the embroidery hoop by placing a small squeeze of glue directly on the ring itself and pressing the flat side of your clothespin to the hoop. 

Alternate your clothespins "pincher side"facing in and out in a pattern around your hoop. 

You can also vary the placement of your clothespins by adjusting the length at which you glue them down to the ring. 

Once your pins are dry, I decided to fancy it up a notch by taking it outside for a quick coat of glittery gold spray paint! A few hours later, I tied a ribbon to the top and it was ready for hanging! 

And last but not least, how to "fancy up" a plain ol' strand of faux green garland... 

Once again, there isn't much to this last craft I'm sharing here today. I started with a plain strand of garland that I picked up at a local Michael's craft store for $2.99. While perusing the aisles, not one to pass up anything gold and/or sparkly, my gaze fell upon the gold glittery leaf garland that you see interwoven with the green stuff. They are, in fact, separate garland- but together? Make for the perfect sparkly Christmas welcome on our entryway staircase. 

Once woven together, I knew there was still something missing. I thought about adding white twinkle lights but soon realized we didn't have an outlet near by and I'm the world's least favorite lover of obvious extension cords. So? I went with ornaments.

We decided against hanging ornaments on the tree this year, mostly thanks to the Crazy Toddler Wildebeest that has currently overthrown our household. While sorting through our Christmas decorations, I knew I wanted to use the ornaments somewhere in the house and decided the garland would be the perfect spot! 

Now, Carter only insists on stopping on each stair to touch and talk to each individual ornament. 

Well, Loyals.. there you have it! Just a little Crafty DIY for the holiday season! So, what have you been up to lately? Be sure to share your crafts and creations with us and link up your posts with Meredith over at The Tichenor Family blog! 

I've also linked up today with Cori over at Handmade on Humpday who is also sharing with us some ah-mazing homemade DIY projects! Go check it out!