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Decorating

Make Your Own Festive Floral Arrangements

Gift Guides/Decorating

Dec 23 2009
By ASSOCIATED PRESS

Looking for a unique, one-of-a-kind centrepiece to spruce up your holiday table? A lovely arrangement to dress your mantlepiece; or beautifully showcase your Christmas spirit and creativity? Then these three do-it-yourself floral arrangements, from the imaginarium of Trish O'Sullivan are for you.

Last-Minute Holiday Home Spruces

Decorating

Dec 20 2009
By AOL Staff

The presents are wrapped, the turkey's been purchased and the tree is decorated. All that's left are some last minute details and your home is set for the holidays. You don't have to spend a lot to bring some festive cheer into your space. Check out our quick and easy ideas to spruce up your home.

Make Gifts Extra Special: Craft Your Own Bags

Gift Guides/Holiday Survival/Decorating

Dec 16 2009
By ASSOCIATED PRESS

Put down the tape dispenser and the wrapping paper. Instead, make your own gift bags this holiday season. They can be done in a snap, and in their homemade splendor, they become part of the gift.

There's a gift bag for every sewing level; if you have sharp scissors and holiday-themed fabric, you're basically ready to go.

Non-sewers can turn to "furoshiki," a Japanese term for a simple square of fabric into which nearly anything can be tied. Crafters who can sew a straight line may want to try a cinched gift bag, while more advanced sewers can tackle something like the "eco-wrap pouch" created by craft blogger Jessica Okui.

Make Your Holiday Decorations Greener With These Tips

Decorating/Entertaining

Dec 15 2009
By ASSOCIATED PRESS

Plastic ornaments, strands of electricity-hogging lights, trees chopped down by the millions: Christmas decorating isn't exactly known as environmentally friendly.

But, say design experts, there are plenty of ways to bring the sparkle and style of the season into your home without increasing your carbon footprint.

BRING THE OUTDOORS IN

Search outside, says Atlanta-based interior designer Mallory Mathison, for natural materials such as "leaves, branches, cones of all types and berries." She creates holiday centerpieces by filling bowls or baskets with fresh fruits and vegetables. Try an assortment of crimson and golden pears, Mathison says, or go red and green with pomegranates and artichokes.

With pine cones, "collect as many different types as possible. They need to be dry, so lay them out in the attic or garage." Try displaying them, she says, in large silver bowls, long trays or "a big, funky pottery bowl."

Glitter Can Add Magic to Holiday Crafting

Decorating/Fun & Entertainment

Dec 15 2009
By ASSOCIATED PRESS

For many crafters, glitter makes everything better.

It adds sparkle to even the most mundane items, especially at holiday time. Consult a few glitter fanatics and the project ideas pour out like, well, so much superfine glitter.

"Glitter can transform any item. It can completely change something old into something new," says Jessica Okui, 31, a craft blogger from the San Francisco Bay area.

Okui's next project: glittering her young daughter's dirty, white tennis shoes. She'll use fabric glue, then lock in the colorful glitter with an acrylic sealer. For the holidays, Okui has glittered origami cranes in gold and silver, and posted the images at her blog site, Zakka Life.

The Verdict: Experts Say Real Trees Are Greener

Decorating

Dec 11 2009
By Mark Moyes

The long-standing debate about real versus fake trees is one step closer to being resolved. Clint Springer, a biologist at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia, points out that when it comes to greenhouse gases, cutting down a tree is "the obvious choice". Real trees remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as they're growing, which makes them carbon neutral. The petroleum required to manufacture the plastics in fake trees produces carbon which is never offset, since these trees usually end up in landfills. What's more, most real trees for sale are farmed, so they don't contribute to deforestation.

HGTV's Sarah Richardson Throws a Party

Decorating/Entertaining

Nov 27 2009
By Mark Moyes

Sarah Richardson, host of HGTV's Sarah's House, loves Christmas. She loves it so much that every year she holds a party for two hundred of her friends. Sound daunting? Sarah's Holiday Party, premiering this weekend on HGTV, gives viewers a sneak-peek into the week-long preparations, as Sarah and design helper Tommy collaborate on everything from decorating to baking to setting up the trees. We spoke to Sarah about tradition, family, keeping things simple and how to host that many people without losing your mind.

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