Despite the fact that I am ready to see the snowdrops and crocus flowers in the garden, my mind has been thinking about Christmas projects.
For the past few weeks I've been gathering all that I need to make a start, and now I have two that I have almost finished. The first I am very pleased with, because I have not seen anything like it anywhere else. I got the idea from the Christmas and Valentine tulle wreaths. You may recall that just before Christmas I made a very quick and simple garland for the stairs. It was a last minute affair, and turned out quite nicely. When working on the Valentine wreaths, it suddenly occurred to me that the same method would work well for a garland. So, I bought a length of cord, ordered some ivory tulle netting, and got to work. Just tying the pieces of net to the cord. It doesn't take very long to do, but it does take a lot of net. It's nice to get the bulk of the work done early, so when it comes to decorating in December, I just have the fun finishing off to do.
I had to try it out of course! I'm delighted with how it looks. I've bought some luxurious thick satin ribbon in a beige colour to finish it off with, and the large pearls are actually very inexpensive bracelets. I'm not sure yet if I will use them on the garland, or for something else. 
I'm going to make another garland like this to have around the front door with fairy lights. It's such a nice idea and not just for Christmas. This would work well as a wedding decoration, or for Valentine's Day. The house is 'slightly' covered with frothy clouds of net at the moment. I've made three Valentine hearts now (well, four if you count the one I've given to my mum!), I just can't stop making things.
I have a little stash of websites that I think of as my 'Happy Places to Visit'. They tend to be sites written by creative ladies, and show the most wonderful photos of creations they have made or of beautiful vintage goodies they've found. If I am feeling a little sad, they always cheer me up, and if I'm feeling happy then they make me feel happier! There is an elegance and beauty to the sites that I can't resist. I'm sure we all have sites that we love to visit for exactly these reasons. I can't show you my next project without sharing one of these sites with you, as that is where the inspiration came from. The absolutely gorgeous and very aptly name, [Sweet Eye Candy Creations]. If you have never visited the site of Jennifer Hayslip, then hurry scurry over there. You won't be disappointed. I LOVE how pink and girly and gorgeous her site, her life and her creations are. You can't leave without a smile on you face and a feeling of happiness.
When Jennifer shows her Christmas decorations - which take your breath away they are so stunning - one thing really catches my eye. Her vintage pink tulle Christmas tree. I'd never seen anything like it before, and searched the internet to see if I could find one. Well, the timing wasn't right, and I couldn't get one. So, I thought I'd just make one instead! No time to make one before Christmas, but I have done it now. Here it is..
I did a search to look for tutorials on the 'net, and found quite a few. [This One] gives measurements of the fabric needed. I based my tree loosely on this. I am too slapdash to follow instructions exactly, so I read them to get the idea, then did it in my own sweet way, which meant no measuring, just doing it by eye. (Am I alone in my 'can't be bothered to measure' attitude?!) It's very simple. Basically, you just need a dowl of some kind - I used garden cane that I painted cream - then cut long pieces of net, stitch a running stitch one side and gather to make a circle. Secure the circle, then slip over the pole. Keep doing this until the pole is full. To hold the bottom piece in place while adding the circles of fabric, I used an elastic band wound around the pole, it stopped them from slipping off. Graduate the sizes so you get a tree shape, you can always do a bit of trimming at the end. To secure the tree, I bought a little pink glass crackle candle holder and some air drying clay. I put the clay in the base of the candle holder, pushed in the pole and left to dry.
You might be thinking 'yes, but you can see the bottom of the pole through the glass, and that doesn't look nice'! But more about that soon. Once you have your tree securely in it's base, and it's dry, then you can decorate. I wanted to try to give it a vintage look, so have used millinery flowers and pearls. I may or may not add some tiny bows at some point. For the top, I've fashioned some pearls and more flowers into a crown shape. Sort of. It's not very crown like, but I still like how it looks.
And as you are able to see through the glass of the base, I thought it would be rather nice to fill it with sweeties. I've used sugared almonds to show you what I mean, but silver or gold dragees would look rather lovely. Or pearls and sparkly beads. So thank you Jennifer, for sharing such a fabulous idea :o)