When it comes to decorating for Christmas, I can be rather...picky. For Christmas, I think colors should remain reds, golds, and greens. I don't know where I developed the hatred for blues and silvers at Christmas time, but I can't stand it. Along with that, purples, pinks, and other flamboyant colors give me anxiety when all I want are the soothing colors of royal reds, shimmering golds, and some neutral greens. To be fair, I understand the use of "unorthodox" hues in certain environments. For example, my classroom will be decorated for the holidays with bright colors and hershey blues and silvers. But I will still come home to my reds and golds :)
Aside from colors, I can get rather cranky with boughten decorations that look like they came from a department store. I want my decor to look unique, not like I share the same snowman with hundreds of other Americans.
Do you know how hard it is to find a Christmas tree topper? I love angels, but when it comes to Angel tree toppers, why do they all look like Barbie or Goodwill dolls? Stars can be okay, but I feel I run the risk of getting something that again is too "commercial." I have seen some bows done in a way that looks unique and homey, but there is a fine line between that and a Herberger's Christmas tree. I don't have a tree topper yet, but I will be creating one, so stay tuned for how that goes.
I think tree ornaments are usually well done, as I don't think anyone uses the same combination of ornaments in the same way. However, as your eye descends to the bottom of the tree...What is THAT?! The Christmas tree skirt, which can be oh so cheesy. I had the same problem finding a tree skirt as I did with a tree topper. I prefer tree skirts to be solid colors with texture, so that it complements the tree rather than fights to be a "decoration" all on it's own.
While on Pinterest, I discovered some blogs that showed "ruffled" tree skirts. Some were solid ruffles of white, others were mixed patterns of reds, whites, and greens. I liked them all, but one in particular caught my eye. It was cream fabric and burlap, which you can see here (make sure you scroll to the bottom to see the one I liked)
http://anwjohnston.blogspot.mx/2011/10/diy-no-sew-ruffle-christmas-tree-skirt.html I like this one because it kind of gives the illusion of a snowy landscape. After reading about her trouble with getting the burlap to stick and recalling my experience with burlap, which resulted in itchy eyes and sneezes, I decided to forgo the burlap and use a similar-colored cotton fabric instead.
At walmart I found a cream colored fabric with a light gold pattern in it, and a tannish gold specked fabric. I got 2 yards of each for about 15.00 total. If you wanted cheaper fabric, you could certainly cut up an old white sheet or something. I picked up a 4 dollar white felt skirt at Menard's and a bag of glue sticks and I was on my way.
The hardest part (I thought) was the cutting of the fabric. Not that it was hard, but it just took a long time. I cut them into 3 in strips and the length of the strips do not matter.
After the strips are cut, the fun part begins. Just make a line of glue towards the outside of the skirt and start gathering the fabric in a ruffle motion. The blog above has great step by step instructions on how to do this. After completing one color, then you just alternate each color about 2 inches below the previous layer.
This is about when I realized that I didn't have enough fabric to finish the skirt. So I ran to Walmart and found the cream, but they no longer had the tan! So, I went as far as I could with the cream color.
At this point the center is still unfinished. I'm debating whether to finish the center with the cream, or to try another walmart to see if they have the tan. However, Since my tree is so slim, it actually works just fine to fold the unfinished part underneath. I made it large so that I could "Ruffle" the skirt if I wanted to, rather than just let it lay flat. Once I decide how I'm going to finish it I will put some bows so I can close it in the back.
But for now, here are some pictures of how it looks---keep in mind my tree isn't finished...still need to get a few more ornaments and of course tackle the "tree topper" project. Stay tuned for pictures of how that turns out!
Overall I was impressed with how easy this project was. It came out exactly how I wanted and I can't wait to make another one! Because of the layers of fabric in the loops, the hot glue wasn't an issue with my fingers like I thought it might be. Hope you enjoy this idea! Happy Decorating!
Oh! Here is a link to a more "colorful" tree skirt if that's your fancy. I don't know if I'd use something like this for your main tree, but it would sure be cute in a another room for for a child's Christmas tree. This blogger sewed rather than used glue sticks, which I'm sure is a lot more work, but I think the end result looks pretty similar!
http://prudentbaby.com/2010/12/prudent-home/ruffled-tree-skirt-2/
