SENIORS LADY: MINI DACHSHUND CHRISTMAS TREE!

 

When I see parents with kids jumping 

up and down, I smile. They are in the

 toy aisle of a department store. The 

kids are discussing what toy they 

want for Christmas. 

Some of the kids over age nine lead 

their parents to the Electronics 

Department for view of  latest cell

 phone, notebook, and computer

accessories. 

My children are grown, so I no 

longer endure discussions about

 trendy toys and electronics.

I am a purple lover and usually

put up purple Christmas decor.

I wasn't feeling up to doing that 

this year.

 I was Christmas shopping with

my Mom.  I spotted a display of 

mini Christmas ornaments. There 

were packets of gold dachshunds 

dressed in red Santa outfits. This 

was the cutest ornaments I had

 seen this year. I have a dachshund 

mix dog, so I had to buy every packet 

I could find. Only three packets 

were left. Now I needed a mini 

tree to put the ornaments on.

None were in stock at this 

store. I visited a couple of 

Dollar Stores and finally

found a mini tree.

MINI DACHSHUND CHRISTMAS TREE!

Need:

Mini Green Christmas Tree 

( 11 in DIA x 18 in H)

( 2 ) packets  3 Mini Ornaments:

Dachshunds with Santa Outfits 

1 packet Mini Decorative Bells 

( 16 count, Gold & Red )

Red Mini Tree Topper 

Red MINI Tree Skirt 

1 Set Clear Mini LED Lights: 

( 15 Lights, 4.6 ft. )

Remove tree from box. Assemble

 & insert 3 foot stands on bottom 

of tree. See Instructions on box.

Remove ornaments from packets.

Decorate tree with dogs and bells in

 desired pattern. 

Note:

Hanger cord in packet with

 the bells. You must cut 4-5 inch 

piece for each bell. Insert cord

 in top of the bell. Tie a knot and

 hang bell on tree, alternating

gold & red bells.  

Place tree topper on top stem of the tree. 

 May need to fold stem to make tree topper 

fit secure.

Arrange tree skirt around the tree. 

Place batteries in light box. Straighten 

out the string of lights. Lights ready

 to string on tree in desired pattern.

TIPS:

**   Used Christmas towel for my 

tree skirt. Mini Red tree skirts 

out of stock.

** Already had red angel topper.

Use your desired red, gold, or white 

mini tree topper.

**   Substituted green tree hangers 

for gold cord. Not enough gold cord 

for 16 bells!

SENIOR LADY: THRIFTY CHRISTMAS GIFTING 🎄🎁⛄

I love some parts of the Christmas season.

I love the reason for the season, the birth 

of Jesus Christ:

"And she shall bring forth a son, and thou

 shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save

 his people from their sins." 

Matthew 1:21 

I enjoy planning my Christmas menu.

The week of Christmas is the busiest

for me. I live in a household full of 

men and only one son can cook.

Gifts are given during the Christmas 

season to express love and good will.

This Bible verse reveals that baby Jesus

received gifts:

"And when they ( Wise Men ) were come

 into the house, they saw the young child

 with Mary his mother, and fell down, 

and worshipped him: and when they had

 opened their treasures, they presented 

unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense,

 and myrrh." 

Buying gifts for my family was easy in the

 beginning. My sons' circled what they 

wanted in a catalog that came in the mail.

They laid the circled pages on the kitchen 

table for me to see.  I began Christmas

shopping in October so I wouldn't be 

stressed out at the end of the season.

Designer clothes, cell phones, and 

computers changed my desire to 

buy Christmas gifts. Now my sons'

receive money and gifts cards so 

they can buy what they want.

Now most of my friends and family

 are retired.  We're on fixed incomes.

We still meet for lunch and exchange

Christmas gifts. We appreciate our 

gifts even though they aren't very 

expensive. I still start Christmas

shopping in October to decrease

my stress level.  I buy sale items 

from Department Stores. Others 

items are purchased from Discount

Stores at shopping centers.

Items: Gift List:

FLEECE THROWS: 50 IN X 60 IN

CHRISTMAS SCENES GIFT CARD BOXES, 

MONOGRAM ORNAMENT:

GLITTERY INITIALS ( 2 1/2 IN X 4 IN),

LIGHT UP LED NECKLACE ( 6 LED BULBS),

MEMO BOOK WITH PEN( IMAGE OF DOG)

OTHER GIFT IDEAS:

Matching set of kitchen towels, dish cloth, oven mit

Set of Wooden Kitchen Tools in Colorful jar/bucket

Scented Body Lotions & Soaps

Fancy Deco Bottles Sparkling Juice/ Cider

Mini Christmas Tree with Mini Ornaments & Tree Skirt

Set of Christmas Glasses/ Dessert Plates 

Pairs of Women's Trouser Socks

Pairs of Men's Dress Socks 

Women's Sleep Shirts ( One Size Fits Most)

Men's Sleep Pant with ( Average Size with

 Adjustable Strings)

STOCKING STUFFER IDEA FOR KIDS:

SENIOR LADY: CHRISTMAS BULB ORNAMENTS!

 

I was watching videos and looking through

Christmas catalogs recently.  I was needing 

ideas for my DIY Christmas Decor and 

gifts. I finally spotted a craft that required 

materials that were easy to find in most 

stores. The  craft was simple and I had 

most of the embellishments on hand.

Apparently this craft was the trend 

three years ago.  I didn't notice it on 

the craft channels. This craft used

 light bulbs. I couldn't fInd the old 

fashion incadescent light bulbs.

The store I was shopping at only 

had single packs of 60 watt bulbs. 

The 2 count LED chandelier light 

 bulbs were the best choice. I had

 to create my own design for these 

40 watt light bulbs. The online video

that I watched used recycled 60 watt

 light bulbs. They were decorated to

resemble  snowmen.

 BULB CHRISTMAS ORNAMENTS 

NEED:

(3) 2-pack 40  Watt Chandelier bulbs 

Embellishments:

Adhesive Green Diamond Wrap 

Diamond Gold Pearl Wrap 

12 Count Green & Red Mini Bows 

7 Red & Green Pipe Cleaners 

Mini Red Berries (80-90)

Mini Greenery ( 6-7 Pieces )

Assorted 90 count:

Red, Green, & White Pom Poms

Red, Green, & White Ribbon, 5/8 Inch 

Red Satin Ribbon, 5/8 Inch with:

 Words Merry Christmas 

TOOLS:

Glue Gun & Glue Sticks

Scissors 

  

Lay out embellishments & decide which

ones to place on the bulbs. Freely use my 

 decorated bulbs as inspiration. These bulbs

 have a white panel with words written on

them. I decided to cover the panels with

 embellishments. I left the bulb portion

exposed.  The diamond wrap has adhesive

 but I still added glue to make gems more

 secure. The berries were removed from 

their stems with scissors. I added them 

one at a time, on the panel.  Secured them 

with hot glue. 

I cut small leaves & vines off picks & bushes. 

They were hot glued on the white panel 

of the bulb. 

I have a collection of odds and ends

 from previous craft projects. However,

 the mini bows, gems, and pom poms

 were bought from a Dollar Store. 

Embellishment like beads, buttons,

ribbons, and gems can be used for 

Christmas crafts once you have a

 design you want to try. 

SENIOR LADY: TOO MANY EARRINGS HOLDER!

I love large earrings and include them 

in my jewelry collection. I have hoop 

earrings in several colors. I was able 

to find an online  site that sold Retro

 70's, 2-3 inch hoop earrings in 

different colors. I was so happy

 to have a 12 count set of the 

hoops shipped  to me last year. 

 There are large teardrop earrings 

made from in wood, gold, and silver 

also in my jewelry box.  Searching

 through my jewelry box for the 

earrings to match my outfits became 

a daily hassle. 

I searched online for a  solution 

for displaying my earrings. There

we're not many jewelry displays 

that hung on the wall. 

I watched  several craft videos 

and finally found an answer to

my problem. A few ladies used

dollar store picture frames to 

display their jewelry.  I thought

this was a great idea. I could

recycle larger picture frames

from thrift stores, if a  larger 

jewelry display was needed.

Some crafters used foam 

sheets, embroidery cloth,

 and mesh kitchen drawer 

liners in the frame. Light

blue was the color I needed.

My bedroom and bathroom 

are painted light blue. The

jewelry frames will be hung

 on the wall like a painting. 

Light blue items was not 

 stocked at  stores I shopped at. 

The kitchen section at my local

 dollar store had  light blue

microfiber pot holders.

The pot holders had mesh  

liners sewn on the back. My 

earrings with the French

hook could be hung on

the mesh liner.

PICTURE FRAME EARRING HOLDER

NEED:

8x11 Picture Frame

2 pack microfiber

pot holders 

Colored mini paper clips

TOOLS:

Scissors 

Glue gun & glue sticks 

Ruler

Remove the black panel, ad sheet,

and glass panel from the frame. 

Lay picture frame face down.

Lay white cardboard border

face down in the frame. Use

scissors to cut pot holder 

fabric to fit the 8x11 frame. 

The glass panel can be used

 as a guide to measure pot 

holder fabric, if ruler not 

available. 

The mesh needs to show in

 the front of the frame. The

colored  fabric will be visible 

behind the mesh. 

The picture frame earring holder 

is ready to be hung up. The

hooks on the back of the

 earrings can be placed in the 

mesh holes.  Place pairs of

earrings in desired arrangement.

I have hoop earrings with French clips, 

hinged backs, and push backs. I added

 mini light blue paper clips in the mesh

 holes. Open up the paper clips. One end

 goes in the mesh holes and the other 

end holds the hoop area of the earrings.

 

 

The picture frame earring holders

make great gifts for birthdays and 

Christmas. This gift can be created 

for less than five dollars!!

SENIOR LADY: PATRIOTIC SEASONAL WREATH!

I love making wreaths for each season. 

Therefore, I try to have all types of wreath

 forms on hand. I have bought styrofoam, 

wood, wire, pine, and grapevine forms.

I store them on shelves in  my craft room.

 I'm never sure what design I am going 

to create beforehand. I review magazines,

videos, and ad circulars for inspiration.  

Years of crafting have taught me keep

 wreath forms, ribbons, and all types of 

embellishments on my shelves and work

 station in my craft room.

I realized that there are three holidays

that require using colors red,white, and 

blue.  I decided to stop trying to make a 

new wreath for Memorial Day,  July 4th,  

and Veteran's Day.  I made a wreath 

recently for Veteran's Day. This wreath

will used for each of these Patriotic

Holidays.

PATRIOTIC HOLIDAY WREATH 

10 inch grapevine wreath form 

2 Red Carnation Bushes 

2 White Carnation Bushes 

2 Blue Purple Mix Lilac Bushes 

Red, White, or Blue Pipe Cleaner

Tools:

Glue gun & Glue Sticks 

DIRECTIONS:

Remove red, white, & blue flower heads from 

stems. Arrange flowers in a design to determine

how many colors needed. I used 4 white, 4 red,

and 6 blue. A 7 inch pipe cleaner was used for 

hanger loop.

Glue flowers around wreath in desired color pattern.

Use pipe cleaner for hanger. Form a hanger loop

 and glue it  to back ( make sure loop 

in center)of the wreath.

I may purchase patriotic garlands to attach to

the front of my porch too. They'll be used for 

all of the Patriotic Holidays.

TIP:

**  Adding Red, White, & Blue ribbon is optional.

( I didn't have patriotic colored ribbons)

**  Patriotic colored butterflies or birds make

a great embellishment.

, 

HOLIDAY BREAKFAST BREAD!

 

My children are grown and I am retired. Therefore, 

gourmet cooking is my new passion. I am a foodie

who tries to cook some of the Mexican, Italian, and 

Oriental dishes I see online. I like to try the dishes

that are trending on social media too. These

dishes are not too complicated and require

ingredients available in your local grocery

store.

I also experiment with making unusual

muffins and breads which I eat during the week.

I got bored with baking  plain banana and blueberry

muffins.  I have experimented with peach, apple,

pumpkin, lemon, orange and zucchini muffins and

 breads. I wanted to think of a new breakfast bread

 to serve my family during the holidays this year. 

I surveyed my pantry.   There were too many boxes 

of chocolate cake mixes stored on the shelf. I had

 a large banana left in my fruit bowl. Plenty of 

pecans and walnuts were in mason jars in my

 fridge. This chocolate lover was going to bake

 a bread that was good for a Holiday Breakfast,

Brunch, or Luncheon menu!

I may try a peach blueberry or a chocolate cranberry

bread in the future.

HOLIDAY CHOCOLATE BANANA BREAD

1 Box Chocolate Cake Mix

2 Eggs 

1 large ripe Banana 

1/2 Cup Sour Cream 

1/2 Cup fine chopped Walnuts 

1/4 Cup Sweetened Shredded Coconut 

1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon 

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract 

1/2 Cup or to taste, Dark Chocolate Chips, for Topping 

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray loaf pan with cooking spray.

In large bowl mash the banana. Add sour cream, eggs,

cinnamon, vanilla, coconut, and nuts. Mix well with 

a Mixing Fork. Batter will be thick. DON'T OVER MIX.

Pour batter into loaf pan and spread evenly. Cover

top of batter with chocolate chips. Bake 45 minutes

or until toothpick comes out clean.

TIPS:

** 1/3 cup oil can be added. I forgot to

add it. The bread was still moist and

tasty.

** I always add coconut to my breads.

It enhances the flavor profile of the bread.

** Sour Cream adds moisture and keeps

bread from being too sweet.

** Semi-sweet chocolate chips can be substituted.

**  Pecans can be substituted.

EASY KITCHEN HOLIDAY GIFTS!

I love to watch cooking videos to get new

 meal ideas. One of the cooks was using 

 silicone holders/covers on the handle of 

her pots.  I thought these were neat gadgets.

 I have been burned too many times

because I used  thin pot holders.

 I looked up this item on the computer. 

These pot handle holders/covers were

 a little pricey. 

I wondered if these holder/covers were 

available in cloth fabric. Some cloth 

pot handle holders/covers were for 

sale online.   They looked like they 

 would make a great DIY project. 

I did find some DIY videos with 

crafters using cloth pot holders

for holder/covers. All of the 

videos I found required using a

 sewing machine. This was a

 problem since I don't own a

sewing machine.

I searched for needles that I could use 

to hand sew the pot handle holders. 

There were packets of special needles

hanging on a retail store End Cap display. 

These looked like they would be perfect

for hand sewing pot holders. The packet

noted that the needles were for glove

and car seat repair. I bought one 

packet of the needles to experiment

with.   I  discovered that I could hand

 sew the ends of the pot holder together

if I used a taunt whip stitch. I had a 

friend who taught me the sewing

 machine stitch and the whip stitch. 

She used these stitches when  hand

 sewing her doll clothes. There are

detailed examples of how to make

 these stitches online.

DIY POT HANDLE HOLDER/COVER

ITEMS NEEDED:

Pot holder (7 inch) , straight pins

Home repair or embroidery needle

Scissors, matching thread

Directions:

Fold pot holder in half and keep the

loop exposed. Secure ends with straight

 pins. Leave a 3 inch opening on the side 

with the loop. This will be the area where 

pot handle goes in. Make sure edges and 

sides of pot holder meet. 

Guide thread through  the needle and form double thread 12-14 inches long. Make a knot at the end of

 the threads.  Whip stitch the side and bottom

 edge  on left side of the pot holder using taunt

 close stitches. This will ensure the pot handle holder/cover stays together when pot handle

 is inserted.  The finished stitches will resemble

embroidery stitches seen on some linens

 and tea towels.

TIPS:

** Sewing machine can be used to make the

holder/ cover.

** Using holiday themed pot holders for the

 pot handle holder/cover make great gifts.

** The pot handle holder/cover should

fit the handles on most pots & pans.

** Tab loop can be used to hang up 

pot holder/cover.