Winter Centerpiece

Now that ol' man winter has arrived and looks to be settling in for the long haul, there's not a whole lot going on outside. It's time to pick up my indoor hobbies.  Winters are long and hard here in the Rockies and you need an indoor hobby.

This means you'll be seeing more 'crafty'-type posts from me for a while. With Christmas coming up faster than I can believe, I'm working on those types of projects now.

When I was in Michael's craft store picking up supplies to make the soaps, one of their project cards caught my eye. I found it again on their website.

Cedar Lodge Bird and Branch Mantel Piece

It's a centerpiece with twigs and artificial pine. Here's my finished version.

I don't have any real flower arranging experience, but this is very easy to make. Here's my cast of characters:

The winter artificial greenery was on sale for just a couple of bucks. I got the sticks from the yard.

I used wire cutters to take apart the bush.

Once I got the sticks arranged in a way I liked, I tied them with a bit of burlap ribbon then began adding the greenery.

Before hot gluing or wiring everything together, just lay it all on without fastening so you can move things around.

You want it to be balanced, but not too symmetric. This is supposed to be rustic-looking.

When making a centerpiece, remember that it will be visible from all sides. Turn it around and check how it looks from all angles.

My greenery bush had several bunches of red berries that I thought I was going to put in. I changed my mind when I realized that if I did, my little cardinal would blend in. I wanted him to stand out. 

I've got about $7 worth of materials and 30 minutes of time in this. I think the cardinal is the best part!