Deck the halls with eco-chic: Creating festive decorations from nature and upcycled materials

Deck the halls with eco-chic: Creating festive decorations from nature and upcycled materials

The holiday season is a time for joy, laughter and festive cheer. However, the environmental impact of traditional Christmas decorations can be a bit of a bah-humbug. Fortunately, it’s possible to create a magical winter wonderland without sacrificing our planet’s well-being. Here’s a guide to creating your own eco-friendly Christmas decorations using foraged and recycled materials.

Foraging for festive foliage

Mother Nature’s pantry is brimming with festive greenery that can transform your home into a winter wonderland. Stroll through parks, woodlands or your own backyard to gather materials to get you started on creating festive decorations:

  • Pine cones: These natural wonders add a cosy, rustic touch to any arrangement.
  • Evergreen branches: Clip cuttings from pine, fir or spruce trees to create garlands, wreaths and swags.
  • Holly and ivy: With their vibrant berries and lush foliage, these plants bring a festive touch to your home décor.

Upcycling holiday treasures

Instead of buying new decorations, upcycle items you already have or find at charity shops and boot sales. Here are a few ideas:

  • Old magazines: Cut out festive images and glue them onto cardboard or paper plates to create ornaments.
  • Wine corks: Paint them green and red to resemble Christmas trees, or use them as embellishments for garlands.
  • Empty aluminium tins: Wearing protective gloves and using a pair of strong scissors, cut them into snowflakes or other festive shapes for a twinkly, metallic display.

Creating your eco-friendly masterpieces

With your foraged and recycled materials in hand, it’s time to get creative! Here are some inspiration-sparking ideas:

  • Nature-inspired garland: String pine cones, evergreen branches and holly berries onto jute twine or ribbon for a festive garland that fills the air with a woodsy scent.
  • Upcycled ornament collage: Glue magazine clippings, wine corks and other upcycled materials onto a piece of cardboard to create a unique and personalised ornament.
  • Salt dough ornaments: Mix flour, salt and water to create a dough that can be pressed into cookie cutters or shaped into ornaments. Decorate them with natural embellishments like dried flowers or cinnamon sticks.
  • Recycled paper Christmas trees: Cut green paper into triangular shapes and glue them onto a cardboard cone. Decorate with buttons, sequins or other upcycled items.

Sustainable and festive

Creating festive decorations is a meaningful and rewarding activity that brings the Christmas spirit into your home while minimising the impact on the environment. By foraging for natural materials and upcycling everyday items, you can spread holiday cheer without leaving a trail of waste behind.

So, this year, embrace the power of eco-chic and create a Christmas that’s both merry and mindful. Let your imagination soar and enjoy the festive joy that comes from knowing you’ve decorated your home with love, nature and a touch of upcycling magic!

Eco-friendly Halloween: Sustainable décor ideas for a green celebration

Eco-friendly Halloween: Sustainable décor ideas for a green celebration

Halloween is a time for spooky fun, costumes and candy, but it can also be a time for generating a lot of waste. Single-use plastic decorations, mass-produced costumes and excessive packaging can take a toll on the environment. But fear not, fellow spooky enthusiasts! You can still embrace the spirit of Halloween while keeping your celebration eco-friendly and sustainable.

This year, let’s ditch the disposable and embrace creativity with these sustainable, eco-friendly Halloween décor ideas.

1. Embrace the natural world

  • Autumn foliage: Leaves, branches and pumpkins are the perfect natural decorations for a spooky ambiance. Gather fallen leaves in vibrant hues and craft them into garlands or use them as table scatterings.
  • Pine cones and twigs: Create whimsical spider webs or miniature haunted forests using pine cones, twigs and branches.
  • Dried flowers and herbs: Dried herbs like lavender or rosemary can be incorporated into spooky wreaths or arrangements. Dried flowers in autumnal tones add a touch of ethereal beauty.

2. Repurpose and upcycle

  • DIY decorations: Get crafty and transform old jars, bottles and containers into spooky lanterns or candleholders. Paint them with eerie designs or fill them with fairy lights for a magical glow.
  • Fabric scraps and old clothes: Create ghostly figures, spiderwebs or Halloween banners using old fabric scraps and clothing. Sewing skills aren’t necessary – get creative with glue and scissors!
  • Cardboard and paper: Repurpose old cardboard boxes and paper into spooky decorations. Cut out silhouettes of bats, ghosts and pumpkins or create a haunted mansion backdrop.

3. Opt for sustainable materials

  • Reusable fabric bunting: Instead of flimsy plastic banners, opt for reusable fabric bunting that can be stored and used year after year.
  • Natural fibre decorations: Look for decorations made from natural fibres like jute, cotton or wood. These are biodegradable and more environmentally-friendly than plastic options.
  • LED lights: Swap traditional incandescent bulbs for energy-efficient LED lights. They use less energy and last longer, reducing your carbon footprint.

4. Get creative with food and treats

  • Homemade treats: Skip the mass-produced candy and bake your own spooky treats using organic and locally-sourced or foraged ingredients.
  • Reusable food containers: Encourage guests to bring their own reusable food containers for trick-or-treating or party snacks.
  • Compostable packaging: If you do use packaging for treats, choose compostable or biodegradable options.

5. Spread the word

  • Educate others: Talk to friends and family about the importance of eco-friendly Halloween. Encourage them to adopt sustainable practices for their celebrations too.
  • Support local businesses: Seek out local businesses that offer sustainable Halloween decorations and products.

By adopting these eco-friendly practices, you can enjoy a spooky and fun Halloween while minimising your environmental impact. Let’s make this Halloween a celebration of both fun and sustainability, ensuring a happy and healthy future for generations to come!

3 tips for making your own curtains

3 tips for making your own curtains

If you’re a first-time home-owner turned curtain-maker, the pastime can prove to be quite a learning experience. However, with these three tips, you should be able to avoid at least a few of the major mistakes on your first attempt at making your own curtains.

Person cutting fabric at a sewing machine

Measurements are crucial

Measurements are crucial for any DIY project, and curtains aren’t an exception. There’s a certain degree of flexibility, of course, however it’s best not to stretch that flexibility any more than necessary. A few factors to keep in mind when measuring fabric for curtains include:

  • Keep the dimensions of the window and the purpose of the curtains in mind while shopping for fabric
  • Add an extra 30cm to the length or drop of the curtain (from the rod to the bottom hem) when measuring the amount of fabric you’ll need
  • If there are to be folds and/or pleats, the usual rule is to multiply the width of the window by 3 when ordering the fabric

Bolts of fabric

Choice of fabric: cheap or expensive?

Even if you have a little prior sewing experience, we’d advise against buying very cheap fabric as it can be harder to work with than more expensive options. However, if this is your very first time, you may not want to order luxury silk just yet! Pure cotton is a mid-range textile that offers ample opportunity to experiment your initial tailoring skills on, while thick polyester offers excellent insulation during those cold, winter months. Then of course, there’s corduroy which deserves its own discussion, because of the material’s distinct texture that sets it apart from everything else.

Cheap, medium-range and premium options are all available and ready to ship internationally through reputable suppliers like the Yorkshire Fabric Shop who have a fabric finder to help you choose the right material for your project. Instead of randomly picking what you like without the necessary knowledge, we suggest a prior consultation with the experts to arrive at a more suitable choice. They can help steer you in the right direction to ensure you don’t buy the wrong thing.

Fabric with tape measure, scissors, bobbin and cotton reel

Go with close-weaves

As a final tip, it’s suggested that beginners avoid material with an obvious motif or decoration that requires perfect pattern matching because that’s not a job for an inexperienced sewer, by any means. Making mistakes on the front will be difficult and time-consuming to put right – if not downright impossible. Plain and closely woven fabrics, on the other hand, are much more beginner-friendly and won’t end up looking like an amateur job.

Setting aside the learning curve and some of the inevitable beginner’s mistakes, rest assured that making curtains can be a very rewarding experience. Not only will you be able to create exactly what you want to complement your décor, but they’ll always be hanging around, receiving regular admiration from guests. It’s also an excellent way to market a new business, should you choose to go professional with the curtain-making idea at a later date. Happy sewing!

[disclosure*]

Moody, crafty kitchen

 

 
 
 
 
 
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A post shared by Sarah Simonds (@myoffthewallinterior)

Instagram always proves such a source of inspiration! I happened across the feed of Sarah Simonds who creates the most beautiful macramé and terraria; this is a shot of her moody crafty kitchen. Have a swipe across to see a selection of the work she produces.

Sarah sells her textile designs online on Etsy as well as running workshops from her home ‘cabin’. She describes herself in her own words:

I’ve always been a creative and had a very keen interest in Interiors, taking my first room completely dark some 12 years ago now…. with a push from my daughter I started my instagram account, not knowing how it worked and not really posting much……. well… as time went on.. I gained in confidence and this year I started my own small business and opened the doors to my little Etsy shop where I sell my Macrame. Another love of mine is Terrariums as you will see from my squares that botanicals are an absolute passion too!

When we moved to this property 12 years ago there was just a patch of grass front and back dotted around the edge with a few mature trees…. over this time we have hand dug and designed a tropical garden suited to UK climates …. all the work in the house and garden has been done by myself and long suffering husband ‘Plumber Dave’ on a very limited budget and with lots of imagination thrown in too!!!

  1. Dulux Velvet Truffle 1 paint
  2. Tahlia 3-light chandelier
  3. Macramé wall hanging
  4. Enamel Turkish coffee pot
  5. simplehuman 50-litre rectangular pedal bin
  6. Howea forsteriana potted plant (Kentia palm)

Get their look

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Howea forsteriana potted plant (Kentia palm)
Howea forsteriana potted plant (Kentia palm)
simplehuman 50-litre rectangular pedal bin
simplehuman 50-litre rectangular pedal bin
Enamel Turkish coffee pot
Enamel Turkish coffee pot
Macramé wall hanging
Macramé wall hanging
Tahlia 3-light chandelier
Tahlia 3-light chandelier
Dulux Velvet Truffle 1 paint
Dulux Velvet Truffle 1 paint
Howea forsteriana potted plant (Kentia palm)
Howea forsteriana potted plant (Kentia palm)
simplehuman 50-litre rectangular pedal bin
simplehuman 50-litre rectangular pedal bin
Enamel Turkish coffee pot
Enamel Turkish coffee pot
Macramé wall hanging
Macramé wall hanging
Tahlia 3-light chandelier
Tahlia 3-light chandelier
Dulux Velvet Truffle 1 paint
Dulux Velvet Truffle 1 paint
Howea forsteriana potted plant (Kentia palm)
Howea forsteriana potted plant (Kentia palm)
simplehuman 50-litre rectangular pedal bin
simplehuman 50-litre rectangular pedal bin
Enamel Turkish coffee pot
Enamel Turkish coffee pot
Macramé wall hanging
Macramé wall hanging
Tahlia 3-light chandelier
Tahlia 3-light chandelier
Dulux Velvet Truffle 1 paint
Dulux Velvet Truffle 1 paint