As much as I love decorating my home you would think I’m crafty. But here is a secret you might not know about me. I’m not crafty. Let me just go ahead and get that out of the way. That is why at one time the Dollar Tree was my best friend but not so much now that they’ve raised there prices.

If I decide I’m going to make something, there’s a pretty good chance I’m going to call my girlfriends and say, “Okay, y’all are going to have to come over and help me with this!” Bu then again I would need to put a ad out for new friends because my girlfriends aren’t crafty either.

But there is one Christmas project I’ve always wanted to try: making my own Christmas wreath. I’ve walked through Dollar Tree plenty of times and seen all the things you could use to make one. Ribbons, flowers, greenery, little Christmas decorations, bows and all kinds of things.

And I’ve thought, I could probably make that. The problem is, I haven’t gotten outside of my comfort zone enough to actually try. But this year, I’m thinking about doing something a little different.

Instead of starting with, “What do I need to buy?”, I want to start with: “What do I already have?” Because I have a feeling I may already have more than I realize. Especially if I check with my friend Debbie who is always giving things away.

My mother-in-law has given me flowers, napkins, cup towels and all kinds of pretty Christmas things over the years. Then there are the millions of Christmas knickknacks I’ve collected and tucked away around my own home.

Some things I love. Some things I don’t even remember having. And some things are probably sitting in a box because I haven’t taken the time to really look at them. So before I go shopping for my wreath, I think I need to go shopping in my own house.

And then I started thinking about my mother-in-law’s house. Oh my goodness! If you think I have a lot of Christmas, you should see hers! Not only does she have decorations from her home but from 25 years of decorating her office at the Red Cross.

I’m pretty sure if I went over to her house and started digging through her garage and all of her Christmas decorations, I could probably find enough things to make ten wreaths! I’m laughing just thinking about it. So maybe my first Christmas shopping trip needs to be to my mother-in-law’s garage because she said I could have anything I want.

Before heading there though I better go through what I have because Charlie has said not to bring home any more decorations of any kind. Or there will not be room for our family and that is true.

Now, you may be asking, “What about my mom?” Well, if my mom were here, there is no way in H-E-double hockey sticks you would find Christmas everywhere in her home. Would you find wreaths on the front door? No.

Would you find Christmas decorations in every room? Absolutely not. Would you find yard decorations up? No. The most I ever remember my mom doing was putting up Christmas lights and a Christmas tree. And to her, that was decorating.

My mom was no Martha Stewart. And she never wanted to be a Martha Stewart! I’m laughing because that’s just the truth. And you know what? That’s okay. Not everybody decorates the same way.

Some people have Christmas in every corner of their house like my Uncle Chuck who kept it up year round. Some people put up a tree and a few lights and call it done. Some people have enough decorations to fill a garage. And some people would rather sit on the couch and enjoy everybody else’s decorations.

There’s no right or wrong way to do Christmas. But for those of us who do enjoy decorating, I think sometimes we forget to look at what we already have. Or at least I do more times than not.

Here’s what I’m learning. You may have something sitting in your house that could be used for Christmas and you don’t even realize it. Maybe there’s a pretty glass sitting in your cabinet.

You’ve probably looked at that glass a thousand times. But what if you looked at it differently? Could it become part of a Christmas centerpiece? Could you put flowers in it? Could it hold something else?

Maybe there’s a little sign sitting somewhere in your house that you’ve walked past a thousand times a day. And suddenly you look at it and think: “Oh wow! That would fit on my wreath perfectly!”

That’s what I’m talking about. Sometimes we don’t need more things. Sometimes we just need to see the things we already have differently. Maybe there’s an old decoration tucked away in a Christmas box that isn’t really something you want to put out anymore.

But perhaps one little piece of it would be perfect for a wreath. Maybe there’s leftover ribbon in a drawer. Maybe there’s an old bow. Maybe there’s greenery. Maybe there are flowers. Maybe there’s fabric.

Maybe there’s cardboard from something that came in the mail. Maybe there’s a basket, jar or container that could be turned into part of a Christmas display. Or a Gift Card or Gift Bag you kept that could be used.

You just don’t know until you start looking. And this doesn’t have to be limited to your own house. You might even be walking through your neighborhood and notice something a neighbor is getting rid of.

Maybe they’re putting something out for someone to take. You might look at it and think, “Wait a minute. I could use that!” I’m not saying go through somebody’s trash and take things.

But if someone is giving something away, or you ask and they say they don’t want it anymore, you might discover a little treasure that somebody else was ready to throw away. For me one mans trash is a treasure to me.

Before you buy, look around which I think this is especially important during Christmas. It’s so easy to start making a list of everything we think we need. New decorations. New ribbon. New flowers. New signs. New centerpieces. New wreaths. Before long, we’ve spent a lot of money on things that we may already have sitting somewhere in our house.

So this year, I’m going to slow down. I’m going to pull out my Christmas decorations. I’m going to look through those boxes. I’m going to open the cabinets. I’m going to check the drawers. I’m going to look at things that I’ve walked past a hundred times.

And I’m going to ask myself: “Could I use this?” I’m also going to make a donate pile. Because if I’m going to pull everything out anyway, I might as well be honest with myself. If I haven’t used something in years, maybe somebody else could use it.

Maybe I’ll donate it. Maybe I’ll ask my neighbors if they want something. Maybe I’ll find someone who would be thrilled to have something that I don’t need anymore. That feels like a pretty good Christmas activity to me.

Clean out. Share. Reuse. Create. And then, once I’ve gone through everything, I’ll see what’s left. Maybe I’ll have everything I need to make my wreath. Maybe I won’t. And that’s okay.

If I need to go to Dollar Tree afterward and buy a few things to make the wreath bigger, fuller or better, I can do that. But at least I’ll know I started with what I already had and I didn’t spend money I didn’t need to spend.

Now let’s talk about the part that makes this a little easier for someone like me. What if I mess it up? Well, if I’ve used things I already have, I haven’t spent a fortune trying to be crafty. That’s not failure. That’s experimenting. I can take it apart. I can try again. I can call my girlfriends.

And if they come over and say, “Girl, what are you doing?” I’ll just remind them that they were invited over to help me! If they shake there heads and say there is no, saving this I will hand it to David who I’m sure will be able to fix it even if its not what I planned.

But maybe I’ll surprise myself. Maybe I’ll actually make a wreath I love. Maybe I’ll discover that I’m more creative than I thought. And maybe that wreath will mean even more because I made it from things that were already part of our family’s Christmas story.

A flower my mother-in-law gave me. A ribbon I’ve had for years. A little decoration I almost donated. Something I found tucked away in a box. And maybe I’ll add something new from Dollar Tree to finish it off. That would be pretty special.

So here’s my challenge for you—and for me. Before you buy something new for Christmas, look around your home. Open those Christmas boxes. Check the cabinets. Look in your craft supplies. Look through your drawers.

Walk around your house and really look at the things you’ve stopped noticing. You might be surprised. That glass might become part of a centerpiece. That old sign might be exactly what your wreath needs. Those flowers might become a decoration. That ribbon might finish the project. And something you’ve been planning to donate might be exactly what another person has been looking for.

You don’t have to be Martha Stewart. Lord knows, I’m not! And you don’t have to be crafty. You just have to be willing to look at something and imagine what else it could become. This Christmas, I’m going to try.

I’m going to look around my own home before I go shopping. I’m going to see what I can reuse. I’m going to donate what I don’t need. I’m going to share what someone else might enjoy.

I’m going to visit my mother-in-law’s garage and see if I can find enough Christmas treasures to make those ten wreaths I’m pretty sure are hiding in there. And then I’m going to try to make my wreath.

Will it be perfect? Probably not. Will I need my girlfriends to come over and help? Probably! But that’s okay. Because maybe the best part won’t be the wreath hanging on my front door.

Maybe the best part will be getting outside of my comfort zone, using what I already have, laughing with my girlfriends, remembering the people who gave those things to me, and making something new out of something old. And if I mess it up? Well… I’ll just call my girlfriends. That’s what friends are for.

Thank you,

Glenda, Charlie and David Cates

Let us know if you enjoyed this post!

0

Like

0

Love

0

Happy

0

Haha

0

Sad

0

Angry