You know that saying, you are the company which you keep?

When it comes to my friends this is sooooo true.

All my friends are gorgeous, smart, and kind, so, therefore, I must be, too. Natch.

Not only are all my friends lovely, but they are also talented in so many ways. The best part is it is not at all competitive (and if you know me, I know this is hard to believe). Instead, I enjoy and celebrate the talents my friends possess because remember I am the company I keep, and you best believe I’m gonna try to emulate their crafts. Yesterday, my sister-in-law Courtney (gorg, smart, and sweet, obvi) sent me a text of her latest craft. I absolutely adore it. I gushed over it, and decided to share it with you all.

Best of all, it is a quick craft, it uses BURLAP (holler!), and it’s perfect for the holiday season.

Isn’t it darling?

While a tutorial probably isn’t necessary for this cute button tree on burlap, I’ll give you a quick run down of materials and directions.

Here’s what you’ll need for the button tree on burlap:

- burlap (burlapfabric.com is my choice supplier of burlap because, yes, one has to have a choice supplier of burlap)

- Buttons

- a glue gun with glue sticks

- a frame— without the glass

Here’s what you’ll do:

- Cut the appropriate size of burlap for your frame.

- Adhere/secure the burlap onto the mdf backing of the frame

- Arrange and then glue the buttons.

So quick, so easy, yet, so cute. You could adapt this craft for other winter shapes, such as a snowflake or even a wreath. Better yet, you may be able to think of additional designs for other seasons.

Thanks for sharing this one, Courtney. Now, excuse me while I whip up one of these button trees on burlap!

When I first laid eyes on this pin from Our Unexpected Journey, I knew I had to have it. I loved it for a few reasons. First, it was wintery without being overtly Christmasy. Second, nothing says wintertime like a bushel of cranberries. Third, I love me some door décor and was happy to get away from the traditional wreath.

You certainly could go the easy route and use a wooden or black MDF letter from any craft store for this project. The thing is, the letter T can be a bit of a crapshoot when using premade letters—often it is very tall and narrow or the fonts available are on the trendy side. I wanted something a bit more classic looking, so I opted to make my own.

What you need:

Letter on paper (in a font of your choice)

¼” plywood (Any type will do, I went for the cheapest one. You want a lightweight piece.)

Jigsaw

Sandpaper

Spray Paint (optional)

Glue gun

Berries

Picture Hanger

Ribbon/Burlap

Step 1:

Choose a font for your letter. Select the size that looks best on your door. The dimensions for my T are 12” x 14”.

You can print it out and tape your paper together, as it will likely be bigger than 8.5 x11. Since we have access to LCD projectors at school, I used one to trace my T onto a single sheet of large paper. Convenient crafting tools–one of the many perks of being a teacher.

Step 2:

Cut your piece of wood into a square or rectangle that is close to the dimensions of your letter. This way you have less excess wood to work with as you cut your letter.

Tape your cut out letter to the piece of wood and use it as a stencil to trace your letter onto the wood.

Step 3:

Use your trusty jigsaw to cut out your letter. After it was cut, I used sandpaper to smooth out the edges. My husband made a second letter for Gracie, who used hers in a different craft.

Step 4:

Before I glued the berries, I decided to spray paint my T red. I figured that if any wood showed through the gaps of berries, it would be less contrast if it were the same color.

Step 5:

Prepare for a berry gluing marathon. I chose to cut the berries off of my stems the day prior to making the T. Berry branches were on sale at Michaels after Christmas 2012, so I grabbed a whole bunch. Any extra sprigs went towards other Christmas décor- you can never have too many Christmas greens/foliage.

Use your glue gun to glue each berry onto the letter. I wanted a crisp outline, so I chose to glue berries around the perimeter of my T before filling in the center. As the first layer firmed up, I went back and put a second layer of berries in order to cover up the gaps from the first layer. This is mindless work; I just put on some TV and got to it!

Step 6:

Hang her up! For the letter T, I decided to use 2 small picture hangers for my ribbon because I didn’t like the look of just one hanger in the center of the letter. I secured 2 picture hangers on the back with some hot glue. I then used some leftover Christmas ribbon and voila, my door décor was complete.

I think it’s classy and fabulous. Almost everyone who comes over when this is on the door asks where I got it, which is always a huge compliment. We love it, and I hope you love yours too!