Christmas DIYs

Here are some on-the-spot (unplanned) DIY wrapping projects which I did this Christmas. Disclaimer: Not a lot of time was spent making these. They're products of boredom. Haha!

Using brown paper bags

I got the brown paper bags from Bestsellers in Robinsons Galleria, the washi tape from Fab Manila, and the ribbon and Christmas decor from National Bookstore.

 

My friend got these cute little jars from True Value, I used the same washi tape from Fab Manila, and the ribbon from National Bookstore. Recognize the tag on top of the jars? Those are the ones I made using Microsoft Paint. LOL. (See here)

Not bad given the time constraints and limited resources! Haha! Everyone at the office loved our little jars of goodies. Hooray!

I have one more rather major DIY project (my gift for Chi) but I'll post about that after I've given it to him. To Chi: I know you're reading this now. Please resist the urge to open my gift until the 24th! Haha!



P.S. I'm leaving for Bacolod tomorrow morning so no blogging till I get back after Christmas.

P.P.S. Merry Christmas everyone!!!  I know. I'm 3 days early but better late early than never. Haha!

P.P.S. Last one, I promise. For those who are still doing last minute shopping, happy hunting and happy giving!

25 Days till Christmas!

Advent Calendars aren't very popular here in the Philippines but I think it's a nice tradition to adopt. We used to hang one up every Christmas when I was still young. Our calendar was made of cloth and felt. It had little pockets which I checked everyday but sadly, there were no presents waiting for me inside. Our calendar was more of just decoration. The little gifts before Christmas were always hiding in our stockings by the stairs. Haha!

DIY Advent Calendars

Here some really awesome DIY calendars I found on the internet. Some people use envelopes for their calendars and others used pots. Some had the little gifts hung with colorful string and others in boxes. It seems that the possibilities are endless! 

via egg2cake

via momsbyheart

via minipiccolini

via a merrymishapblog

via aruffledlife

via katescreativespace

via southernlovely

via designsponge

via abeautifulmess

Gift ideas for advent calendars

The little gifts you put on the advent calendar are usually small knickknacks to add some fun and excitement in the days before Christmas. Here are the little things I would put in our advent calendar in the house. 

Day 1

Jackstones via until.com.au

Day 2

Candy via twistedcandyph

Day 3

Sushi erasers via modes4u

Day 4

Doll notebooks via quiddityonline

Day 5

Goody 2 in 1 via walmart

Day 6

Reese's butter cups via tanshuyin

Day 7

Feather earrings via madamenoire

Day 8

Hand sanitizer via bathandbodyworks

Day 9

Quirky key chain via chicify

Day 10

Washi tape via stampington

Day 11

Bow tie via zalora

Day 12

Nail grooming doll set via luvingasia

Day 13

iPhone USB flat cable via beebond

Day 14

Moustache sunglasses via seventeen

Day 15

Nail polish via poshroom

Day 16

Striped fabric belt for men via seaben

Day 17

Money clip via moneyclipsformen

Day 18

Quirky rings via likegolddust

Day 19

iPhone dust stopper via eazyfashion

Day 20

Elephant bottle opener via artstyleonline

Day 21

iPhone bread bun case via eazyfashion

Day 22

Salmon sushi usb via dynamism

Day 23

Box of La Duree macarons via thedeliciouslife

Day 24!!!

MAC red lipstick via goodhousekeeping

Where to buy knickknacks

• Divisoria- 168 mall, Tutuban Mall, and the random tiangges lined up on the streets
• Saizen @ Robinsons Galleria- everything costs 88 pesos only
• Japan Home Store (various malls)
• Fully Booked, Powerbooks, and National Bookstore- school supplies, scrapbook items, and bookmarks come in so many designs in these bookstores
• Watsons
• Any department store- SM, Robinsons, Metro, Rustans
• St. James Bazaar @ Ayala Alabang Village - happening this weekend!! 

P.S. I'm currently craving for some La Duree macarons thus the inclusion of that splurge in the list. If only one could travel to Paris in a blink of an eye! 

39 days till Christmas!!

Photo from this blog

My officemates and I were talking about having Secret Santa in the office. I love Secret Santa! In my family, we play a variation of the game which is so much more fun though. We don't really have a name for it. It's like White Elephant but not quite. Haha!

Instructions

• Items needed:
• Gifts
• A deck of cards
• Everyone brings a unisex gift within a certain price range pre-determined by everyone in the group
• No need to wrap the gift. Everyone gathers around holding the gift they brought. 
• Let everyone pick one card from the deck. The card determines the order of picking - As being the lowest and Kings being the highest. 
• The person with the lowest card goes first. Everyone forms a circle in chronological order.
• In order, each person picks a card from the deck.

Rules of the game

• If the card you pick is a Jack, Queen, or King, you can swap your gift with another person of your choice.
• If the card is an ace, you can steal- not swap- any gift from another person. That leaves you with more than one gift and the other person with one less gift. 
• If the card ranges from 2-10, then you keep the gift you're holding. No swapping/ stealing.

The game ends when there are no more cards in the deck. In the end, some people might have more than one gift if they're lucky! I always have a lot of fun playing this game with my titos, titas, and cousins. Somewhere in the middle of the game, you find out that there's this one gift that everyone wants to have. Haha!

Do you have your own version of Secret Santa? 

47 days till Christmas

You know Christmas is near when everyone and I mean EVERYONE is out shopping for gifts! Christmas is my absolute favorite time of the year. No, not my birthday nor Valentine's nor New Year's. It's Christmas with all the lights, presents, and ham *pictures ham with LOTS of honey*. Mmmmmmm.

In preparation for the holidays, we start by decorating our house. I love decorating the house with lights and stockings and putting out my mom's belen collection (she has more than 50 I think!). We place them in various places around the house, some even outside in the garden.

Decorating the tree has been my job ever since my mom passed down the torch when I was around 14. You see, decorating our tree is a skill. We have all kinds of ornaments from the traditional balls and angels to miniature nutcracker soldiers and candy canes. Everything has to be balanced- precious ornaments at the top and bigger pieces at the bottom. When everything is done, the youngest usually gets to put the star at the very top of the tree. That used to be me but for the past few years, it has been my nephew, Manolo.

I personally like going the traditional route with a green pine tree and red & gold ornaments but here are some unique new Christmas trees that I MIGHT be open to trying this year.

1. White tree instead of green

inspirationforhome.blogspot.com  

  flickriver.com    

    homesickdesigns.com

                              

2. Trees that aren't really trees

blog.blowfishshoes.com     

   freshome.com   

       homesickdesigns.com

       
tiwule.com               

How does your family prepare for the holidays?