3 Easy Crafts to Get Your Home Ready for a Country Christmas

With Christmas coming, you may be a little panicked about turning your new house into the home you pictured it being on your quiet plot of farmland here in Georgia. Good news! Getting that picture-perfect holiday look will be easier than you expected with these DIY crafts to bring a country Christmas right to your wooden front door.

Candles

What says Christmas more than candles in the window? And if you really want to add some charm to your quaint little farmhouse house, nothing compares to the candles you can make yourself. Gather the following supplies:

1 pkg. soy wax for candle making (Soy wax burns cleaner. It’s worth it.)
1 pkg. large candle wicks (Can be found in your local craft store)
1 mason jar, or other heat-proof container (optional, but recommended)
fragrance oil

Follow these steps:

1. Measure twice the amount of wax that would fill your jar.
2. Melt wax while stirring in a double broiler, or pot over boiling water, for about 12 minutes. (This is also when you would add fragrance as desired.)
3. Using either wax or glue, firmly attach the bottom of the wick to the bottom of the jar.
4. Cool wax to 140º, then pour slowly into jar while holding the wick up straight.
5. Do not allow the wick to touch the wax during the cooling period (about 4 hours.) This can be done by taping the wick to a stick laid across the jar.
6. When cool, trim the wick to about ½”.

Wreaths

Hand-crafted wreaths are all the rage right now, and the right one truly makes your house more of a home. To really give your farmhouse a woodsy welcome to the season, use all the nature around you to provide your supplies. Try this (or get other ideas here):

1. Gather dried vines, twigs, or thin branches from your yard and remove any leaves.
2. Tie together with floral wire into a circle. Diameter should be 12” – 24” depending on your preference.
3. Add in evergreen branches of similar sizes to fill in the wreath. Attach pinecones or any other interesting pieces from your yard, if desired, with the wire.
4. Use coarse fabric such as burlap or canvas to make a bow and attach to the wreath as well.

Lumieres

A reverent way to welcome anyone to your home is to line your walkway with lumieres. These beautiful holiday footlights can be made in a variety of simple ways. As long as you have a handful of sandwich-sized paper bags, a pair of scissors, and some votive candles, you have just about everything you need. Just cut swirly patterns (or diamond patterns – whatever looks best to you!) in each of the paper bags (white bags make the best effect) and line the bags along the walkway in equal distances apart from each other. Pour a little sand, dirt, or rocks in the bottom of each bag to keep it weighted down as well as keeping the votive from getting too close to the bag. Place the candle in the center of the bag, and light at dusk. Want a more wintery look? Change out a few supplies, and your lumieres could keep throughout the season.

So there’s no need to panic. Purchasing your land for sale by owner in Georgia was all you needed to do. Add a few easy crafts, and your country home is ready for a cozy Christmas.