Everyday Finesse

I haven't posted all week and I do feel kind of bad about it but my husband had minor surgery and I had more duties than I expected in getting ready for Christmas. Today I am back with some last minute Christmas ideas.

Above is my new favorite Christmas tree topper from MyHomeIdeas.com. It's hard to imagine that I am still in awe of all the berries on all the hollies I see EVERYWHERE this year, but I am. This is so beautiful and if I have time, I will add some holly to my tree and all around my house. It's too pretty to pass up this year. It may never be this lovely again!

The simplicity of the table decor from MarthaStewart.com is striking. I love it! The Amaryllis is a beautiful Christmas flower but any red flower would work.

 I love the idea of wrapping gifts in useful kitchen and bath linens, also from MarthaStewart.com. This is a Japanese art I would like to learn.

 Thought I had found every kind of cupcake decoration there was? This from Michaels.com escaped my notice -- until now.

I really like this idea because -- well, have you priced the very popular photo cards? You would think that the volume of users would drive the price down but not so this year. With this DIY card you could pose for the shot and then print out the card and cut with an x-acto knife and insert the photo inside. Of course ordering cards might be less time consuming. This would be great gifting and it could later be framed. Neat idea from MarthaStewart.com.

Kids love to draw on things and I love these napkins, again MarthaStewart.com. There is still time for your kids to do this. It would help to keep them busy now that school is out!

And last from MarthaStewart.com, a favor tree. I love it. This is a great way to be ready when guests arrive. They can leave with a nice gift presented in an easy, yet decorative way.