Our kitchen table for Christmas

This is the centerpiece for our kitchen table this year.

I used the pillar candles that my step-mom gave me for my birthday this past year, free sheet music from free-scores.com (Joy to the World), ribbon from my gift ribbon box, raffia, a branch of cedar (cut into tiny sprigs) and tiny pinecones (from the baggie of pinecones and brown plaid ribbon my good friend gave to me, and that I used part of for stemware ornaments at Thanksgiving). That's it. It took me all of 20 minutes to do everything, here.

How I did it

I printed out my sheet music and cut into 3 pieces, each one to fit a different sized candle. The candles move about the house as I need them, sometimes in the living room, sometimes on the dining room table, and now on the kitchen table.

I wrapped the paper around each candle, and then wrapped a length of ribbon on top of the candle. I have taped the ribbon into place on the back side of the sheet music. Then I tied a short length of raffia around the ribbon, and trimmed the ends.

I took a small branch of cedar and clipped it into small sprigs. Then I tucked the sprigs under the candles, adding a few tiny pinecones.

Super easy, free, and fun to make. In early January, the candles will return to their neutral existence, the ribbons will return to the ribbon box, the pinecones I'll put back with the other tiny pinecones in a drawer, and the raffia, greens and sheet music will be composted. Not much to store -- a bonus.

This could be done with pillar candles set on small plates, in place of raised pillars, or clustered on a raised cake plate, or votives, set in jelly jars and gathered on a large plate or tray. I've used battery-operated pillar candles. If you plan on having the candles lit, this works best with a battery-op candle, a candle in a glass jar, or pillar candles fat enough that they burn a hollow down the core, but leave most of the sides intact. (Do not leave any lit candle unattended.)

Anyway, I just thought I'd share another of our Christmas decorations.

Is this just beginner's luck?

First of all, the winner of the $10 Starbuck's gift card. It goes to the writer of comment #11, which is Cristie Glasheen. Cristie, if you'll email me your mailing address, I'll pop this in the mail this afternoon -- email lili.mounce@gmail.com

Now on to today's post

Last June, I told you about my taking a cutting from a Christmas Cactus plant in late winter, and that it had rooted after a couple of months. (that post is here)

I later discovered that it's a Thanksgiving Cactus, not Christmas (the pointy leaves are the giveaway). But they're all part of the same plant family.

Anyways, take a look at what's developing on a couple of the leaves -- blossoms!!

I began the cutting just short of 1 year ago, and now I have blooms. Beginner's luck? Maybe!

This made me very happy to find blossoms developing, and motivated me to take another cutting a few weeks ago. I hope this next cutting does as well as the first.

Closely related to taking cuttings from my Thanksgiving cactus . . .

I took several more cuttings from my African violet. But beyond those cuttings (and this attests to my scrounging nature), a few weeks back, at one of the teas where I serve, they used African violets as the table centerpieces. Well, there were a few new to me colors on the tables. When I was asked if I'd like to take one home, instead I suggested that we let one of the other ladies take mine home, but could I please have a leaf cutting from each of the different variety/color plants. I think I took 5 cuttings, to add to the soil where I already have some rooting. I just put my plucked leaves into a zip loc baggie, then plunged them into the soil once I was home. And now I wait. I'm hoping for a couple of new colors to add to the one I already have.