Coastal Christmas Ornament

Are you dreaming of a white Christmas? I am not. For so many people Christmas just doesn’t feel like Christmas without snow. Growing up in southern California, we three sisters never had a white Christmas. I can even remember trying out my new roller skates from Santa right away, because the weather was good enough. So now that I live in an area that does get occasional snow, I like a reminder of warmer weather and childhood memories. When I saw this pin for a Coastal Christmas Ornament from Mom Dot, I knew I just had to have one on my tree.

One of my favorite memories was when we lived along a canal and each Christmas we would get to watch a parade of lit and decorated boats drift by our windows. Everything seemed to glitter as the strands of lights reflected off water and windows. My personal family Christmas tree is an eclectic hodge podge of ornaments. We try to buy a new ornament whenever we go someplace special as a family. That way, as we decorate the Christmas tree, we get to play “do you remember the time when we…?”. It means our tree is not as elegant as some others we see in other homes, but for us it is a tree full of our favorite memories. To gather supplies for this ornament I made a quick trip to Michaels and found everything I needed. A clear ornament, a bag of decorator sand, a bag of small sea shells. At home I already had trim, ribbon and my glue gun ready to go.

First, remove the top of the ornament. I used parchment paper to create a makeshift funnel for the sand. I only put a little so it wouldn’t be too heavy on the tree.

Remove the funnel and carefully drop the seashells in, tilting the ornament so they will drop where you want them. They won’t go where exactly where you want them, but it helps so they are not all in a clump.

Then, use the hot glue gun to glue the top on. The glue will add extra security so that you won’t end up with a pile of sand at the bottom of your tree if it falls off. I added a little trim with my glue gun, then tied a ribbon to the top and hung it on the tree.

To those of you who are dreaming of a white Christmas, I hope you get one, I really do. Just not if you live anywhere near me.

This Pin Rocks!

This post has been linked to these fun sites today! – What’s Cooking Love – A Glimpse Inside Blog – Life With the Crust Cut Off – 52 Mantels – Life, Laugh, Rowe, Lamberts Lately – Living Well Spending Less – The Frugal Girls – The Pin Junkie