Spoonful of Imagination

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Stick Turkey (Thanksgiving Decoration from your back yard)

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thanksgiving_table_decorCan you believe Thanksgiving is just a few weeks away!?

I cannot.

Christmas is on my mind. I have been crafting for it and preparing my Handmade Christmas party (that you are invited too!), but I don’t want to skip Thanksgiving in the process. Fall is one of my favorite times of year. I love the changing colors and the special time it is to reflect on all we have to be thankful for.

I made this simple, rustic stick turkey as an easy decorative element to add to my Thanksgiving decor. It cost me less than $3.00 (since I had all the supplies but the wood egg) and was so easy! If you would like to make one too, here are the supplies you will need:

Materials:

  • Wood sticks
  • Wood Egg
  • Hot glue gun with glue sticks
  • Rust-oleum Paprika Spray paint
  • Felt scrap (for beak)
  • Two beads (for eyes)
  • Feathers (add for decorative)

stick_craftsI started by spray painting my wood egg a really pretty fall color with Rust-oleum’s Paprika. After it was dry, I lightly sanded it to give the wood egg a little beat up more rustic charming look.

Fall_spraypaintI then searched through my sticks to find a good round one that would work as the head. I liked the stick I found because it was flat at one end to hot glue tightly on to the egg. I placed a little hot glue  to the back of the stick and stuck it in place about two-thirds down the egg. I held it in place while the glue set and then hot glued a small thin stick on either side of it to create a fuller round turkey head.

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wood_turkey_craft

The next part was to turn the egg around and start on the tail. I put a strand of hot glue down the middle of the egg and stuck one of my taller sticks on it. I used that stick as the middle stick and started placing sticks (going smaller in size) down on either side of it. Note: Make sure to not glue the sticks too far down towards the base of the egg that would prevent the turkey from sitting upright.

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wood_thanksgiving_craft

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DIY_thanksgiving_decorOnce you have a wide tail that you like, it is complete! I used 11 sticks to create the width tail I liked. Depending on your size stick and wood egg you might want more or less.

Next, I used a small felt scrap and two beads to embellish my turkey’s face. I just used a little hot glue to hold them in place. I decided to add a few feathers to my tail to make it a more obvious turkey. You, of course, don’t have to do this and can keep the tail more rustic by just using the sticks. Once all of these elements were on, my stick turkey was finished! I added him to my table’s centerpiece and love how he sits all proud and happy on it!

turkey decorI think the natural wood elements in the turkey look so good with the pine cones and real fall leaves we gathered on a hike this week. You add in my hand print table runner, burlap strips make shift table-cloth, and Happy Thanksgiving banner, and we have a really simple pretty fall display. I love it.

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Happy_thanksgiving_bannerWhat about you? Do you love Thanksgiving too or is Christmas already on your mind?

Is it possible to decorate for BOTH holidays at the same time. I need tips since we are having a Thanks-mas (Thanksgiving + Christmas celebration) at my house with my whole family. So, please tell me how you do this month’s decor!

Happy Friday! I hope you all have a great weekend!

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Two-Minute Fall Decor

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Yesterday, I was admiring all the fall decor in Hobby Lobby.  Fall is my favorite season, and Hobby Lobby is my favorite store.  So, this was a really good moment in my day.  While staring at some really cute fall frames, I got the urge to buy one.  I checked the prices and didn’t want to spend $15 on a frame that was already %40 off.  I decided I would make my own!  This is what I came up with…

I literally grabbed a piece of wood I already had, three frames from the dollar store, three nails, and my hammer.

I was set to just tack the frames lightly to the piece of wood.  In doing this, it would be easy to pull the nails out every year and replace the picture with a more current picture and then nail the nails back in.  Right before I started hammering my frames on, I decided I wanted to spray paint them.

I spray painted them a burnt orange, with some paint I already had.  I looked at them laid out and decided I liked it and hammered them in place with one thin nail each.

The dollar store frames were perfect for this craft because instead of glass they had a thin clear plastic to cover the picture.  This allowed for the frames to be hammered in without the worry of shattering glass.  I had plans to go back and either paint, stencil, or use stickers to create a “Welcome to our Pumpkin Patch” message across the frames like this…

BUT, I fell in love with my new framed art and didn’t want to make it too “seasonal”.  I liked the rustic/fall look, but it also keeps my frame more versatile incase I want to use it at other times in the year.

It was so easy and quick!  You can do it!  Thanks so much for all of those that read about our family the other day!  I love sharing about things and people who I love!

Thanks for checking in!  I hope you are enjoying this change of seasons too and getting a taste for it in your weather and decor!

Linked up at : Fox Hollow Cottage and Southern Hospitality