Holiday Centerpiece

OK...I admit it, I am addicted to "repurposing".  Guess that why I like second hand stores, they are filled with items that have been rescued from their landfill destination and have many possibilities for new life.

I love making centerpieces using books and there's no better place to find cheap books than at a secondhand store {or a public library in their books for sale section}.  They aren't like the ones I remember as a kid...angels and trees out of the paperback Reader's Digests, remember those?  These creations are a bit more "junked up".  You can use so many different little trinkets to personalize them.

Here's a close up shot from the top.  I loved this little mouse.  He is actually a ceramic napkin ring from the 50's.  I stumbled upon him at a second hand store in a bag of mismatched items.  If only I had a set!  Look closely and you can spy a long vintage ornament of mercury glass beads.

 

 Here's a close up shot of the completed project.  I just loved the way it turned out.  I have it sitting on my dining room table on a cute burlap runner I bought at Rust & Roses when I was out shopping "The Curve" with a friend last month.

This was the first time I had painted a book silver and I loved the look!  The wide green ribbon with silver glittery swirls was something I picked up at Costco a couple years ago and it was just perfect for this little project.  This was the first time that I made a 2 story centerpiece.  I have placed the wood pieces under the book or books, but never in between.  It's hard to see the nest behind the bottle brush trees, but I filled it with some jingle bells, glittered and plain silver, a miniature red and white polka dotted ornament and itty bitty tree like the green one in the front.  I bleached the trees, leaving some of them white and dying others a cute green.  Yet another purpose for re-inkers and Glimmer Mist.  :)

Hope your week is off to a great start!
Kelli
:)