since the day i opened up my package with a beautiful cuff inside, i have been giddy for mountain girl melodies to offer up a giveaway on my blog!
d’wana of mountain girl melodies blows me away with her giftings, talents & creativity. each handcrafted leather cuff is hand stamped, painted & sealed with the word or mantra of your choice. i chose the word “create” because daily i need this reminder to slow down & simply create.
each mountain girl melodies cuff has the most amazing detail. i cannot believe this gal lives in my state & just around the corner from our little farm.
to enter today’s giveaway:
1. visit mountain girl melodies shop
2. like their facebook page or friend their IG @mountaingirlmelodies
3. comment below with your email address & the word or mantra you would choose (& why!)
i’ll randomly choose a winner the morning of december 11th & announce the winner here!
what an amazing gift one of these cuffs would be for your dearest & nearest! d’wana is kindly offering a discount to natalie creates readers! simply use “nataliecreates20” to receive 20% off at checkout! enjoy!
happy monday! happy winning!
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comments closed! congrats to chandra who won the giveaway! d’wana will be contacting you soon!! 🙂
love,
natalie
yay! our 2013 christmas card!
my favorite tradition during the holiday season is sending out christmas cards to dear friends & family! we have created quite the list of recipients since our first married christmas together. i love this simple way of keeping in touch with our favorite people!
here are our cards from years past-
2009
2010
2011 … photo attached behind with washi tape. see here.
2012
2013
i usually make our card, but this year i went with simple & ordered our cards from my dear friends, katy & lindsay, of the christmas collaboration on etsy! when they announced their christmas card line, i couldn’t help but order one of their beautiful designs. it was SO affordable, too! also, i loved the idea of supporting small artists.
they sent the design quickly & i had the cards printed at overnight prints for less than $10. all in all, including stamps, it cost me less than $50 to send out our cards. i have loved making our cards over the years, but this year was so simple & truly wonderful. head on over to their shop before they close on december 10th & support these amazing ladies!
& before i go, i want to share a bit about our holiday photo… over the years we or our friends have taken our photos. we usually take a simple selfie (2011 card) or our friends will snap a quick photo during a special outing (apple picking in the fall, cutting down our christmas tree). this year we wanted to mark this special year of owning our farm with a really nice photo. we created the scene in front of our little chicken coop & set up the tripod for our photos. it was free & the outtakes of me running toward that chair are hilarious!
of course, we cannot forget an outtake of clover photobombing…
happy saint nicholas day, friends! we woke up to our shoes filled with chocolate & citrus along with a fresh blanket of snow on the ground. it’s a snow day! yay!
love,
natalie
i recently posted our homemade advent candles on instagram & several had questions about them. they are super easy to make; it almost makes me giggle posting a how-to about them. of course, keeping with our traditions of use what you have & don’t spend an extra penny!, i thought i would share a quick little tutorial that might inspire you to do the same.
there is something so beautiful about lighting a candle each week in anticipation. it creates a feeling of warmth & allows us to slow down in the midst of the hustle & bustle of the holiday season. luke & i usually read a bit of scripture, share what we’re thankful for in this season & pray for those things heavy on our hearts. it’s a simple time & that’s honestly what we love about it.
i used what we already had on hand with the exception of the letter & number stickers i purchased at jo ann’s for half off. this project cost me a total of $2.
i gathered up old jars all in the same size, string, white paper tags & stickers. i put one sticker on each tag & tied the tag to the jar with string. i placed simple white candles in each jar. i might have to replace some of the candles throughout our time of advent, but i have a box of them so it’s not a problem. i love a simple, quick, meaningful project!
let me know if you do something similar at your home! do you have any traditions leading up to christmas? please share!
love,
natalie