decorating. finally.

so it's time for some holiday decorating! as you may already know, I've got a self-imposed budget of $100 and this little project has been a gigantic money saver. 

I grew up in a house where the christmas tree was literally dripping with gorgeous glass ornaments and I couldn't fathom skimping on ornaments for my own tree. so what's a girl to do? I wasted no time digging through my parents garage to find my wedding chandelier. you may remember it from my ceremony, hanging gracefully from the magnificent oak tree above us. although my husband thought I should put it on ebay, I found a far more sentimental use for it. I'll be hanging it from a tree once again, but this time in the form of ornaments.

firstly, you'll need to acquire a chandelier. I found mine on e-bay for a whopping $150 and I used it for my wedding, so it's got some serious sentimental value. I'm almost certain you can find one at an antique store for an inexpensive price, especially if it's not a working chandelier. Next, you'll want to dismantle it. The parts you want to keep are the crystals. Pair the smaller crystals with bigger ones to get a more dramatic effect, or leave little ones in rows to create something more icicle-esque. or do whatever, these are your ornaments after all.

Next, find some ribbon or string that you like. I got two spools of celedon-colored sheer ribbon. The ribbon is really there to make all the ornaments have a cohesive color scheme since I'll be buying generic  ivory glass ornaments to go along with these guys. I'm going to secure my ornaments to the tree with floral wire.

 Finally, find a way to attach your ribbon to your crystal pieces. It was ridiculously easy for me since my crystals came with little metal hooks at the end. and that's it. you're done!

 

2 spools of ribbon - $2.99 each

floral wire - $1.49 

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total for this project:  $7.47

money left for other projects: $92.53