Hydrangeas Are Everywhere!

As I have mentioned, I love bringing the outside in. I have done this by drying and saving my hydrangeas. I thought I would share with you all the places I have used them.: In my garland going up the bannister and over the top of my door:

In both my Christmas trees:

And my favorite in this little arrangement I made with curly willow from our backyard.

I also added the curly willow branches above our dinner table. Topped off with berry stems (which aren't so real).

Bringing the Outdoors In

I am a wanna be gardener. I love fresh flowers and miss them a great deal when it gets cold. A few years ago I began saving my pruned hydrangea heads, drying them out and using them at Christmas time. This year I have added them to the Christmas tree, garlands and to this arrangement I threw together today. Note: To dry out hydrangeas, I simply throw them in paper bags and leave them in the garage until Christmas. I usually prune when they just start to turn brown, so I get more green. But this year I was a little late. I have this beautiful vase that in all honesty is usually put away. I'm always afraid the kids will break it.

I simply added styrofoam, put branches in from our curly willow tree and added the dried hydrangeas at the base of the arrangement. I added some Christmas sparkle with the beaded garland. It looks really pretty. Somtimes I think the photos don't show things very well. I need a photographer to come over. Hope you are enjoying decking your halls! Only 5 more posts to go for our month of Christmas Crafts!