Glitter Glam Christmas Tree

Friends, there are countless things I love about this job of mine. But I have to say that my absolute favorite thing is when it gives me the opportunity to bless someone else. This year, I was invited to participate in Christmas in the Community with Christmas Tree Market. They asked me to choose a local charity where I could set up and decorate a tree that they would provide.

Christmas in the Community with Christmas Tree Market

From the very beginning, I was excited about the idea. Then, as I tried to brainstorm where I’d like to set up a tree, something happened. A new family started attending our Bible Study group…a single mom, a 14 year old girl, and a 10 year old boy. We had just set up our own tree, and all three of them couldn’t stop talking about how gorgeous it was and how they wished they had one like it in their own home. Their artificial tree was in very sad shape, the lights didn’t work, and many of their ornaments brought back difficult memories of when their family split up. Immediately, I knew that I wanted to bless them by giving them a beautiful tree of their own; one that would fit their own style and would allow them to move forward, making new and joyful holiday memories. I asked Christmas Tree Market if they would mind donating the tree to this family instead of to an organization, and they graciously agreed. Here is the lovely, sparkling new tree I was able to help them create…and I can’t tell you how much joy it brought to all of us involved.

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While we waited for the tree itself to arrive, it was a great excuse to go shopping for decorations! . After seeing our family’s tree, which is decorated in red accents with a hint of pink, the H family decided they wanted to go with a pink, red, and gold color scheme. First, we headed to Target, where we found a great set of round ornaments in those exact colors and a mixture of matte, shiny, and glittered! We also picked out some sparkly icicle and snowflake ornaments in red and pink.

The other thing my friend wanted for the tree was words, so we headed to Michaels where she chose some wooden cutouts, like “Believe,” “Faith,” and “Hope,” as well as wooden letters to represent initials for each family member. I helped them choose paint, brushes, and ribbon so they could customize them at home and turn them into gorgeous glittering ornaments.

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First, “Mr. T.” and “J-girl” gave each word/letter two coats of acrylic paint. Then, once the paint dried, they added a coat of glitter paint! The last step was to glue a loop of ribbon to the back.

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The other type of handmade ornaments they decided to create were empty glass balls filled with red tinsel.

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The whole family was excited when the tree was delivered: a pretty, pre-lit 6.5′ Kennedy Fir. Once it was set up, we got to work decorating! My friend wrapped two garlands around the tree; a red one and a gold beaded one, which worked really well together. I used some wired wide gold ribbon to create a bow for the top and the family agreed that they liked it better than the star they had used in past years. Then, we all worked together to hang ornaments. There were a few personal ones they wanted to include {like the mini-guitars they each have since the whole family knows how to play}, so those went on along with all the new ones we bought and made.

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The last step was adding the colored balls, which really put the finishing touch in place and made the tree look full. Personally, I loved the finished appearance of it, but the best part was when the teenage girl gasped and declared that it was the prettiest tree she’d ever had.

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Heartfelt thanks to Christmas Tree Market for giving me the opportunity to help a sweet family in a practical way this Christmas. The joy we had shopping and decorating together and the looks on their faces when they saw the finished tree will stay with me always; a true gift.

 

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3 Comments

  1. This is one of my favorite posts ever! Thank you Amy and Christmas Tree Market for giving and sharing. I just envision God smiling like I am right now!!! Joy to the World!

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