Decorating for Christmas is something I love and look forward to from about November 1st. I always wait until the week of Thanksgiving to actually start putting out Christmas decorations but I definitely dream about them long before that. This year, I wanted to add a few new items to our home and I decided to start with some framed words. Joy and Noel are two of my favorite “words of the season” so I picked one of those. 
I settled on Joy because those letter were actually available when I was in the craft store and the letters for Noel weren’t. Plus, I already have some Noel scrapbook art so that was covered. I had the frames leftover from last year when I found them on clearance.
Originally I had planned to paint them red and mint green. 
But, I am leaning more traditional this year so, at the last minute, I changed it to red and a more traditional Christmas green. I actually ended up using the leftover paint from my Christmas Tree Advent Calendar to paint the letters. I was glad I had it around because the trial run I did on the letters with the mint green came out really light.
I painted about three coats on each. Then, I used some clear fishing line to attach the letters to the frames so that they would hang in the middle. 
I attached the top and the bottom of the letter to the frame so it wouldn’t twist but, then decided that when I hung it on the wall, that wouldn’t really be a problem anyways. Oh well…live and learn in life and crafting, right? 
As I mentioned, we aren’t quite ready to put out all the decorations so these are displayed on our living room coffee table right now. I just told Mathlete they were staged for the blog to get away with it 😉
How early do you start decorating for Christmas? Do you make most of your decorations or buy many of them?
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Impressive!
I start decorating the 1st weekend of December every year, and we usually get our tree at the farm close to the 2nd week of December every year. I love this project!
Ashley B. recently posted…Friday Things 11/22
very pretty, loving the colors and the message! JOY is what this season is all about… pinning! Emily
Emily recently posted…Tasteful Tuesday 11/26 and a GIVEAWAY
Very creative DIY wall art. I think when decorations are homemade it makes them so much more special. My mom still has a holiday plastic flower arrangement I made when I was a sophomore in HS (I just went to my 20 year reunion) I will have to try to be creative this year too.
Chrishelle @ Cheer MamaDrama recently posted…HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME: CHEER MAMA DRAMA MADE IT A WHOLE YEAR
Your pictures tell the story well. It is nice to be able to follow the directions, without *reading* the directions. lol. Seriously, though, it is a great walk-through, visually.
Deborah recently posted…Even Kids Like the Singing Style of @DeborahE
Those are really pretty, and such a simple craft, too! Thanks for sharing!
Virginia @thatbaldchick recently posted…Free Printable Christmas Heart Tags
these frames are adorable– what a great idea!
Elizabeth@ Food Ramblings recently posted…Peppermint Patty Cookies {The Leftovers Club}
Oh – those are so cute! I never put my Christmas decorations up until the first week of December. Alas, they are still aren’t up this year. That first weekend just fell too close to Thanksgiving.
Alicia Taylor recently posted…Blu-Ray Movie Magic Giveaway! Enter to win one of 21 movies!
beautiful- i love this idea!
Great idea! This is something I can actually do! Thanks for the post!
Milena recently posted…Blu-ray #MovieMagic #Giveaway
Very simple, yet elegant idea!
Amy Desrosiers recently posted…Taco Salad Featuring Doritos® Original Chips & French Dressing #Recipe
Oh my goodness, very cute idea… and looks like it is very simple to make. Thank you
We always decorate on Thanksgiving and the day after. A lot of our ornaments got ruined a while back, so I should try a craft like this…
Pam recently posted…My Holiday Plans to #DitchandSwitch
This is a really cute craft idea. You made it seem really easy to make this beautiful item. I think I would like to try this with my children’s names and put it in their rooms.
Janeane Davis recently posted…Reflect – What Have You Learned From Your Business
Such a great combination of traditional and contemporary holiday decorating! Fun to do, too 🙂
Danielle recently posted…Win a Trip to Belize with Little Passports!
Wow, that is unbelievably pretty! I would love to create something like this for my home!
Dawn Lopez recently posted…Curious Cats in Strange Places & Royal Canin $7 off Coupon #CuriousCat
So cool! I would probably do “NOEL” or “CHEER” … in fact, I will probably do one of those two words this weekend!
Shanna recently posted…All Aboard the “Chew Chew” Train! (Turn Gum into a Fun Christmas Craft)
LOVE it because it’s my new baby’s name! Joy! Looks very nice! Great job!
Mama to 5 BLessings recently posted…Say Yes To Less With Little Remedies #SayYes2Less
That is so awesome.!
I absolutely adore the look of these and I must, must, must do this!
We usually start the day after Thanksgiving, but since my daughter is 10mo and into everything, we’re waiting a bit.
Wendy @ ABCs and Garden Peas recently posted…Sneak Peek at Disney’s The Pirate Fairy (coming in April!)
I LOVE that, it turned out great!