Pine cones, twigs and leaves for Christmas

I have always loved to decorate with natural elements which is a plus when you are on a tight budget.
I told a friend that I always seem to decorate with twigs, rocks, feathers, etc. And she suggested I wanted to live in a cave instead of a house. Yes but it would be a very classy cave!

I love several ways of Christmas decorating but I think "natural Christmas" may be my very favorite. And while I didn't go all out this year, what I did decorate was called "cozy" and I think that is a lovely compliment.

Pine cones I collected (small ones) in Sunriver and larger "frosted" pine cones I begged off a seller at a craft bazaar I attended and the largest pine cone I saved from my pine tree before it had to be cut down. I saw this on pinterest and loved it so much I wanted to try my own version.

The oak leaves I collected from my neighbor last year when I raked his lawn for him after back surgery. I put them away and forgot about them and when I came across them this year knew I wanted them gold (which I've tried before) and knew I wanted a garland.

To make the garland I used a large strand of jute and used thinner jute string to simply tie the leaves in place.

I think I was channeling a little bit of Donna with the rusty bucket tree.

A tree branch that blew down in a windstorm, a hole punch and some ribbon allowed me to display my Christmas cards.

Herbs in small canning jars brought some greenery into the kitchen.

You can't tell in the photo but we couldn't find the tree stand so instead have it in a large aluminum pot/cauldron thing we found in a barn and put gravel in to stabilize. Funny thing is, I think it works better than any tree stand we have ever used.

Merry Christmas everyone.