What a magical time! We love all the excitement in the air as everyone begins to unwind and get ready for the holidays. At Elephantshoe we started the Christmas season early, {how lucky are we?} when Consol Glass and Humankind Advertising approached us to do the styling and stationery design for this years "Give with Glass campaign". If we could ever dream up the perfect project to be apart of, it would be this, {Thank you Santa for the early pressie!}. To top it off we got to work with our besties - Blackframe photography. Yipppeeeee! Follow our post below and you may find yourself getting into some easy Christmas projects this December.

Although we love to spoil our family and friends all year round, the festive season is the perfect opportunity to have a bit of fun with your giving and to create some unique and special gifts using a few DIY ideas. All you need to do is visit the Consol shop to purchase the glass items that we have used below and simply download our free printables from the bottom of this post and follow our guidelines for each project.

WISHFUL WONDER

A stylish way to put Secret Santa into action this year. Ask your friends and family to fill out their wishlist, roll it up as a scroll and pop it into a large glass jar. Once everyones wishes are in the jar it's time for everyone to pick out one scroll each. The scroll will have the name of the person they should buy one gift for and some ideas of what they are hoping for this Christmas.

ORGANIC INSPIRATION

Create a festive atmosphere by placing your favourite flowers and natural elements in glass bottles and jars.

Rock Roses planted in rich dark soil and placed in these glass jam jars make for a fun and eco-friendly gift or a striking and low-maintenance alternative for table decor.

We love the idea of placing sweet smelling bath products into these jars instead of wrapping in the more conventional way. Tie one of our Christmas tags on with a dash of twine and give the gift of relaxation.

TIP : Hang single flowers or sticks of cinnamon in small glass bottles from a wooden wreath for a naturally festive decorative element.

TIP : Keep your tasty treats, (nuts, biltong, nougat) fresh in Consols new Classic Glass Storageware. Ooooooh I wouldn't mind a set of these for Christmas.

Organic Inspiration- download the printables featured above here. {Gift Tags and Labels}

TIMELESS TRADITION

We at Elephantshoe discovered these absolutely amazing and beautiful Solar Jars, {the lights hanging in the first image above} for the first time while working with Consol, and we wish we knew about them before. They are incredible, they use only the suns rays for energy and last up to 6-8 hours. Perfect for Christmas dinner outside.

TIP: Wrap lace around glass jars and pop a candle in each to create a warm and lovely atmosphere in your home. {This is a great idea for any time of year}.

TIP: For a unique centerpiece, coat a variety of glass bottles in your favourite paint. This is such a versatile idea as you can really choose any colour you like.

PAINTED GLASS JARS

SHOPPING LIST

A variety of different shapes and sizes of Consol Glass jars
An enamel primer
An enamel paint in your choice of colour

METHOD

STEP 1: Wash out the empty glass jars with a soapy warm water and allow to dry completely.
STEP 2: Pour a small quantity of enamel primer into each jar and swirl around the bottle in order to coat the inside of the glass. Pour out any excess and allow to dry.
STEP 3: Pour your choice of colour enamel paint into one jar at a time and once again swirl around until the inside is coated with paint. Pour out the excess.
STEP 4: Dry these jars upside down on a paper towel.
STEP 5: Check on these bottles every now and then and wipe the rim of each jar, as excess paint will collect here.

TIP: Make your own Snow Globes with simple ornaments and glass jars. These are a great table gift or decoration.

SNOW GLOBES

SHOPPING LIST

Any CONSOL Glass Jar with a screw on lid
Small Christmas decorations and trinkets, (N.B - check that they can fit into the jar comfortably)
Oil based enamel paint
Distilled water
Glycerin
White glitter flakes
Super Glue

METHOD

STEP 1: You have the option to either paint both your Christmas trinket and the lid of the jar in your choice of enamel paint and wait for them to dry completely. Or if you like their original colour leave them as they are.
STEP 2: Stick your small Christmas decoration to the inside of the screw on lid with super glue and allow for this to dry.
STEP 3: Fill your glass jar with distilled water, aprox 2 cm from the top.
STEP 4: Add a pinch of white glitter flakes to the distilled water, (Just a pinch – not too much).
STEP 5: Add a dash of Glycerin, (this helps the glitter flakes to fall slowly).
STEP 6: Screw the lid with the small Christmas decoration attached onto the jar and make sure it is secured tightly.
STEP 7. Turn the glass jar over and shake gently and watch those flakes fall.

SWEET SURRENDER

Embrace this season and it's spirit of guilt-free indulgence, as you snack on tasty treats and delectable delights while sharing special moments with friends and family. Add a new dimension to these treats by wrapping them in glass and giving them as gifts. A delicious present with versatile packaging that is sure to last much longer than the snacks that it holds.

We adore these glass cake stands and bell jars - select your favourite style and size from the Consol shop and fill it with mouthwatering, delicious toffee apples or Christmas cake. YUM! Bring on the Christmas feast.

TIP: Fill bell jars with coloured baubles and pine cones and place them around the house for a fun festive decoration.

TIP: Spray paint Mason jars with white spray paint and fill with Candy Canes.

TIP: Fill simple long drinking glasses with your choice of coloured macaroons.

We had a great amount of fun making all of these goodies and we hope you do to. Please send us pictures if you use any of the ideas in this post, it would be lovely to see how you have personalised your gifts this year.

Happy glass shopping!

love Sam

from the "Elephant factory"

{DOWNLOAD WISHFUL WONDER PRINTABLES HERE} - {Festive Wish Label and Wishing Cards}

{DOWNLOAD ORGANIC INSPIRATION PRINTABLES HERE} - {Gift Tags and Labels}

{DOWNLOAD TIMELESS TRADITION PRINTABLES HERE} - {Place Seating tags and Straw Flags}

{DOWNLOAD SWEET SURRENDER PRINTABLES HERE} - {Gift Tags and Dessert Table Labels}

Dressed in 1960s Italian sophistication, the free-spirited gorgeous starlet Sylvia and handsome socialite, paparazzi / journalist Marcello against the backdrop of idyllic Roman architecture, urban chic living and bohemian social lifestyle.

Picture this beautiful scene within an environment of wild and socially explosive Europe. The famous scene of Marcello and Sylvia dancing in the Trevi Fountain in Rome. She is looking for the next adventure, and he attentive but just trying to keep up with her exuberance, beauty and playfulness. Capturing our loving nature and carefree attitude together with energetic urban noise and romance of classical architectural scenes. Ending up dressed to the nines in a water fountain would be a superb finale.

If you love the idea of a styled engagement shoot before your wedding day, visit our contact page and leave us a message or contact Andre from Blackframe Photography.

Copyright© 2010, ELEPHANTSHOE | All rights reserved.