The Top Ten Best Christmas Crafts!

This month, it's December..and Christmas! We're highlighting just ten of our favourite Christmas crafts, just in time for you to rustle up a few for the big day....

If you're not the crafty type, then worry not! These Christmas crafts range from the simple, to the very simple! Just right for a spot of creative satisfaction in these busy days ahead....

1. Our first craft is this gorgeous gilded centre piece (find the full tutorial here), made using gathered garden foliage and transfer leaf gilding.

2. Use this time to think up new ways of wrapping presents! Create your very own bespoke Christmas hampers for friends and family, using our range of beautiful baskets. Keep a stash of our smallest size of rattan baskets for emergencies. Wrapped in cellophane and tied with ribbon, this is an easy-peasy way to make the most last-minute of gifts look fantastic!

3. ...or how about this string-wrapped gift? Our string (complete with scissors and oak stand) will allow you to get this look!

4. Look at these adorable vintage-style crates, made from brand new boxes. They've been sanded and stained and have been completely transformed. Come and see our full range of different wood stain options.

5. Create your own Christmas scented pine cones....find out how from the full tutorial here...!

6. ...and for a little extra festive sparkle...

...use our Liberon Gilt Cream on those cones...

7. Use string and glue to make these lovely word hangings...simply brush the string with the appropriate glue (make the whole process even more scrumptious by using one of our brushes...

...and then shape the glue-soaked string into any word of your choice and leave to dry...

8. Less of a traditional craft, but still involving plenty of creativity, get your fireplace arranged beautifully for guests. May we suggest a few seasonal extras? 

Our Manor Suffolk Hod is capable of carrying large quanitites of coal, which is exactly what we'll be needing if the weather forecast is right about the cooooold winter coming.

Keep your hearth spick and span with One of our companion sets, which are traditionally made using wrought iron, making them as robust as they are peasing to the eye.

9. And if you have an open chimney breast but don't won't to go to the huge expense of having new fireplaces fitted, consider popping in one of these beauties.Our fire baskets start from only £52.67 and come in two sizes.

10. Festive walnuts scattered throughout your living areas make a stunning way to tie in your decor with seasonal festivities. Paint walnuts with your wall paint and then gild!...

...For an easier version, use our gilt cream.... and then distress to bring out touches of your chosen colour...

Our gilding kits contain sample versions of all you need to get started with this and a whole host of other crafts. You'll be hooked!

Merry Christmas from all of us at Relics of Witney!

 Images via Relics of Witney, Vintage Gal, Pinterest, It All Started With Paint, Meatloaf and Melodrama, Relics of Witney, Relics of Witney, Relics of Witney, Decorators Notebook, Flickr, Relics of Witney, Relics of Witney, Relics of Witney, Relics of Witney,

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How To Make Your Own Gilded Wreath!

Welcome to The Relics Festive December Post! 

This year, we're giving you a seasonal tutorial to create a stunning wreath,using variegated leaf to gild, making a beautiful statement on your front door, or as a Christmas table centrepiece.

We stock variegated metal leaf in two forms: loose metal leaf and transfer leaf. Transfer leaf, which we're using today, is easier to work with as the wax-backed paper allows a firmer hold, as well as strengthening the leaf.

Here's how to make yours!

You will need:

One of our vine wreaths

Acrylic size

Variegated leaf

Garden foliage

Select evergreen foliage from your garden or the hedgerow. We've chosen viburnum, but ivy would work just as well. Holly is an option but be warned: it bites! 

Our vine wreaths are like round, plump doughnuts, with plenty of room to build up a layers. Begin by inserting your first stem. 

The stems work best if they are cut to a medium length (about 20 cm) with the leaves stripped from the lower end of each. This means that the bare twig can be inserted into the vine wreath without getting clogged up.

It's a good idea to keep all your stems flowing in the same direction to give the most professional finish. You'll notice that much of the foliage will have a natural bent one way or the other. Make sure that you manipulate the stem so that it bends the same way as the wreath base before insertion.

Keep building layer upon layer until you can't see any more of the vine base, and your wreath has a pleasing fullness.

Working your whole way around the wreath, squeeze your hands gently but firmly over the foliage to make a tighter shape. This helps to calm any wayward tendencies!

Pick out 7 or so new stems to gild. These should have nice big leaves so the gilding shows up really well. Coat each leaf surface with acrylic size. When size is ready, it becomes transparent and has a glossy sheen, whilst still remaining tacky.

Press a sheet of the transfer leaf onto each leaf at a time, using your finger, or a brush to give firm pressure all over. Then peel the wax paper away. This will leave the variegated leaf clinging onto the size.

Check for any areas that need a second (or third...) attempt. The wonderful thing about gilding with this method, is that you can have multiple attempts to get the look you want. Keep going until you are satisfied with the coverage.

Softly rub the gilded surfaces with a brush to remove any loose flakes and apply a thin coat of Liberon's Black Bison Antique Pine wax with a soft cotton cloth to protect the gilded finish. 

This is essential if you're planning to hang your wreath outside. Once the wax has been left for its allotted time, you can buff the waxed surface with a clean cloth. This will bring out a superb lustre to the variegated leaf.

Insert these gilded stems into the wreath, and remove any leaves that are not in tip-top condition.

If you're only just getting the gilding bug then you'll love our Gilding Kit, full of the essentials to get you going, and, at only £14.99 is a huge saving on the sum total.

We hope you love it as much as we do.

Happy Gilding

and

Merry Christmas!

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The Very Best Gilding Craft Projects...

We, at Relics of Witney, are enthralled with the process of gilding. To be able to bring such life, such sparkle, such magic to everyday objects, particularly at this time of year, gives us a special kind of crafty thrill. In this post, we present to you a round-up of the very best gilding craft projects out there, from the easy everyday right through to those festive jaw-droppers that Santa himself would be proud of.

For example, what do you think about this incredible gilded craft: a map art tutorial using gold leaf?

Our gorgeous gold leaf gilded terracotta pots invoked an avalanche of compliments over Christmas last year. Find the full tutorial here. You can find our special variegated leaf here.

...or try this tutorial for another take on gilded terracotta pots...

A gilded pine cone garland will add more than a touch of rustic luxe this Christmas.

Follow our simple gilded pine cone tutorial using Liberon's Gilt Cream to create one of your own this Christmas.

Find out how to make these beautiful gilded seashells here:

These simple but eye-catching pebbles are gilded using gold leaf. The tutorial uses an ingenious method to create really intricate designs using gold leaf.

Aren't these gilded gold leaf balloons glorious? We love projects like these that give fantastic results even for beginners.

We found a tutorial for these gilded table numbers here. Wouldn't they be perfect for a wedding?

As these next projects show, it's possible to gild onto a number of different surfaces, including glass. In this tutorial, Mason Jars are given a new lease of life. Use our gold leaf to get the same effect.

...and here you can find out how to transform a glass coffee table with gold leaf and a stencil.

For the more adventurous among you, have you considered using gold leaf to gild an entire piece of furniture? This tutorial is fantastic...

Martha Stewart takes through a gilded craft project here, with a step by step guide to gilding a lamp shade.

Have you seen our guide to smartening up old picture frames with gilt cream, which we stock online here?

Find out how to make a gilded letter edge here. This would be a perfect craft project for ultra-smart Christmas cards. See our full range of different coloured leaf for a full range of effects.

If you're itching to get started with gilding projects, then take a look at our Gilding Kit, which includes: 25 sheets of gold leaf, 40ml of acrylic gold size, a small pack of steel wool, gilding base coat and 25ml of antiquing wax. 

At only £14.99, this Gilding Kit is fantastic value for money, and would make a perfect present for the crafters in your life!

And now, it's time for us to get going with Christmas gilding craftproject of our own, which we'll be sharing next month.... 

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