Deer Head -Woodland Christmas

Sometime in October I got the idea that I wanted to add a deer head to my dinning room for Christmas and build a whole woodland Christmas theme around him. I thought of a few options, and was buying supplies for another version when I laid eyes on this guy. A plain, brown paper, paper mache deer head from DeSerres. I decided I should bring him home, and abandoned my other plans. I gave him a few good coats of white gloss spray paint, and loved him even more. 😉

I knew I wanted to surround him with an old picture frame, painted silver. Of course when you need something you can’t find it. I looked at all my local thrift stores and couldn’t find exactly what I was looking for. I did manage to find a few options, but I wasn’t in love with the $20 price tag, especially when they weren’t exactly what I had in mind anyway. I was driving by the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store and had an idea. What if I bought some old trim and made my own frame. I found this piece for a $1 -sold!

I brought it home and had a little help cutting it to size, with all the right angles. I glued it together, stapled it, clamped it, and then filled the little gaps and sanded them smooth.

After a few coats of silver spray paint, I think my $1 frame turned out pretty good.

I needed one more finishing touch, a little wreath around his neck. I trimmed up my box wood and made a little wreath. I just bent a coat hanger into a circle to make the form, and then wired little bunches of box wood around the form.

I love the natural element it adds.

To finish off the display I used this gorgeous little black wrought iron tree my sister gave me a few Christmas’ ago. I love the little pompom garland, reminds me of little snow balls.

I usually have some Black and White photos of Paris hanging here, but decided to change them out to go with our woodland theme too. I found these sweet little prints from UNIK Printshop, at the One-of-a-Kind Show. They are printed onto wood veneer and I thought the snowshoes and feather were perfect with everything else. I framed them in some in-expensive IKEA frames, and I like the way the white frames match my dear, deer head -affectionately referred to by all my family, friends, and visitors as the moose.

I didn’t do too much else on the table, just some candles, and the silver bowl I made here, filled with some pinecones.

I really do love, love how it all turned out. It feels like I’ve been working on it for a month. But it was worth my it to see my modern woodland Christmas coming together. Later this week, I’ll share the woodland themed Christmas tree, and dinning table centre piece.

With a little dear like this on your dinning room wall, life really is a party!

This post is linked up at Home Stories A to Z, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, 36th Avenue, The CSI Project, The Vintage Farmhouse, The Shabby Creek Cottage, House of Hepworths,  Craftberry Bush, Whipperberry, Tatertots and Jello, The Frugal Girls, The Shabby Nest, Tidy Mom, Liz Marie Blog, Centsational Girl, and  Coastal Charm.