Mardi Gras Prep

It's Carnival Season, folks!  If you read most of the posts here or follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you're already well aware.  Holding in excitement isn't something I've mastered yet.

The season technically begins following Twelfth Night (the twelfth day of Christmas, if you will, on January 5th), and lasts until Mardi Gras, the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.  Depending on when Easter falls, Fat Tuesday could be as early as the beginning of February, or as late as March.  This year it's March 4th.  Which means even more time to celebrate the season!  It also means Valentine's Day becomes virtually obsolete.  Sorry, Cupid.

As it goes for any other holiday, the mood changes a bit in the house.  Our first Mardi Gras is all about the homemade.

Exhibit A:  Paper "Bon Mardi Gras" flag banner and appropriately colored tissue paper pom poms.

I free-handed letters on yellow sparkly scrapbook paper (way cooler in person than in pictures, obviously), cut them out, and double-stick-taped them to plum colored paper.  The edges are lined with green pipe cleaners, hot glued on.

You've probably seen a million pom pom tutorials on Pinterest, so I won't bore you with another.  Basically, I folded tissue paper like a fan, secured the center with a scrap piece of pipe cleaner attached to a string (for hanging), then separated the layers to make it fluffy.  We're not fancy.

The Christmas Tree Carnival Tree is looking pretty swanky.  We decked it in beads and throws we've caught from parades since we moved here.  We're also using it to display our Mardi Gras attire... hence the boa and mask.

"Beading" a tree is way more fun than TP-ing ever was, by the way.

Notice the scrap purple and pink fur serving as a tree skirt?  It's leftovers from my Halloween costume.

The living room mantel got an extra strand of gold beads for the occasion.  Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain green paint on the wall.  That's a story for a different post.

Call me crazy, but I've been aching for a peacock wreath for years.  Yeeeaaaars, I tell you!  It's been a mixture of nowhere to put it and no money to spend that kept me from buying one previously.  I spotted this one at Michaels when I was toting a 40% coupon in my purse (making it less than 15 bucks), so I decided we were soul mates.

Those itty bitty candles on the left end of the window sill are Happy Birthday Joan of Arc throws from the 12th Night Parade we attended.

Last but not least, a little lagniappe for the front door.  I've always made our outdoor wreaths, and finally came up with this idea after a bit of pondering.

A quick how-to:  I drew half a mask on newspaper (for symmetry), then traced it onto a cardboard box.

Once I cut out the mask with a utility knife, I mixed together some blue and red acrylic paint to make a deep purple color.  I slathered it on, then added purple sparkles.

I used gold glitter glue to draw on a couple details, hot glued some extra Mardi Gras beads around the edges, and added feathers I found in one of my craft boxes.  I recently bought glittery green ribbon on clearance that worked well as a hanger.  A little Mod Podge finishing spray to seal everything up, and it was ready to debut.

Anyone else partaking in Mardi Gras trimming?  Has anyone been on-their-game enough to decorate for Valentine's Day?