HowToDoThings.com Recent Christmas Articles

How To Grow a Live Christmas Tree

The Plant Lady — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 14:45:53 -0600

How To Make a Poinsettia Turn Red

The Plant Lady — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 18:32:49 -0500

How To Make a Christmas Tree Pop-Up Card

Cassandra — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 17:29:16 -0500

In today’s fast-paced world, we often forget that family and home are at the heart of any holiday celebration. Save money and enjoy a family project by creating your own holiday cards. A simple and easy option is the Christmas tree pop-up card. Make one with your kids by following these simple steps.

How To Write Business Christmas Letters and Cards

lisadh — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:11:44 -0500

How To Care for Christmas Cactus

The Plant Lady — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 12:12:15 -0500

How To Create Snowman Poop

lisadh — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 14:46:15 -0500

How To Make Magic Reindeer Food for Santa's Reindeer

lisadh — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 13:52:51 -0500

Santa's reindeer are magical creatures who can fly around the world in a single night, helping the jolly old elf deliver presents to all the little girls and boys who have been nice. But even magic flying reindeer can use a hand. If you want to be sure Rudolph and all his pals can find your home on Christmas Eve, make some magic reindeer food and throw it on your lawn before bedtime. It will help Santa's team find your home and give them a burst of energy to continue their flight.

How To Make a Christmas Stocking

Alicia Donatone — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 20:34:54 -0600

Christmas stockings! Soft, beautiful and holding the potential to be stuffed with wonders and treats. Why buy one when, with a few items, you could make your own? Making Christmas stockings requires the following items:

Scissors
A large piece of paper (paper grocery bags cut open are great)
Pencil or chalk
Pins
Fabric of your choice (traditional colors are red for the stocking and white for the brim, but feel free to be creative)
Needle
Thread that matches your fabric choices
Glitter glue to write names on the stocking (optional)
Clean work area to lay out fabric and pattern

Once you have gathered your materials, follow these steps.

How To Go Christmas Caroling

October — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 17:54:55 -0600

So you want to go caroling but you're not sure where to go or who to take with you? Follows these easy steps to make a caroling trip to remember.

How To Make Peppermint Bark

bronwyn — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 11:21:20 -0600

Peppermint bark is the ultimate Christmas candy, and can cost quite a bit, too! By making your own peppermint bark, you can save money and treat your friends. Peppermint bark makes an excellent Christmas or New Year's gift - or you can make it at any time during the year. Save those candy canes - you'll need them!

How To Celebrate Boxing Day

mcdesign — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 13:30:48 -0600

Boxing Day might bring to mind something totally different than an activity the day after Christmas -- but, in England, there truly is a Boxing Day, sometimes even Boxing Week. In England, a tradition of packaging up leftover food the day after Christmas, and then given to the less fortunate, has been a noble and worthy activity dating back to the mid-1800's. Hence the term "boxing", as they gathered leftover meats, vegetables, fruit, and pastries and used boxes for transporting these items.

How To Keep Your Pet Safe During the Holidays

bronwyn — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 11:51:27 -0600

Christmas and other holidays can be fun for the whole family - pets included. However, there are some common hazards that may threaten your pet's well-being. Dogs, cats, rabbits, and other pets who wander around the house could soon find that their curiosity and playfulness gets them into trouble. Before relaxing and celebrating, make sure that your home is pet-friendly.

How To Make Figgy Pudding

bronwyn — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 11:44:56 -0600

For most of us in modern times, the only thing we know about figgy pudding is that it is in the Christmas carol "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." Why not try making figgy pudding this year? After all, if the pudding (actually more like a cake) has been around for this long, it must be good! Figgy pudding was traditionally steamed, but baking is much easier and usually comes out looking better. Although there are many recipes for figgy pudding, here is one way to make it.

How To Wrap Gifts the Eco-Friendly Way

triple1 — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 19:05:29 -0600

We celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, and other special occasions by giving gifts to friends and family. Everywhere you look in stores, you see commercial gift-wrap, tamper-proof packages with multiple layers of plastic, and other packing materials that are not eco-friendly.

Is there anything you can do to lessen the impact? Yes! You can be kind to the environment while creating something unique that will merit extra appreciation from each gift recipient.

How To Make Christmas Gifts

bronwyn — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 11:05:54 -0600

Unfortunately, not all of us have the resources to buy the Christmas gifts that we wish we could buy for our loved ones. However, Christmas gifts are not all about money spent! In fact, many people prefer homemade gifts, because of the time and love involved. Here are some excellent ways to make Christmas gifts for your favorite people.

How To Care for a Cut Christmas Tree

bronwyn — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 11:00:52 -0600

Christmas trees are fun for everyone. The whole family can go to the Christmas tree farm, pick out and cut a tree down, and decorate it. However, how do you take care of it to keep it looking great and keep your house safe? It's easy.

Cut the trunk again when you get home. If you just stick the tree in water, it won't absorb the water well. Make a fresh cut on the trunk of the tree and put it straight into a bucket or Christmas tree stand full of water.
Add sugars to the water. It definitely sounds strange, but adding a cup of maple syrup, corn syrup, or sugar to the water helps preserve the tree!

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How To Give Financial Gifts for Christmas

miniguru — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 13:16:35 -0600

It’s the time of giving. Christmas is approaching. We all have relatives and friends that could use a little extra moolah. What better gift to give than a financial gift? But you wonder, oh what, oh what should I give? Before you rush to your ATM machine to withdraw cash, consider giving one of the eight financial gifts below.

How To Make a Vegan Christmas Dinner

Kat Yares — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 12:51:38 -0600

Christmas dinner for the vegan can be just as delicious as Christmas dinner in the meat-eating world. It's all a matter of making delicious choices and putting together a meal that even your meat-eating friends would be willing to try. The secret to a great vegan dinner is to serve foods that make non-vegans forget that the foods do not include dairy, eggs or meat.

How To Get Your Geek What He Wants for Christmas

christphe6 — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 11:52:00 -0600

If you’re reading this article, there’s a very good chance that you’ve already spent hours, if not days, racking your brain over what to get your geek this year. I’ve seen my wife doing this when she thinks I’m not looking. It isn’t pretty.

I know; it used to be so much easier to shop for your geek. Back in the day, a gift basket of assorted, high-sugar candy and Mountain Dew was acceptable, if not requested. The selection of video games was much smaller, and they certainly didn’t have to be pre-ordered. A new supply of short-sleeved dress shirts normally did the job. And, really, who could forget all that Dungeons & Dragons paraphernalia?

How To Find Christmas in You

mariamia — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 12:31:11 -0600

Everyone says it is Christmas, but for me it is nowhere to be found. I see lights, but I always see lights. There are so many people, but it is always crowded. So, the music is changed. But I still don’t see it.

Are evergreen trees really a part of the holiday? Why do they decorate a tree? What is this December 25th? Is Santa really Santa?

Someone tell me how to find it. Maybe nobody can. There are no family or friends for me.

It is Christ’s birthday, but who has time for church? Oh, where is this holiday that they speak so highly about?

Just one more hour before my train arrives, and no answer can be found.

There is a man ringing a bell. Maybe I will give him ten dollars. He says, “Thank you for making my Christmas.”

How To Write Christmas Letters People Will Actually Enjoy Reading

lisadh — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 11:56:14 -0600

Family Christmas letters, those mass-mailed updates that try to pack a whole year of activity into one page of text, have become as much a part of the Christmas season as Rudolph's shiny red nose and Black Friday shopping. If you need help getting started, just put on some Christmas music, pull up your computer chair, and follow the instructions below.

How To Not Be Embarrassed by Your Relatives During the Holidays

mariamia — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 14:14:47 -0600

With the holiday fast approaching, it is also time for the relatives to show up and ask their litany of embarrassing questions. Everyone knows what I am talking about. I have a huge Italian family. They walk in the door with big hellos, kisses on the cheeks, and then it is time to sit down to what is supposed to be a nice family holiday dinner.

As we sit down to eat, you can hear the laughter from the other end of the block. When everyone starts stuffing his or her face, it becomes a little less noisy. That is when someone in the family starts asking all of the kids (that range between 20 and 35 in the family) personal questions that we just don’t want to be talking about in front of the whole family.

Instead of answering him or her with a cocky remark, I have come up with some humorous answers to take the spotlight off of you and put it back on the person who has the guts to ask you such personal things.

How To Write a Letter to Santa

lisadh — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 11:49:39 -0600

Christmas is a very busy time for Santa Claus, and even though he does his best to make sure he knows what every nice girl and boy wants for Christmas, he loves to receive letters. That way he can be sure the elves are building just the right toys. Kids can change their minds as quickly as Santa's reindeer can fly, so make sure Jolly Old St. Nick knows what your kids want most of all. Just give them the instructions below to help them create a letter to Santa that will ensure everyone is happy on Christmas morning.

How To Give Gifts at Work

bronwyn — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 11:32:54 -0600

Buying gifts for coworkers can be a tricky business. When should you do it, and how much should you spend? Is it going to be awkward if a colleague buys you a Christmas present and you get him or her nothing in return? Should you buy gifts for your boss? Although each office is different, there are some tips that can apply universally.

How To Outdo Others in the Competitive Art of Gift-Giving this Holiday Season

wearmenaked — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 15:38:55 -0600

Yes, this season is about giving…in theory. But why not be the best gift-giver you can possibly be? More importantly, why not shamelessly and effortlessly defeat your competition?

THE CAST

The GIFT GIVER: Played by none other than YOU

The GIFTEE (otherwise known as the Gift Receiver): Lover, person you want to be your lover, co-worker, family member, fiancé, husband, wife, person you know is going to get you a gift and you will feel like crap if you don’t give him one

The GIFTROBBERS (people who want to outdo you in the gift-giving process.): These people may include jealous family members, wannabe lovers of the GIFTEE, passive aggressive relatives, a person who likes to throw money around to hide his glaring flaws, etc.

How To Renew Your Confidence While Toning Your Figure for the New Year

melbeau — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 14:23:31 -0600

Applying the art of steadfastness in your yoga practice can be a lifelong journey. Yet begin today, and you will be inspired by the positive transformation of your mind, moods and body. When applying your asana (poses), heighten your experience further by integrating muscle balance and control. Delve deeper than simply "holding" your pose: Explore the sensation of bracing your balance, rooting your core and engaging your muscles. Study the pictures in correlation with the descriptions. Apply "stabilization" to achieve maximum results. Access to the wall and yoga blocks can be powerful and effective tools in reinforcing stability. Optimum steadfastness begins with a stable foundation.

How To Make Christmas Ornaments

cyntajean — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 16:12:54 -0600

Have you ever envied someone's beautiful Christmas Tree Ornaments? Do you want to learn how to make your own? This article will explain in detail how you can make ornaments to celebrate your holiday season. The ornament is easy to make and it's a great family activity. You will need the following materials: beads, styrofoam craft balls (sizes vary), hot glue gun and glue, ornament hooks and twist eye hooks.

How To Buy a Gift for Someone Who Has Everything

omehaney — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 18:58:57 -0600

Many of us have someone in our lives that has absolutely everything and then some. Buying a gift for that special person can prove quite stressful around the holiday season and with each upcoming birthday. Sit back and relax. Here are a few pointers aimed at making difficult gift buying a little bit easier.

How To Buy Videogames as Gifts

weefz — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 13:22:16 -0600

Buying videogames for other people can be complicated. There are so many different options - it's a bit like asking how to buy a book for a book reader. Nevertheless, it's easy if you follow these steps. Here's what to do.

How To Keep a Christmas Tree Fresh

thedave — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 13:56:55 -0600

Keeping a Christmas tree fresh can be quite simple. With a little care, your Christmas tree should thrive for five weeks. Unless you cut your tree down yourself within the past few hours, get your saw handy! While you're at it, find that tree stand and be sure it holds at least 1 gallon of water. Then be prepared to water it daily for about a week. Just follow these easy steps.

How To Make Eggnog

Michael Dietsch — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 14:20:06 -0600

Eggnog is a traditional holiday treat, but most of us are used to drinking it straight from a carton from the supermarket. Making it at home is easy and much tastier than the stuff from the waxy box at the grocery.

This recipe yields four servings, but you can easily multiply it for a larger party.

Ingredients:

4 eggs
1/3 cup sugar
1 pint (2 cups) whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup dark rum
1/4 cup brandy
1 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions:

How To Throw a Festive Christmas Party

goldenpen — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 14:05:55 -0600

Want to throw a fun and exciting party? Impress your friends and be the talk of the town? Or just enjoy the season with a warm reception?

Planning a party is simple; just follow the steps below.

Theme. Decide on a theme -- it can be a cultural theme such as Italian, a religious theme like the Nativity Scene, or a period theme such as 40’s swing era. Of course, a theme is optional. Instead, you can choose a color combo like: red, green, and shiny gold; black, white, and red; or silver, green, and frost blue.

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How To Make Magic Reindeer Food

Magpie — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 15:54:46 -0600

Children instinctively love animals and want to make sure they are treated well, and reindeer are no exception! The following "recipe" will ensure that, along with cookies for Santa, your family will also have a little something tasty to leave for his hard-working reindeer.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup regular oats (such as Quaker Oats).
1 Tbsp. clear decorative sugar crystals, 1 Tbsp. red or green decorative sugar crystals, or 1 tsp. glitter.

Instructions:

How To Buy a Cigar as a Gift

FrankHadley — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 13:47:18 -0600

The world of cigars can take a lifetime to understand, so it only makes sense that looking at this world from the outside can be overwhelming. If your man smokes cigars, buying him the perfect gift can be quite the challenge. The key to being successful in this hunt for the great cigar gift is to know the exact tastes of whom you are buying for. Cigars aren’t jeans; it takes much more than finding the right size for them to fit right.

How To Send a Holiday Gift to a Soldier

Casey47 — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 15:51:46 -0600

The holiday season is here and if you have a service member stationed overseas for the holidays, the time for mailing your packages has arrived. This is an extremely easy process as long as you remember to always keep the best interest of your soldier in mind. Step by step, we will go over all of the necessary tasks and items you will need for sending your package.

How To Shop Craigslist for Holiday Gifts

murry — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 18:46:27 -0600

Holiday gift shopping on the Internet looms larger than ever, driven by fuel prices, higher rents and our nationwide real estate bust. Can you say "savings" and "convenience"? Shop the Internet and you won't fight for parking, jostle hurried crowds, cool your heels in long checkout lines or put up with seasonal workers sporting tattoos, nose rings and “whatever” attitudes. You’ll conduct instant price surveys, compare related products and get ratings from others. This year more than ever, merchants are offering heavy discounts, free shipping and gift-wrapping to entice you to use the great online mall.

Is Craigslist one of the stores in the mall? Who would holiday shop on Craigslist, the globe’s largest garage sale and flea market? Who wants to give used items as holiday gifts? Who wants to receive them?

How To Make Christmas Candy Jars

mcdesign — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 17:56:10 -0600

The holidays are coming at you like a speeding train -- remember last year? And, once again, there is so much to get done. You'll be shopping for that favorite uncle and never sure what to get him. You'll be standing in line for hours waiting to return a sweater you found out will be too small for your nephew, who grew five inches since last year. You'll be baking Aunt Shirley's cinnamon crinkles that take way too much time, but get requested every year. You are on a time schedule and every hour feels like thirty minutes.

Well, here is a wonderful solution for gift giving to teachers, employers or employees, your Secret Santa, a neighbor that has helped you throughout the year, your favorite mail person -- the list could go on forever. But don't despair, this is an evening project that you can tuck away for last-minute gifts.

You will need:

How To Celebrate "Buy Nothing Day"

ronkhare — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 11:14:43 -0600

Do the holidays seem overly commercialized to you? Do you find yourself wondering how buying people things is the only way to show that you love them? Are you tired of being pressured into “buy, buy, buy!” for the sake of the holidays? Does the world seem just a tad too obsessed with the material and lacking the spiritual?

If you answered "yes" to the above questions, you're not alone. The trend of massive holiday buying continues to grow: Americans will spend over $457 billion dollars for the three main winter holidays (Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa) this year. At an average of over $800 per person, holiday shopping seems to be a national--if not worldwide--obsession.

How To Make a Christmas Pudding for the Birds

Fluffymuppet — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 12:05:15 -0600

Many people put out birdseed and other foods for garden birds during the winter time, helping them to survive when wild food resources are few and far between. With a little effort, you can make a Christmas pudding for your feathered friends that will keep them warm and fed for Christmas.

How To Care for Azaleas

Fluffymuppet — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 11:47:24 -0600

Azaleas are popular houseplants during the holiday season, often given as gifts. They come in a range of flower colors, including red and mauve, and with single or double (frilly) flowers. With proper care, azaleas will continue to thrive and flower.

How To Grow New Potatoes for Christmas

Fluffymuppet — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 11:27:22 -0600

With a little bit of planning and effort, you could be eating home-grown new potatoes with your Christmas dinner. If you've grown potatoes before then you've got all the experience you need.

How To Care for a Poinsettia

Fluffymuppet — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 11:14:43 -0600

Poinsettias (Euphorbia pulcherrima) are popular houseplants during the holiday season because of their bright colors -- they come in red, pink and cream. The color is shown in leaf bracts, not flowers, and as these plants are native to Mexico and tropical regions, they need special care if they are too look their best indoors.

How To Encourage a Christmas Cactus to Flower for Christmas

Fluffymuppet — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 11:09:56 -0600

Christmas cacti (Schlumbergera hybrids) are popular houseplants, often living for many years and being passed down through families. If they are to flower during the holiday period, then they need special care during the fall.

How To Plan a Christmas Vacation

Beth141 — Sat, 24 Feb 2007 16:46:00 -0600

For many people, the perfect Christmas is one spent at home, sitting around their own Christmas tree, opening gifts and eating a home-cooked meal. For many others, though, Christmas is a great time to get away, to go some place exotic, or to take a traditional trek to a favorite resort. If you're thinking that Santa's got the right idea - traveling the globe during Christmas - and you'd like to plan a Christmas vacation of your own, consider the following trip-planning tips.

How To Find Christmas Decorations

Candace603 — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 12:24:00 -0600

For many of us, decorating our homes for Christmas kicks off the holiday season. The lights twinkling on the front of the house, Christmas ornaments hanging from the tree, and Christmas wreaths decorating our door all help to create a festive atmosphere. So how do people find Christmas decorations? Christmas decorations can be bought during the holiday season, but you may also find decorations off-season, oftentimes with prices that have been drastically reduced.

How To Make Christmas Cards

Rachael576 — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 16:26:00 -0600

Christmas cards are a wonderful way to keep in touch with friends and family while wishing them a great holiday season! Making your own Christmas cards is something fun and special that offers a great deal of cheer to the recipient.

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How To Plan a Company Christmas Party

Vanessa264 — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 12:03:00 -0600

I've seen many a company Christmas party that was planned with the best of intentions but executed with inadvertent blunders. Here are a few points to consider before you begin to plan a company Christmas party:

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How To Find Holiday Sales

Beth141 — Sat, 25 Nov 2006 17:08:00 -0600

Whether you're a shopping addict who can't get enough of sale prices or a shop-a-phobe who wants to get in, get out, and get home, you're probably still looking for a good deal on the presents you buy for the holidays. Where can you find sales so those great deals don't go untapped? Here are some ways to find holiday sales.

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How To Decorate Christmas Ornaments

Vanessa264 — Thu, 23 Nov 2006 21:39:00 -0600

A long, long time ago in a faraway place known as adolescence, I worked in a Christmas shop owned by a German couple. The dress code at the Christmas shop consisted of a dirndl, white knee highs and clogs, and though braids were not required, they were smiled upon. (Little did I know that years later I would rely on that outfit-minus the braids, plus a push-up bra and beer stein--as a last-minute Halloween costume.)

When I first started working at the Christmas shop, every time I heard the husband and wife speak together, I was sure that their marriage was on the brink of collapse. After a few weeks, I figured out that it was the combination of the guttural language and the lack of any greetings or endearments that had led me to this (incorrect) conclusion. Once I knew that their marriage was intact and my job secure, I began to enjoy my work.

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How To Make a Christmas Wreath

Staff468 — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 16:36:00 -0600

Nothing extends holiday cheer like a wonderful Christmas wreath hanging from your front door. Wreaths make versatile decorations as well, festively hanging around the house or sitting as a centerpiece on your dinner table. The following instructions will help you to make your own Christmas wreath.

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