Gently combine petals and leaves in a large bowl. Scatter drops of rose oil over the mixture using an eyedropper. Stir gently. Place mixture in a brown paper bag lined with wax paper. Fold and seal the bag with a paper clip and leave in a dry, dark, cool place for 2 weeks. Every other day, stir the contents gently to blend and disperse ingredients and scents. Place in glass bowls or candy dishes. Top with small white or pink rose buds.

Hollow out miniature pumpkins and squashes to make serving bowls and containers for cranberry sauces, relishes, dips, soups, individual desserts, even fresh flowers. Cut a thin slice off the bottom so that the pumpkin or squash will stand firm.

While braiding together the dried tops attached to onions from your garden, weave in a long strand of heavy string among them. When the tops have been braided, make a loop at the end of the string so that the strands can be hung as room decorations. Tie bunches of herbs and herb flowers together with string to make a garland that can be draped on the table, wall, or mantel.

Enliven individual place settings by affixing sprigs of autumn wheat or herbs to your napkins with ribbons.

Collect, rinse, and pat dry an assortment of colorful autumn leaves. Place them between tissue paper with heavy books on top for a week in a warm room. This will ensure that the leaves dry flat. Once dried, scatter the leaves on your buffet table before setting down the serving dishes. Or use large leaves as a liner under stemmed glasses or bowls on individual serving plates. With string or thread and a couple of thin sticks, dried leaves make interesting autumn mobiles, too.Using a heavy-duty needle and thread, alternate kumquats and cranberries to create a fragrant holiday garland. Use the fruit strands to decorate serving platters, tables, and doorways.

Christmas Crackers

Fill empty tissue rolls with candy, small toys, etc. Wrap Christmas colored tissue paper around tube and tie with ribbon at both ends. Kids grab the ends and pop them open for their treats.

Cinnamon Logs

Take 3 cinnamon sticks and blue together with glue gun. Tie Christmas ribbon or raffia bow around them and glue into place. Embellish with whole cloves, dried flowers, leaves, spanish moss, etc. Add string for hanging.

Orange Pomader / Air Freshener

Stick whole cloves into an orange. Make designs or completely cover. Tie narrow Christmas ribbon around pomader criss-crossing at the bottom like wrapping a gift. Instead of making a bow at the top, tie in a secure knot leaving plenty of excess. Use the excess to make a hanging loop by tieing a second secure knot a couple of inches higher than the first one. (If needed secure ribbon in random spots with a touch of hot glue.) For added embellishment hot glue a mint leaf to the top of the orange.

Lighted Potpourri Jars

Fill a large canning jar with Christmas potpourri and a small strand of Christmas lights. In the lid of the jar cut or bend a small opening at the edge for the cord to come out. Poke holes in the lid for the scent to escape or use lace for a lid.. Decorate the ring with Christmas fabric, ribbon, etc. hiding the cord in the process. Run the cord down the back of the jar and tape it in place so that it wont be seen from the front. Plug it in and enjoy the beauty and the aroma.

Nature Baskets

Fill baskets with pine cones, acorns, holly sprigs, etc. Intermix a string of battery operated lights (lay the control box behind basket). Embellish basket with a large bow.

Potpourri

During the fall and winter I always keep a pot of simmering potpourri handy, even if its only some cinnamon sticks in a sauce pan of water. Below I have listed some aromatic ingredients that do well as simmering potpourri. Mix as you want.

Cinnamon Sticks

• lemon slices or halves
• lemon herbs
• orange wedges
• mint leaves
• cloves
• spiced tea bags

Yes, thats what I said. *S* Last year I got some spiced tea bags that smelled delightful but just was not "my cup of tea". I often added them to my potpourri pot and they smelled wonderful!

Home Decorating and quick crafty tips

My favorite low cost Christmas decorating tips and ideas:

Decorate everything! Why be restrained? It's only once a year!

Use small or mini ornaments as accents. They are great for things like ceiling fan pulls (click here for instructions for a scented ornament to hang from your ceiling fan), curtain ties, attaching to napkin rings, accenting house plant pots, attached to candle holders, let your imagination go.

If you have access to a holly tree or to mistletoe, use it liberally. Accent picture frames and wall hangings, doorways, cabinet tops, centerpieces. I like to lie sprays around everywhere, even in the bathroom.

Nothing enhances the holiday mood like the smells of Christmas. Use Christmas potpourri, air fresheners, scented candles, plug ins, etc. I often tie cinnamon sticks to a sprig of holly with festive ribbon and lie them around the house and hang them on the tree. Cloves add wonderful scent to the holiday home. Here's a tip for wonderful smelling Christmas sachets to lie around the house or hang on your tree. Place whole cloves and broken cinnamon sticks on a small piece of lace, gather to form a "bag" and tie Christmas ribbon to close.

Have holiday music on hand. I almost constantly have Christmas music playing even if only a subtle instrumental background. When entertaining I have even known people to tuck away a portable disk or cassette player in the restroom cabinet with soft Christmas music playing throughout the evening.

Hang Christmas "prints" around throughout the house. If you have access to a color printer print small Christmas pictures, greeting card scans, etc. and frame them in small decorative frames. Christmas card cutouts work great for this too. You can usually get small frames of various shapes at inexpensive department stores for a very low price. Remember to check the craft department too. They are often found there for less than those found in the gift department. Frames can be accented by attaching a sprig of holly, a small ornament, or a couple of cinnamon sticks tied together with colorful ribbon.

If you use night lights in the house use colored bulbs.

Place holiday colored and shaped soaps in a soap dish in the restroom and kitchen for an added touch. These are usually very inexpensive at department stores. A jar of christmas colored bath oil balls is very festive looking too. Tie Christmas ribbon around the top for an added touch.

Especially if you use country decor in your home, try this: Fill a canning jar with Christmas potpourri and a small strand of Christmas lights. In the lid of the jar cut or bend a small opening at the edge for the cord to come out. Poke holes in the lid for the scent to escape or use lace for a lid.. Decorate the ring with Christmas fabric, ribbon, etc. hiding the cord in the process. Run the cord down the back of the jar and tape it in place so that it wont be seen from the front. Plug it in and enjoy the beauty and the aroma.

Pine cones! Put them everywhere. In baskets, on tables, on mantles, on the bathroom counter. Pine cones are beautiful holiday accents plain or decorated.

Ribbons and bows are a versatile part of holiday decorating. I buy several spools of ribbon and use it everywhere. I tie it around my kitchen cabinets and attach a small classy bow in the front, I tie them around finger tip towels and napkins, lamp shades, throw pillows, just use your imagination.

Candles make a beautiful addition to any decor. From the santa face candle to the swirly gold ones, candles can be very inexpensive to very expensive but they all add class to the environment. Even if you never light a candle its presence alone suggests warmth. With small children around its often not safe to have them lit. In this case I recommend lighting them once (when the kids are in bed *L*) and let them burn just long enough to darken the wick and add some drip accents to add to the statement of the candle.

I like to make "door knob hangers" for all the door knobs in the house. The possibilities are endless. Use a loop of Christmas ribbon as a hanger. Be sure to make the loop big enough to easily slip over the door knob. Attach a variety of object to the ribbon. Bells are nice for the front door since they jingle when the door opens.

Mini Christmas trees: I love mini Christmas trees. I like to put a mini tree in the kitchen. Put them all over the house.

Use Christmas window clings on mirrored closet doors. Often as adults we tend to want to have a uniform more formal look to our decorating. This is often "boring" to the kids. By adding these few touches to your childs room (pick the mini ornaments and clings) let the children express themself as colorfully or festively as he wants. Window clings also are a great accent on your bathroom mirrors.

The decorative gift. In the hustle and bustle of the season we often find ourselves so sick of wrapping presents that we just want to get it over with. Fancy accents and bows etc. are only realistic for those with the time and extra cash to make every package look even more expensive than its contents. *L* However, I like to take a few empty boxes when doing my decorating and put all I have got into it. No not for gift giving but for decoration. I place them around the house (and make sure the kids know they aren't real so they stay intact). Put them anywhere theres a vacant spot that could use a little Christmas cheer. If you store them carefully they can be used repeatedly.