Small Cypress Trees (picked up at The Home Depot for $19.99 each) are dropped into aged terracotta pots and perched on top of decorative gifts and surrounded by other small treasures.

A cork collection is strung together to create a unique garland. To make this, I inserted small eye screws into both ends of each cork and tied them all together with jute.

Empty boxes are wrapped to look just as good as the real thing – these give my mantel arrangement height. Walnuts – sprayed with gold paint – and styrofoam balls wrapped with yarn all help to fill in the spaces and add interest.