DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

  In all my life, I have NEVER found a tree topper that I've liked. Not once, not ever. When I was growing up we always had angels, which are fine, but inevitably end up crooked. A crooked tree topper is one of those things that no matter how pretty my tree is, it will be the only thing I notice every time I look at it. A few weeks ago at  JoAnn 's, gathering supplies for all my  Christmas Crafts , I bought a bunch of white and silver pipe cleaners with snowflakes in mind. But the other day I looked at them and thought,  I'm just going to see if I can come up with a tree topper out of these . And without documenting it, I totally did... beyond anything I could have imagined, and honestly, I can't believe pipe cleaners have become my favorite tree topper ever. I had to make a second one to demonstrate how I did it for you after I posted it on  Instagram ... and here's how (it's really easy & inexpensive but looks quite the opposite!) *

    The  Carnival of Binche  is an event that takes place each year in the Belgian town of Binche, during the Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday preceding Ash Wednesday. The carnival is best known of all the others that take place in Belgium, at the same time and has been proclaimed as a  Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity . Its history dates back to approximately the 14th century.     Events related to the carnival begin up to 7 weeks prior to the primary celebrations. Street performances and public displays traditionally occur on the Sundays approaching Ash Wednesday, consisting of prescribed musical acts, dancing and marching. Large numbers of Binche's inhabitants spend the Sunday prior to Ash Wednesday in costume.    The centerpiece of the carnival, are clown like performers, known as  Gilles.  Appearing, for the most part, on "Shrove" Tuesday, the  Giles  are characterised by their vibrant dress, wax masks a