It’s Christmas in July! Today I’m taking advantage of the warm summer days to work outdoors and get a jump on the holiday items I’ll be offering in my booths by transforming old skis into decorative Christmas porch décor!

Christmas in July - It’s Actually a ‘Thing…’

According to legend, Christmas in July was first celebrated at a summer camp in 1933, when Keystone Camp in Brevard, N.C. decided to dedicate July 24 and 25 to the holiday, which included carolers, a Christmas tree, fake snow made of cotton, presents and a visit from Santa Claus. (Southern Living has the full story of how Christmas in July started).

It first hit pop culture in 1940 with the movie Christmas in July. Then, in 1942, a Washington, DC church started a summer donation drive called Christmas in July, to gather holiday gifts to send to missions around the world in time for Christmas. Then, during World War II, the U.S. Post Office started a similar drive to gather and mail gifts to overseas soldiers. By the 1950s, retailers had hit on the concept of hot summer days filled with hot cocoa and all things Santa to boost mid-year sales. Then, starting in 2012, The Hallmark Channel jumped on the bandwagon with their Christmas in July series. What better way to escape the blazing heat than to turn up the AC and snuggle in with a snow-filled Hallmark rom-com.

Chillin’ With Some Old Skis

I’ve actually amassed my ski collection for repurposing since last year. So I have several skis - and the faux greenery - that I’ve been storing for this year’s Christmas décor.

I’ve included a few affiliate links so you can find the products I used.

Supplies

Ryobi Cordless Screw Driver
Rustoleum Colonial Red Spray Paint
Rustoleum Spray Paint Comfort Grip Handle
Screws
Washers
Lock Nuts
Socket Wrench
Assorted greenery
Florist wire
Wire cutter
Pre-made wreath bow (Similar truck theme)

The Prep

The process starts out by removing the bindings from the skis. I have several, differently-sized skis I’m working with, and each one has a different binding attachment. Basically, it’s like a multi-layered puzzle to discover where the screws are that attach the binding to the ski.

Then the skis were cleaned with a wipe-down of a simple household cleaner and shop rag.

Paint

Once dry, it’s time for paint!  I chose this Rustoleum Colonial Red Spray Paint, which is a bit deeper than an apple red.  As usual, I relied on the Rustoleum Spray Paint Comfort Grip Handle to keep the process comfortable as I applied all of the coats of paint.

Two coats on each side of the skis was enough to cover.

Once the paint was dry, I drilled a hole in the middle of each ski where the bindings had been, and added a nut, bolt and washer to hold them together in an ‘X’.

My stash of greenery included a variety of textures with some complementary reds.  And a pretty bow.

I trimmed some of the greens down, then used my staple gun to attach them to the skis.

The hard composite of the skis kept crushing the staples, so once I got the large greens attached, I wired the smaller greens into them using floral wire.

Here are the greened-up skis.

The pre-made bow came with a wire that was juuuust long enough to wrap around the skis.. I tucked it into the greenery and wired it around the back.

The After

And here is how these repurposed skis turned out!

They’ll make such a statement on a festive holiday porch.

It was 90 degrees out when I was working on this project, so to help with the Christmas spirit, I put my favorite Yule Log show on the shop TV, and hummed along to the the holiday music.

Frustrations, Flubs and Fails

The only hitch with this makeover was the staples.  I could not figure out why they kept smashing instead of penetrating the skis.  I mean - I use them all the time on wood!  Finally I realized that I could staple through the thinnest branches and get a good hold.  And then wire the rest of the greenery to those stapled pieces.  Not too bad. 

I hope you enjoyed this little break from furniture flipping, and some chillin’ with Christmas in July!

Catch you on the Flip Side!

Victoria