craftyRee

My Mom gave me a big box of pine cones to make decorations out of. I already painted some a metallic silver color but I was looking for some more ideas. About 10 years ago we made a teddy bear out of them I remember we used several but i don't remember how we did, anyone else seen these? Someone was selling them at craft shows back then.thanks for any ideas

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ahippiechic

There are a bunch listed here......
http://familycrafts.about.com/od/pineconecrafts/

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craftyRee

wow thanks. I saved several of these. I love those PineCone christmas trees soooo cute

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Surfergal

http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/nh_oth...268305,00.html

http://www.marthastewart.com/article...content_crafts

http://jas.familyfun.go.com/arts-and...&craftid=11073



http://jas.familyfun.go.com/arts-and...&craftid=11553


http://jas.familyfun.go.com/crafts?p...&craftid=11866

sea-shell

You could always feed the birds.

Smear cheap peanut butter all through it and roll in bird seed then just hand it up by fishing line

I do this all year around and they love it.

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craftyRee

thanks so much sea shell I love all of these ideas too, they are great =)
I am saving them in my craft folder . I am going to make some of those bird feeders too thanks again !!!!

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craftyRee

Thanks Surfergal those are some awesome ideas, I am going to make several of them, I will take pics if yall want to see how they come out. This group is so awesome. Thanks for all of your help =)

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Ambrianna

I do the pine cone trees, but I might do them a little different than others do.

I get my own cones the hard way! LOL! We live in the Atlanta area, so it's pine cone city around here with all the towering pines. They are a beautiful cone. Other cones I like are ones from Alabama (long and slender) and Mississippi cones (much fatter and round). I'm not sure which state has what kind of pine tree, but all three have very different, very beautiful cones. I've even found some (I think in Alabama) that were very small, an inch or 2.

After cleaning them up, (blowing out the dirt and seeds, clipping of the "prickers", clipping out the few top layers) I spray paint them all white. It takes a few coats to do this completely. On the final coat I sprinkle glitter - either red, white or silver. When dry, I spray a coat of polyurethane to set.

After all that's done and dry, I attach beads with a hot glue gun for "ornaments". The bead size depends on the size of the cone. I have small and large beads.

On the top int he area I clipped out, I either put in a star or glue ribbon. It depends on if you want to hang it off a tree (ribbon) or make it a stand alone decoration (star). I bought small wooden stars and painted them gold. My husband drills a small hole in the joints of one of the star points to fit a thin wooden skewer (like for shish-ka-bobs). I cut the skewer to an inch or so and glue it in the hole of the star. In the top of the cone I put a bit of that florist's clay, or white putty, then insert the skewer with the star into the putty.

They come out SO pretty! I wish I had some made up to post a picture of. I gave them all I had made to my family. My Gramma loves them so much she keeps them around her house on window sills all year long. She's even given some to friends as extra "gifts" during Christmas.

The very small cones I just spray paint white, glitter and poly. They're too small for anything else, but they look so pretty when done.

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despite body and mind
my youth will never die.." - Creed

craftyRee

Ambrianna
thanks for the idea, sounds really cute =)
I started painting some white and I painted some silver too I am going to find some little bead and make some of these too, it sounds so pretty. thanks again !!

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Ambrianna

Oh wow, I just thought of something else!

If you could spray paint them a dark green, then lightly spray on some of that spray snow? I'm sure you'd have to poly-coat it, to make sure it stayed.

See? you gave me a new idea!

Yours sound very nice too, silver trees, those must be so pretty.

__________________
"I won't let go
of that youthful soul
despite body and mind
my youth will never die.." - Creed

NancyS

I have some too--thanks for the ideas.