Repurposed Holiday Decor: Chili Pepper Ornament

Spice up your holiday with a chili pepper ornament made from the heart. Christmas is fast approaching, and if you're a crafter like me you know that there aren't enough hours in the day to make a gift for everyone. My default for handmade Christmas gifts are ornaments, and its never let me down. This chili pepper ornament is quick and easy to make, and here's what you'll need:
Tools
- Sand paper
- A paint brush
- A hot glue gun
- Pliers

Materials
- A bent tip light bulb
- Fine red glitter
- Red paint
- Green felt
- Small green beads
- Hot glue
- A fine gauge wire, or twist-tie

Clean off your bent tip light bulb with hand soap and water. Once it's dry, sand it lightly and use your pliers to pull of the metal seal on the bottom, where a small hole should be. Then, paint blub with two coats of red paint. While the bulb is still wet, sprinkle the red glitter evenly around the bulb and let it dry completely. Touch up bald spots with more paint and glitter.

Once, the bulb is dry, take a 6" piece of fine gauge wire, or a twist-tie*, fold it in half and place it into the hole in the bottom of the bulb. Then secure it with hot glue. And let dry.

* If you use a twist-tie, peal away the paper and use the wire within

Cut a round piece of green felt, a little larger than the diameter of the bulb's base, and thread the wires through the center. Use your hot glue to make a ring around the rim of the light bulb. Press down the felt circle and let dry.




Take a strip of green felt, that is about the width of the bulb's base, and cut ridges into it. You'll want to secure the felt strip with hot glue a couple centimeters above where the felt circle ends. Also, secure the felt strip where you would like the back of the ornament to be. Then wrap the felt strip around the bulb's base (small dots of hot glue will help keep the felt in place as you wrap it). Once, the metal base is fully covered trim away the excess felt.

Now, separate your wire strands and thread them with green beads.








Twist the wires together, so that the beads meet, and trim away the excess wire. And...

 It's a spicy holiday!
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Scarf Alternatives, or Staying Toasty this Winter

When in doubt, wear a scarf; it's the instant indie accessory that adds panache to your entire outfit. I'm a scarf lover myself, but sometimes its not quite what I'm looking for. So, this fall, to keep my neck nice and toasty, I crocheted myself this little number:

It was fun and easy to make, plus it gave me an excuse to use those extra buttons I've been collecting off my winter coats. I'm still not sure if I'll be adding this to my shop, but it beats wearing a turtleneck, sorry to all you turtleneck lovers (aka. Mom).

See more from Mind Ruffle at http://etsy.me/t2M2wU