Crafts Using Pine Cones

Selling the gourds should be easy. I have seen people selling gourds on eBay. They make great crafts.

My sister-in-law grows gourds. She cuts holes in the front, washes them in bleach water, sands them and we paint them and spray them with clear lacquer. Put a hook in the top and you have a great birdfeeder. She has painted some in really nice looking southwestern colors. They also make good, easy & cheap kids crafts for teacher gifts.

Also, if there is a craft fair going on in your community you might be able to get a table (for a small fee of around $25) where he could sell his natural items to the crafters. If you could find an easy way to make scented pinecones (I am sure someone here knows how!) he could sell these in bags at the same time.

www.savingspotpourri.blogspot.com/

1) Have you seen those pine cones that have been coated with wax that people sell in a bag to use to start fires with during the winter? (They usually use a dark green wax)

2) A second idea: You can put pine cones into a gallon jar & add a mixture of Spruce scented essential oil (don't use pine or it will smell like pine-sol) and rubbing alcohol or 100 proof vodka (the alcohol is to make the oil easier to disperse) ...Then spray this mix of 1/8 cup alcohol & 1 teaspoon of spruce esential oil on to the pine cones & leave them sit for at least 2 weeks in the jar (to absorb the spruce scent).... Then sell these during the holidays or give them away. They are made to be set in a pretty bowl on a coffee table to give the smell of Christmas during the holidays (like potpourri). Just Google "essential oils" or buy them at any Health Food Store. In place of the Spruce oil, you can also use a mixture of Orange & Cinnamon oil or any Citrus oil with any spice like clove or cinnamon (I like to mix lemon oil with the orange oil)....

3) Another idea is to buy Styrofoam or grapevine wreaths at dollar stores & hot glue just plain pine cones all around the wreath & place a quality gold, silver or gingham checked or plaid bow on the top... These make wonderful decorations for any fall or winter holiday (depending on the color of the ribbon) be it Fall, Thanksgiving or Christmas. You can do the same thing in miniature as a table decoration with a tall glass candle in the center. But never use a regular candle that's not in glass due to fire hazard!

---> A WARNING about the gourds... Once they dry out, the insides contains a mold that can be very hazardous to breathe... ALWAYS wear a mask when cleaning the insides of gourds & be sure to bleach the inside as well as the outside... There are many crafts that use gourds these days... in fact, some people use them to wood burn on & others die or paint them & make baskets from them... I bet you could sell them dried to a ma & pa owned craft store or at a Farmers Market.

During the fall many schools use them for art projects such as glueing on some paper feathers and making it a turkey, if you have a nursing home nearby ask the activity director if he/she would be interested in taking some of them for craft projects. If you have a craft store near you they may be interested.

If you have pine cones, you probably also have pine needles. My Dad's place in the country only supported pine trees, yucca, Indian corn, and strawberries. He said that even with the severe weather situations, these berries were the last thing remaining green before the blizzards, and the first thing to enjoy the Spring. What I'm saying is that they thrive under a mulch of pine needles. You might want to explore the possibility of wild strawberries (Aspen strawberries) in addition to other fun experiments.) Have fun

I also have 50 pine trees and many pine cones, so I came up with the idea to make wreaths for any time of the year. I spray them gold for Christmas and add small ordiments and mini lights for a nice centerpiece. I also use them on the front door, by hot glueing them together, and enbelish them for the season

You could donate them to a thrift store for those shoppers looking for inexpensive craft items for the holidays. Just a thought!

Make a Christmas tree using several pinecones - With pinecones standing on their widest end (the base), glue the "sides" of them together in the form of a circle Some of the petals can interlock w/each other to help hold it in place. Just use hot glue to secure. When you have the size of circle you need to form the base of your Christmas tree (obviously this can vary, depending on the size of tree you want), repeat that step, only making the circle smaller. Glue that circle onto the base, using the same technique as mentioned above--allow some of the petals of the base of the smaller circle to interlock with the tips of the larger circle. Keep repeating these steps until you reach the "top" of your Christmas tree. The very tip should be just one (1) pinecone, the "layer" beneath that should be three (3) pinecones, and so on--forming larger and larger layers--depending on how large you want the entire tree. Decorate then with glitter, lights, miniature garlands, ornaments, etc..

You could try selling them on the internet! If you have loads, you could package them up and sell them to crafters on Ebay for example. You wouldn't have to charge a lot, but I bet they'd sell.

dip them in recycled candle wax & in some saw dust or dryer lint to make fire starters
If they are closed - put them on a cookie sheet & I THINK they will open up !
I set a candle in a basket on my table with some colorfull leaves & a few pinecones & acorns & such for a nice fall centerpiece

coat them with peanut butter & roll in some bird seed & hang in a tree for the birds !

Pine cones are supposed to be a good mulch for roses because of their high acid content. Mulch in the fall and remove the debris in the spring.