Easy Jumbo Icicles

I've always been one of those people who likes to have something a bit different than everyone else. Anyone can go to the store and buy the same things as everyone else but I like being a little more unique. Now, Christmas is coming and many people will hang those beautiful strands of icicle lights around the facial boards of their houses, or around porch handrails, but if you're thinking of something spectacular for your Christmas decorations, something that will really get noticed by the neighbors, try making your own icicles. When you use a piece of window screen you can make jumbo icicles that glow in the night.

Imagine being able to make jumbo icicles that truly outshine all others. Go dig out that leftover screening from the garage, or buy a roll at a home improvement store, and you can make glowing icicles this Christmas. Cheap, flimsy screen, which holds its shape if you bend it, is the perfect screen to use for the icicles.

Utility scissors or tin snips work great for cutting the screen. Wear heavy gloves as you work. Just cut a piece to be as long as you want for the icicle, and cut the width so that you can roll a cylinder shape from it. After you've cut the rectangle, lay it out flat on a hard surface. If you want, you can paint the screen white, or you can just leave it as it is.

Select a strand of white - or even blue - lights for inside the icicle. Lay the strand on the screen so that the plug-in for the lights is hanging off of one end. Roll the screen around the lights, into a cylinder shape, making sure to create a near-pointed look at one end. The icicle should be small at that end, and get larger as it goes up, almost like a slender cone. Twist the screen, here and there, to give some form to the icicle. Use clear packing tape to hold the shape for now.

Cling wrap works perfectly to make the outer part of the icicle, and to conceal the metal screen. Make layers of the wrap, going around and around the cone, until it's secure. As you wrap it, leave a tiny grid of screen visible, at the top, so you'll have a way to hang the icicle.

The screen and plastic wrap icicles can be made long, and large in diameter, or short, and slender. Make lots of different sizes and hang them around your facial boards, handrails, and other areas this Christmas. They're spectacular.
Window Screen Icicles