How to Make a Felt Mitten and Ice Skate Garland Using an Old Broken Set of Christmas Mini Lights

With the following instructions you can make a cheap homemade garland to use for you Christmas tree or to hang around your home.

Materials for the garland

*1 sets Old String of non working Christmas mini lights. The length will depend on whether you want to string around a tree or across a room.
*Materials from the Make a Felt Mitten and Ice Skate Ornament be sure to go to page two for the ice skate ornament materials.
*Wire Cutters

TIP: You will need to sign up at Better Homes and Gardens to get the patterns for the two pieces. It's also free to do so. You will get free newsletters with other crafts from BHGs in your email.

TIP: You can make more than one if you want to string more than one garland around the tree or use in different areas of the home.

Instructions for making the felt mitten and ice skate garlands.

Please read these and the instructions on the link above before starting.

Step One: Count how many lights are on the string of non working mini lights. This will tell you how many of the mittens and skates you will need to make the garland. This will also help in determining how much of the materials are needed for these two craft projects. If you do not wish to make both, decide on which project you want to make. You can also mix and match the skates and mittens to make one garland.

Step Two: Buy the materials needed for the mittens and ice skates and make the amount of each needed for the light sockets of the light string.

TIP: DO NOT close the tops of the skates and mittens. These will need to be left open for step six.

Step Three: This is important! Remove all the bulbs and place them in a plastic contain with a lid. This way you will have replacement bulbs for your working stings of lights.

Step Four: This is very and more important than step three! With the wire cutters, cut off the plug ends of the broken light strings and throw away. By doing this the broken light strings won't be plugged in causing a short and a fire in your home. Safety is always important with this type of craft.

Step Five: Tape off the ends of the light string with electrical or duct tape. Masking tape can be used if you have neither of those two types of tape.

Step Six: Using the directions for the felt mitten and skate tutorials, sew together your items leaving the top open. This includes placing the batting inside and adding any trim to the ornaments.

TIP: Omit the hanging hoop at this time.

Step Seven: With the open top, put the bulbless mini light socket in the hole far enough to where you only see the two wires attached to the socket. Using straight pins, pin the opening shut.

TIP: With this step you will need to place the pins as close to the socket as possible so the ornament will stay in place.

Step Eight: Starting on one end of the ornament, start whip stitching the top of the ornament shut. When you get to the area of the wires for the light socket, put the needle in the opening between the two wires and pull the thread through.

Take the needle and thread and go behind the one piece of wiring closest to the end you just whip stitched. Go behind the wire and pull through again.

TIP: Imagine sewing on a button. You will need to use the same process around each of the two wires several times before moving one.

Once you have done that, finish whip stitching across the ornament.

Step Nine: (Optional) If you wish, you can add the hanging hoop to the ornament. Using the instructions for the hoop, loop over the top wiring of the mini bulb light set and tie off rather than let it fall to the side of the ornament.

NOTE: You could also make a second or third Christmas garland using Deck the halls with...Cupcakes tutorial and pattern. Follow the instructions above to make a garland out of felt cupcakes.