How to Make Outdoor Christmas Decorations from Recycled Aluminum Pie Pans

The concept of recycling aluminum pie pans for Christmas ornaments and decorations on outdoor trees and shrubs has been around for some time. Many times, I have seen these pie pan ornaments in the shape of stars, bells, snowflakes, and a few shapes that were unrecognizable. Aluminum pie pan ornaments are good to use for outdoor decorations because they are strong enough to withstand harsh weather, they shine and twinkle brightly when lights reflect off them, they are cheap to make, and everyone has fun making them. Below are instructions on how to make lighted Christmas garland to hang from your rooftop or a porch railing.

Items Needed to Make Pie Pan Lighted Christmas Garland

-String of small clear or white Christmas lights
-Assortment of used, clean aluminum pie pans (these do not have to be all the same size and you do not need one for every Christmas light) NOTE: It takes two pie pans of the same size to make one light cover.
-Water resistant craft glue or stapler
-Hammer
-Black marking pen
-Black electrical tape
-Three inch nail or Metal punch (about one-third to one-half inch round)
-Piece of thick Styrofoam and a piece of wood each measuring eight inches round (this needs to be the same size as inside the Aluminum pie pan, so size may vary)
-One piece of wood measuring 12 inches by 12 inches (this will be part of your work area)
-Scissors or tin snips
-Christmas stencils (simple designs)

Instructions to Make Pie Pan Lighted Christmas Garland

Place the piece of Styrofoam on top of the piece of eight inch wood and tape sides to prevent slippage. Place the Styrofoam side inside one of the aluminum pie pans. Place the stencil on the pie pan bottom and tape it in place. Mark the stencil cuttings with small black dots using the black marking pen, being sure to space them evenly apart.

Position the nail or metal punch over one hole at a time and hit with hammer to create the desired size holes. Continue around the design until all holes have been punched. Turn the pie pan over and position it on the second piece of wood. Hammer down all rough edges or wear a pair of thick gloves and push edges away and down from the hole opening.

On the second aluminum pie pan, cut a hole in the center back large enough for a Christmas light to fit through. Put the two open ends (large sides) of the pie pans together and glue or staple the edges. Stick the Christmas light through the back hole and tape with electrical tape to hold in place. Make another pie pan ornament for the next light. Be sure to space them evenly, leaving an even number of lights in between each pie pan.

After you have finished attaching the aluminum pie pan ornaments to the string of lights, you can hang them from the roof's edge or along a railing.

Source: Personal Experience