Thanksgiving Lighting Decorating Ideas

If you don't want to spend hundreds of dollars on Thanksgiving decorations this year, take notes from the kids: making it yourself is lots of fun, and for the right artist it can also be very fashionable. Obviously, I don't mean pull out your scissors and glue and make a paper pilgrim hat or handprint turkey; we are adults now, after all, at least physically. But you can have fun making your own Thanksgiving decorations that will leave your guests impressed, and you with a sense of accomplishment.

It seems like every holiday uses strings of lights. For Valentine's Day we put hearts over the bulbs, Shamrocks for St. Patrick's Day, ghosts or skulls for Halloween. Now it is time to make something for Thanksgiving. Strings of lights are really inexpensive after Christmas, most craft and retail stores don't want to put those items into storage so they get rid of them cheap. This year pick up several strings of white lights, then you can make and keep a string for every holiday. To make your covers stay on better purchase light covers that have a fluted shape, this way you can design your creations off the lights and add or change them for each holiday. If you can't find the fluted covers you can make covers with plastic straws. Make sure the straw is big enough to go over the light; then simply cut them just long enough to slip over the base of the light without touching the bulb. You will then have to design your decorations to move away from the bulb as it progresses from the base of the light.

For Thanksgiving I would suggest cornucopias and turkeys. Use wax paper and crayons or permanent marker to make your shapes. Cookie cutters make wonderful stencils and once your creation is cut out you can color as you like. You can also use regular paper and then laminate the completed project. Make sure your design is two sided and is small enough to comfortably wrap around the fluted light cover. If you are crafty enough it is simple to make these 3-Dimentional designs that cover the light completely. Then simply slip the light cover over the light and hang where it can enhance your holiday décor. This might be in your doorway, the railing, or even over the table itself. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination.