Things You'll Need
Peach acrylic paint
Paintbrush
Cotton swab
Pink acrylic paint
Wooden skewer
Red acrylic paint
Black acrylic paint
Craft wire
Ruler
Wire cutters
Textured snow medium
Spoon
Disposable cup
White acrylic paint
Orange acrylic paint
1/4-inch wide ribbon
Recycle old shotgun shells and make crafts for the hunters in your life! Use the spent shotgun shells as the base for whimsical holiday ornaments to decorate a special sportsman Christmas tree. The surface of the shotgun shells accept paint well, and can easily be transformed into snowmen, but the red shells would also be perfect as a Santa suit, without any need for paint!
Santa Shotgun Shell Ornament
Step 1
Lay a red shotgun shell on your work surface. Turn the shell so that the metal end is positioned at the top.
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Step 2
Paint a 1/2-inch circle on the side of the shell, just below the top, using peach acrylic paint. This is Santa's face. Allow the paint to dry.
Step 3
Dip one end of a cotton swab into the pink acrylic paint and dot two cheeks on the face. Dip the blunt end of a wooden skewer into the red acrylic paint. Dot a nose in the center of the face. Dip the pointed end of the skewer into the black acrylic paint. Dot two eyes above the nose. Allow the paint to dry.
Step 4
Cut an eight-inch length of craft wire using wire cutters. Wrap the wire around the shotgun shell, just below the metal rim. Twist to secure the wire to the ornament. Twist the ends of the wire together one inch from the ends. The loop between the twisted sections is the hanger for the ornament.
Step 5
Place a spoonful of textured snow medium into a disposable cup. Add a small amount of water until the mixture is the consistency of thinned oatmeal.
Step 6
Apply the textured snow medium around the top of the shell and around the face using a paintbrush. Drag the snow downward on the bottom of the face to form the beard. Center a dot of snow on the top of the shell's metal top. Allow the snow medium to dry.
Snowman Shotgun Shell Ornament
Step 1
Paint the surface of a shotgun shell using white acrylic paint. Do not paint the metal end. Allow the paint to dry.
Step 2
Cut an eight-inch length of craft wire using wire cutters. Wrap the wire around the shell below the metal rim. Twist to secure the wire to the ornament. Twist the ends of the wire together one inch from the ends. The loop between the twists is the ornament's hanger.
Step 3
Dip one end of a cotton swab into pink acrylic paint. Dot two cheeks 1/2 inch below the metal top and spaced 1/4-inch apart.
Step 4
Dip the blunt end of a wooden skewer into orange acrylic paint, and dot a nose between the cheeks. Place the pointed end of the skewer in the wet orange and drag to the right to form a carrot shape.
Step 5
Dip the blunt end of the skewer in black acrylic paint. Dot two eyes above the nose and five dots in the shape of a smile from one cheek to the other. Allow the paint to dry.
Step 6
Cut an eight-inch length of 1/4-inch wide ribbon. Wrap the ribbon around the shotgun shell, just below the smile. Tie the ends in a knot.
Step 7
Dip the blunt end of the skewer in black acrylic paint, and dot three buttons down the front of the snowman's body. Allow the paint to dry.
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