Rustic looks are so popular these days for home decor and this fruit decoration idea is a great upcycling project. I loved using old lightbulbs, twine, and glue to create these wrapped lightbulb pears. Such a cool idea to add fake fruit to a bowl on your counter as a beautiful rustic decor piece!
I have also repurposed lightbulbs in the past by making a rustic lightbulb planter. They are a great place to start when making a fun new craft!
Fruit Decoration Wrapped Lightbulb
I always keep twine on hand for fun projects. In fact, I have made tons of rustic DIY twine projects through the years because it is such a fun affordable addition to my craft supplies. Wrapping, tying, and gluing in place are so easy with twine. So, when I was trying to come up with a new use for the old used lightbulbs I had collected, it fits perfectly to wrap them in some twine to create this fun fake pear fruit decoration!
How Should I Display this Fruit Decoration?
Obviously, this works wonderfully alongside other fake fruit in a large bowl. However, I absolutely love how it looks in a basket with fall-themed items like acorns, hay, and even a few pumpkins or gourds.
You cal also add a string to the stem and make it into an ornament for a tree. It would fit a fall or even a spring-themed tree. With the right colored thread, it could even fit on one of our Halloween trees ideas.
My favorite way to use a fruit decoration like this is to glue it directly to a fall wreath or plaque. When using a glass lightbulb, though, you would want it to be something that would not be at risk for being knocked down or damaged.
What is the Best Glue for Securing Twine to a Lightbulb?
When you are gluing to glass, almost any glue will work. Often, I will use my hot glue gun and glue as it is handy and stays secure for longer than other glues. This is also a craft you could use the E600 craft glue, or even potentially a regular white school glue.
This project would not do well with tape, although I have tried that in the past. It doesn't hold well and makes the more intricate wrapping around the stem harder to manage.
What Should I do if the Lightbulb Breaks?
Sometimes accidents happen, and a lightbulb is a fragile item that can break. If for some reason your lightbulb breaks while you are working with it, the best thing to do is to stop and become aware of your surroundings.
Hopefully, you have only cracked it and no glass has shattered. If the glass has shattered, the easiest way to get up those small pieces of glass is to use a potato. Yes! A potato. Yes, the kind you cook and eat.
Slice the potato in half, and press it down onto the area where glass shards are laying. Lift it straight up, and you will see the glass has attached to the potato and no longer on the floor.
Note: If this is on your workspace, it will probably be easier to just sweep it off into the trash and wipe down the surface well with a damp paper towel. The potato method is best for the floor or larger surfaces where you might accidentally step on glass and cut yourself.
Supplies for Making a Pear Fruit Decoration
- Used lightbulb
- Rustic twine or thread
- Fake leaf
- Cinnamon stick
- Scissors
- Hot glue gun and glue or craft glue
How to Make Twine Wrapped Pear Lightbulb
To begin, set up your work station so everything is easy to access when needed.
You will begin by taking your cinnamon stick and cutting it down to size. It only needs to be around 3" long, so if bigger, you can snap or cut it in half.
Next, you will begin attaching it to the narrow part of the lightbulb with hot glue. Once the cinnamon stick is secure and the glue has dried, you will begin adding the twine or thread.
Starting at the top, you will secure the end of the twine to slightly above where the cinnamon stick is above the narrow part of the lightbulb. Using dots of glue about every ½"-1", you will begin wrapping the twine securely around the lightbulb.
I prefer to make sure the twine is tightly against each other so there are no gaps where the lightbulb shows through. You will continue gluing and wrapping until you reach the bottom of the lightbulb. Once you have wrapped the entire pear, you will glue the last bit of twine down on the bottom, and make sure it is all in place as you like.
Your final step will be to use a dot of glue to secure the artificial leaf to the top next to the cinnamon stick.
Video Tutorial:
Step by Step Photo Tutorial:
Rustic Twine Wrapped Light Bulb Pear Decoration
Make a beautiful rustic twine-wrapped pear food decoration using old used lightbulbs and a bit of glue. Such a great addition to your harvest decor!
Materials
- Lightbulb
- Rustic twine or thread
- Cinnamon stick
- Artificial leaf
Tools
- Hot glue gun and glue
Instructions
- Start by gathering your supplies and making sure you have plenty of glue sticks on hand for the project;
- You will begin this fruit decoration craft by attaching a 3" piece of cinnamon stick to the narrow end of the lightbulb. You will want part of the cinnamon stick to be above the end of the bulb;
- Next, you will attach one end of the twine to the top of the narrow end of the bulb, next to the cinnamon stick. You want to cover part of the cinnamon stick where the glue is at so it looks more natural;
- Continue wrapping the twine around the lightbulb, using drops of glue as needed to secure the twine in place;
- You will want this fairly closely woven together so no gaps are showing. Once you reach the bottom of the lightbulb, you will wrap until it is completely covered then snip the end of the twine and tuck it up and glue in place;
- Your last step will be to attach the artificial leaf near the top of the cinnamon stick stem with a dot of glue;
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My favorite Etsy fall decorations.
[…] kind of instructions. Don’t you just hate that? I also found this pin just the other day from DIY & Crafts for wrapping a light bulb with twine to look like a pear. I decided to try both out, so let’s […]