Turn A $1.50 Dollar Tree Kitchen Essential Into Large Christmas Decor

There's something special about the holiday season that makes people want to surround themselves with festive decor and twinkling lights. Sadly, it feels like every year prices for these items go up and many Americans buy new instead of reusing old decorations, making it difficult to keep up. Fortunately, you can still embrace the Christmas spirit without overspending by investing in a little elbow grease, creativity, and Dollar Tree colanders. You heard that right: A fun way to brighten up your space is to upcycle two plain plastic kitchen strainers into a decorative holiday bell. Of all the creative Christmas decorations you can make with household items, this is one of the easiest.

The magic of this project is the resemblance the colander shares with a jingle bell. The holes used to strain liquid from food masquerade perfectly as the openings in the tiny metal instruments. When you connect two strainers together with glue, you get the spherical shape needed to pull off the rest of the look. From there, it's all about the paint job and embellishments you add to sell this DIY as a true work of Christmas art. Along with being an eye-catching addition to your own home, this is also one of those budget-friendly DIY holiday gift ideas your friends and family will love, and it's easy to customize.

To start this affordable decor DIY, you'll need to make a visit to your local Dollar Tree for two Colanders With Handles. You'll also need spray paint. Something like Rust Oleum Specialty Metallic Spray Paint, available at stores like Home Depot, is perfect for this task. If you buy the gray strainer, you can also go with a product like Craft Smart Premium Wax Metallic Finish from Michaels to polish up the shade you already have. From here, all you need are a hot glue gun, and some embellishments like ribbon, pine sprigs, twinkle lights, faux holly berries, and any other festive touches you want to add.

Though you can paint the colanders later, it's best to paint first and let them dry. Carefully hot glue the twinkle lights inside the strainer, setting the bulbs at the openings so they're visible. Leave the battery pack outside. Hot glue to the bowl rims together into a sphere. Place a big festive bow on the front, add sprigs of pine and berries, faux pinecones, or poinsettias. Set it on your table top, or hang it in a doorframe. Change things up by dipping the whole thing in glitter, or dusting it in faux snow. You can even add real jingling bells to the interior. Who knew you could transform Dollar Tree items into a stunning Christmas centerpiece with an easy DIY? Save money and get a beautiful piece of decor to ring in this season.