Hanging Yard Ornaments Made From PVC Pipe

Bird House

• Use a large, short piece of PVC pipe to make a simple hanging birdhouse. For this project, the PVC should be at least 5 inches in diameter and 10 inches high (if you have trouble finding pipe this big at a hardware store, check out a plumbing supplier). Give the pipe a top and bottom with either PVC pipe caps, or fasten plywood squares in place with epoxy glue. Cut a hole in the side of the pipe with a spade bit on a power drill, then paint with acrylic paints to make the birdhouse decorative. To hang, insert a metal screw eye into the top (you may need to reinforce it with more epoxy) and thread wire or string twine.

God's Eyes

• Classic “God's Eye” crafts are made with sticks and yarn, but for a more brightly-colored, waterproof version of this craft to hang outside, use thin PVC pipe and colorful craft lanyard, a plastic cord available at craft stores. To achieve the central cross point between the two pieces of pipe without too much bulky overlap, carve out a partial, curved notch in the center of each pipe using a rotary power tool and lay the notches against each other to glue. When the glue is dry, get creative with the lanyard and wrap at least two colors around the pipe, over and under, in alternating patches.

Holiday Light Frames

• One of the great craft benefits of PVC pipe is that you can bend it and shape it into curves if you apply some heat. To do this, boil water, insert and pipe for a few seconds, then bend while wearing pot holders to protect your hands. Use this technique to form the pipe into shapes like stars, hearts or Christmas trees, which you can then use as frames for hanging holiday lights. Paint the finished frames a neutral black, wrap with strings of lights, and hang with wire.

Hanging Flower Planters

• Cut short lengths of wide PVC pipe and cluster them together to make unusual hanging flower planters for your patio area. Place pipe caps on the bottoms and drill with a few holes for water draining, then hang by drilling holes in the sides of the pipe for wire. Use pipe of varying sizes, depending on the size of flowers you want.