Centerpiece Craft - 4th of July

I've started preparing for my BBQ on July 4th and the first thing I knew I wanted to make was a centerpiece for the table where all the food is going to be laid out. Regardless of what's going on in Washington and who is President right now, I'm a diehard America fan. My father was in the Air Force, I grew up a Military Brat, tons of uncles and aunts and my grandparents have served... and my brother is currently serving the US Air Force so I'm a little obsessed with these patriotic holidays. I think I mentioned before that July 4th is becoming one of my favorites but anyway because of this I'm going all out for this BBQ so let's get into the craft.

What You Will Need:
A large clear jar or container
Pinecones
Red, White & Blue spray paint
Fun, patriotic sprays
2 Cardboard boxes - to keep the mess to a minimum

I found my pinecones about two years ago now from a floral shop on craigslist that was closing. They had thrown out everything and I was there to scoop it all up. What's convenient about these floral pinecones though is that they came with picks in them, so I was able to hold the pick and spray paint them and keep my hands relatively clean.  

Depending on how large your container is, is how many pinecones you're going to need. I ended up spray painting 30 pinecones. 10 red, 10 white and 10 blue - however I ended up only using 8 of each.

Glass container and sprays I got from Hobby Lobby - Glass $6.00, Sprays $1.00 each
Spray Paint - Meijer $2.50 each

Directions:

1. Spray paint your pinecones
2. Use the cardboard boxes over a grassy area for minimal mess (doing it over the grass means less clean up for you. If there is spillover from the box onto the grass, you'll end up cutting the grass down and getting rid of the color. If you were to do your project over pavement it could potentially damage and stain the area). Use one box for painting and the other to let the cones dry.
   
3. Let pinecones dry for 5 hours in the sun
4. Remove pinecone picks (if you have them)
5. Arrange your pinecones how you like them in your glass container 
6. Stick your patriotic sprays in last and rearrange them how you like
7. You're done and ready to party!