Kenna Morton's Journal, 01 November 2019

pretty  

How fun and they came out lovely 💜💚 

When I’m done with the final touches they will be beautiful and then I can toss them in my friends backyard fireplace with some firewood while we sit and drink cocoa after it’s all over. No storage required. 

They look good :) 

How pretty! 💚💛💜 I used to make pine cone Christmas wreaths. 

Nice project.. 

Love pinecones, why do you bleach them? 

I’m wondering why also? And how? And what are the finishing touches? Sparkles and glue?? 🤣 

I put them in a bucket of bleach and take them out after varying times. Depending on the age and type of pine cone many come out a nice reddish golden color and others look like they are sprinkled with snow. It’s fun to do and makes an inexpensive decorating item. I have an large natural wood bowl that I put pine ones, small colored glass balls and battery operated lights in and put on my coffee table . It is really gorgeous. I’ll post some pictures of what I end up doing with them. You can also give them a dusting of silver or gold spray paint or snow, or just hit the tips with white paint. I got the original idea from a display at a gorgeous, rustic restaurant up in Malibu and have been doing it every year since. 

Thanks Kenna. Tons around here. I’d love to do this. Is it straight bleach? Or a mix with water and how long in the bleach? One last question, do they smell like bleach after?? 

So the bleach is to change the color? I will have to look for somewhere to pick up pinecones. Maybe one of the parks around the area. There really are not any in my neighborhood.  

There are all kinds of internet instructions, hints and tips but I just use a couple gallons of dollar store bleach . Put your pine cone into a large container.. I covered with straight bleach from The Dollar Store. Put some type of heavy object on top to keep them submerged. I just use a couple of mopping buckets. Wait at least 18 hours and start checking them. Again the Success of the color changes depends on age of pine ones (it does not seem to work on fresh ones as well) and the type of tree. It takes a little experimenting.. During the soaking process the pine cones will close up completely and then bloom again as they dry. Typically that is the only time to evaluate the color. Some of the pine cones will develop a whitish coating that looks like snow. If you have little kids around it is a fun project to let them help with. And no, they will not smell like bleach afterward and the bleach kills any bugs, etc that might have been hanging around. I hope you give it a try. You can also use them to hold table seating cards.  

They look beautiful! I am eager to see what you do with your decorating!