Trimming the three - Holiday decorating tips

Gilded-paper tree topper

Top your tree with this easy-to-make golden dazzler. It's made with "mirrored" cardboard - available at art and craft supply stores - that can be cut and scored to create an openwork minaret of rounded and pointed shapes. Once you've mastered the technique, you can vary the scored folds to create other shapes.

TIME: About 3 hours for one tree topper

COST: About $10

Materials

* One sheet (27- by 39-inch) single-ply gold mirrored cardboard with white paper backing

* Utility knife or single-edge razor blade

* 24-inch straightedge or metal ruler

* 1/2-inch-wide plastic adhesive tape

* Scissors

* Pencil

* 1/2-inch-wide double-sided plastic adhesive tape

* Metallic gold sewing thread

Directions

1. Protect your work surface with thick layers of newspaper. Lay cardboard on work surface, metallic side down. With utility knife and straightedge, cut a 5- by 18-inch rectangle; try not to lift the blade or move the straightedge as you cut. With metallic side up, gently pull rectangle over a table edge to start curling it. Then, metallic side out, roll it diagonally to form an elongated cone with a base diameter of approximately 1 1/4 inches and a top diameter of about 5/16 inch. Secure the cone with three pieces of the 1/2-inch adhesive tape, cut in half lengthwise to 1/4 inch wide. Trim the points of the base and top of the cone so they are even and the cone is about 14 1/2 inches tall. Set cone aside (A).

2. Cut a 3 3/4- by 18-inch rectangle. On the white side, lightly draw a line 1/2 inch above the base of a 33/4-inch edge (B) (this becomes the base edge). Along this line, mark 19 points at 3/16-inch intervals. Repeat at base of opposite 3 3/4-inch edge.

3. With the straightedge and the utility knife, cut firmly between pairs of marks - leaving 1/2 inch left uncut on the base edge (C) - to make 20 uniform strips that hang like fringe from the base edge (D).

4. Place straightedge against the pencil line and, with utility knife, make a score (a light cut going only partially through the board) along the line. (Hint: To keep the strips in place, bear down firmly on the straightedge as you score.) Mark and score additional lines at 6 1/2 (E), 7, 9, and 9 1/2 inches above the base edge. Turn the cardboard metallic side up and score on this side at 8 inches above the base edge.

5. With the metallic side facing you, fold at the score, white sides together (F). Turn cardboard over, white side up, and fold at the five scores on this side, bringing the metallic sides together.

6. Cut a piece of double-sided adhesive tape about 3 3/4 inches long and attach it to the white side on the base edge (G). Repeat between the 6 1/2- and 7-inch folds and between the 9- and 9 1/2-inch folds. Wrap the base edge around the cone 1 inch above the bottom edge of the cone. Attach the tape at the 6 1/2-inch point to the cone about 5 inches above the bottom of the cone; strips will balloon out in a ball. Attach the tape at the 9-inch point to the cone about 7 inches above the bottom of the cone, making a 1 1/2-inch pointed section. Gather the strips and tightly bind them to the cone with tape about 10 inches above the bottom, making them flare into a rounded, elliptical shape (H). Bind the remaining ends to the cone again with tape, 12 inches above the bottom. Trim strip ends even with the tape.

7. Wind and knot gold thread over all of the tape in order to decoratively conceal it.

8. To reinforce and lengthen the base, cut a 3 3/8- by 6-inch rectangle from the mirrored cardboard. Roll it into a tube, 3 3/8 inches tall and wide enough to go around the outside of the bottom of the cone. Put double-sided tape on the white side of the extension and wrap it around the bottom of the cone (I).

9. Wrap gold thread around the extension, 1/2 inch from each end, about 1/4 inch thick.

10. Cut a 1- by 6-inch strip of mirrored cardboard and roll it into a very tight, tapered tube to form a pointed finial. Insert the wide end into the top opening of the cone (J) - D.W.L.

Ornamental eggs

Eggs are a traditional symbol of new life and new beginnings, so what better ornament to commemorate the birth of a new millennium? Try this easy project designed by Virginia Bondi.

TIME: 15 to 20 minutes per egg, plus drying

COST: About $1 per egg, depending on type of paper

Materials

* Pin

* Tape measure

* Pencil

* Large chicken eggs

* Ruler

* Scissors

* Decorative paper (origami, wrapping, or thin handmade variety)

* Mod Podge or white glue

* Small paintbrush

* Gold string

* Acrylic varnish

* Bead caps

* Hot glue gun and glue sticks

Directions

1. Prick a hole in one end of each egg, drain, and rinse thoroughly; allow to dry completely (6 to 8 hours).

2. Determine the amount of paper you need to wrap your egg by measuring the circumference and height of the egg with a tape measure and adding [fraction one-quarter] inch to each dimension. Using the resulting dimensions, measure, mark, and cut a rectangle from the decorative paper. (A large egg will require a piece about 3 5/8 inches wide by 5 7/8 inches long.)