Trash to Treasure: tennis balls

I am constantly trying to find new uses for old things...  here's one: tennis balls.

Now, the thing with tennis balls is that once they lose their bounce, your stuck with a dud ball.   And if you're a fan of tennis, you know these balls go flat, fast.

Sure, you can reuse them for your dog to chase and chew one, but really...how many tennis balls do they need?

I visited my local tennis court and just walked around the perimeter to find stray balls...there were plenty?   My solution?  Turn them into a beaded holiday ornament.

The soft surface of the ball easily accepts pins, beads and hooks....

The downside?  This one took me 5 hours to complete.

The idea of doing a whole tennis ball holiday tree has suddenly lost its charm...but at least this one bejeweled ball can sit in the silverplated candy dish.

Comments

[Leanne]

Great idea! Although time consuming, it's a great activity for the family after Thanksgiving dinner, or when sitting around watching the Griswolds Christmas Vacation over and over!!! I think we'll have to do this one. Perfect for chilly evenings at home...

[Angie]

Cute!!! What a great idea.

[Lora]

I had to laugh a little at your question about how many tennis balls can a dog need. Our dog has to take steroids daily for a neck problem and we joke about his "'roid rage"...don't get the wrong idea. The "rage" isn't directed toward us - it's directed to his tennis and golf balls. He can rip a tennis ball in half in under an hour...a golf ball take a little longer but still less than a day. So I could go through dozens of tennis balls a month, if I could afford them.

[Leslie]

This is amazing! Thanks for sharing, but be sure not to let out TOO many of your secrets out of the bag, because I see a need for ANOTHER book in the works, mister :)

[Anne]

Old tennis balls could also be donated to your local skilled nursing facility--with a hole cut in the top and placed on the rear legs of a walker they help the walker glide across the floor better.

[DodiaFae]

Very cute idea!
But to cut down on the time spent, why not use glue instead of pins? You can buy packages of those tiny "beads" that have no holes (I forget what they're called, but they look like little tiny glass seed beads, sans holes.) Or you can make "bean balls" by gluing dried beans to them. Seriously, they sell these a home goods stores for like $10/each. And how much does a bag of dried beans cost? I've seen them with all kinds of beans, including black-eyed peas. People put them in a wire bowl or something on their coffee table, or just alone or in clusters on a shelf for accent.