Outdoor Christmas Ornaments

Know Your Globes

Gazing globes typically range from 6 to 22 inches in diameter. Stainless-steel globes withstand the outdoors better than glass globes, which can crack in extreme cold or tumble to their demise in high winds. Quality globes will last years with proper care. Just don't loosen or remove the seal at the neck.

The reflective color is inside a glass globe -- unlike glass ornaments, which are typically colored on the outside. If moisture gets inside, the color coating will peel. Silver and lavender are the most popular choices.

Make your globes more striking with
accents of bright ribbon and
evergreen.

• Welcome friends and family with two giant 22-inch silver gazing globes -- about as big as they come.
• Wrap each stainless-steel sphere with red ribbon, tying a bow at the top. Place each globe on a fresh evergreen wreath that has been placed atop an urn.
• Hang another wreath on the door, and border with evergreen garland to make a picture-perfect passage.

Try these flowerpots as place
markers on a holiday dinner table.

• Express holiday wishes with this modest mantel display. Plant a collection of 4-inch glass ornaments, alternating red and green, atop 3-inch terra-cotta flowerpots sprayed a seasonal metallic gold.
• Use a silver paint pen to write a joyful message across the row of ornaments. Inscribe each ornament with a name instead of a message and you have instant identification for the stockings hanging below.

Add shimmer to your holiday nights
with a graceful arrangement
of globes and candles.

• Reflecting the glow of candlelight, this arrangement creates a kaleidoscope of flickering delight. Replace the fireplace grate with cardboard boxes of different heights.
• Cut a hole in the top of the largest box so that the neck of the largest globe fits through. Repeat with remaining globes and boxes and fill in gaps with holiday greens and glass ornaments. Always use care when burning candles around greens; even in a fireplace, you don't want unexpected flame.