It's gone all pear-shaped...
This is a paper mache (or papier-mâché if you want to be all fancy french about it) light bulb. I was inspired by all the lovely twine wrapped light bulbs floating around on Pinterest and decided to give it a go. Except I didn't have any twine. Hmph! So I improvised by smooshing it with paper instead. It's an easy peasy little project and fairly self-explanatory but I'll list here what I used anyway...
An old light bulb. I had a few of these sitting in the cupboard since making the switch to the energy efficient ones.
Paper for smooshing! You can use any type of paper you like really. The thinner the paper the better. I used old vintage piano roll paper simply because I have a large stash of it. (The text visible on the top of my pear is part of the song lyric printed on the roll)
Glue. The only types of glue I had on hand were super glue and adhesive spray. Neither of which appropriate for paper mache so I used some impasto gel from my paint supplies. It worked fine. If you're feeling really creative you could make your own glue from flour and water! Just google for correct ratios.
A twig. For the pear stem.
Varnish. Optional.
Attach the twig in place with some super glue (or a small blob of blu-tack would work a treat). Then cut / rip up your paper into small pieces and glue it to your bulb. I covered mine with three coats of paper. Leave it to dry and then apply some varnish if you wish. I chose not to varnish mine. And that's it! Finito!
Next I'm going to attempt a paperbark lightblub as I have an endless source of lovely paperbark from the trees surrounding my house. I'm thinking a paperbark pear would look rather sweet. If I have any success with it I'll share a photo!