Crafts for children: Lightning Ball Painting

[Robby Raccoon]

The arrow was beginning to rust too much and the pony was terribly tarnished, so I figured I'd polish and paint them. Same with the rod holders. Then I had the idea, why not paint the otherwise plain balls too? I figured it'd be a fun project for children (I have 6 nephews and nieces) so I brought them down too. They're painted in durable enamel with a clear coat over them. Hoping they'll still look colourful after winter and bring cheer in the bleak season.

The caps are just plastic screw caps from bottles tarred on. The old ones had rusted away. Just trying to keep the balls from chattering or getting water in them. Drain holes in the bottom caps.
It makes me wonder if people painted lightning balls back in the day as well.

 

[UncleBruce]

I don't recall seeing any lightning rod balls that were painted, but I have see a lot of glass eggs that were, usually with an Easter type scene.

 

[Robby Raccoon]

I don't recall seeing any lightning rod balls that were painted, but I have see a lot of glass eggs that were, usually with an Easter type scene.

I've read that the balls were often seen as gaudy in later years, so they became less popular. So it may be that painting them would have been too gaudy even in the earlier years. I saw only one painted one online, but it looked too good to be very old.