I usually go all out for Halloween and try to make cool props for as little $ as possible. This year I decided to use my imagination and make some Christmas decorations of my own. I used insulation foam, paint, PVC, etc. to make the side of my garage look like a gingerbread house. These candy cane posts are just one element of my theme. They are simple and cheap to make, but look very nice. Give one to a friend so they can enjoy it at their home. Hope you all enjoy my first Instructable!

Step 1: Supplies

Items you will need:

- 2" PVC pipe (Comes in a 10 foot length from most home improvement stores. I cut
mine into five 2 foot lengths, but you can cut whatever size suits you)

- Chain link fence post cap (2")

- Painter's tape

- Red Paint (Krylon Fusion for plastic)

- White Paint ((Krylon Fusion for plastic)

- Circular Saw or Jig Saw or Dremel tool to cut the PVC pipe

Step 2: Painting

Paint the metal fence post cap white (or whatever color you like. Maybe red, gold, or leave it silver). I used the white paint for plastic and it seems to work fine on this small amount of metal.

Cut the pipe to your preferred length (mine are 2 feet long) and paint it white. This covers the blemishes and markings and makes the pipe a crisper white. I let it dry for 24 hours before moving to the next step.

Next, take the painter's tape and mask off the sections that you want to remain white. I found that if you hold the tape at the same angle while twisting the pipe, the spacing will be pretty even. I used 1 inch wide tape, but did two overlapping strips.

Step 3: Painting (continued)

Grab your red paint and give the post a good coat. One coat is enough for this project.

*TIP: Go out and buy a box of latex gloves. They're 6 or 7 bucks for a box of a hundred. I wear them whenever I paint or work with something I don't want to get all over my hands. Saves you from all that hand scrubbing later.

Wait about an hour and then remove the tape.

Step 4: A New Holiday Decoration for Your Yard!

Here is the finished product after the cap is placed on top. I just set them on a small length of re-bar that I've placed in the ground.

Optional: I screwed a cup hook into the back of each candy cane so I could string the lights across.

Another idea would be to make a taller candy cane and attach a sign that maybe says, "WELCOME TO THE NORTH POLE".

You can see the larger "candy cane supports" on each side of my garage. Basically the same process as the smaller ones.

Hope you enjoyed this and have a great 2010 holiday season.