STEP 1 Wet a rag or towel with hot water and wrap the nest egg gourd. Let the gourd soak for a couple hours in the wet rag to loosen the outer skin. After the gourd has soaked for a while, scrub the outer skin and mold off of the gourd until you have revealed the beautiful wood underneath.   STEP 2 Use the drill or rotary tool to drill a pilot hole in the very center of the top of the gourd. This is where you will insert the eye hook for hanging.   STEP 3 Choose one side of the gourd to be the "face" where you will paint the silhouette. Insert the eye hook into the pilot hole. Nest Egg Gourds can be very hard, so be patient as you screw it in. Be sure the final position of the hook is running in line with the side of the gourd you wish to be it's face. You want the opening, the circular part of the eye hook to be facing the sides of your ornament so it will hang properly. TIP: you may want to use a pliers or small vise grip to hang on to the eye hook as you turn the gourd. It's easier on the fingers.   STEP 4 Roughly cut out your silhouette and a matching sized piece of transfer paper. Tape the transfer paper with the silhouette picture on top - onto the face of the gourd. To accommodate for the roundness of the gourd, I clip in from the edges of the picture and transfer paper in several spots and then overlap the papers to form to the gourd. TIP: I get my silhouettes from free clip art on the internet. Scroll saw design books are great places too. With the availability of all sorts of pictures, you can choose a silhouette that matches your taste - from gardening & children to wildlife or Christmas. I use the computer or a photocopier to resize the picture to the right size for the gourd. You want the whole picture to show when the gourd is viewed from one side. NOTE: You can use carbon paper instead of transfer paper but it does leave some extra "mess" that you will need to clean up in step # 7.   STEP 5 Use a sharp pencil to trace your silhouette. Remove the picture and transfer paper.   STEP 6 Use the small brush and acrylic paint to fill in the picture you have traced. When you are done painting, let the paint dry for 24 hours. Now, use the pencil eraser to erase any marks left by the transfer paper that did not get covered with paint.   STEP 7 Follow the directions on the varnish or sealer you have chosen to put a protecting finish on your gourd. TIP: I use a soft rag to put on the finish and use two very thin coats. With a round object it is very easy to get drips if you apply too much. I also use a bent paperclip to hang the gourd until it is dry.   STEP 8 Use the hot glue gun to apply any embellishments you like. I use small pine cones and artificial evergreen to dress up my wildlife scenes and only a small bow made of thin red ribbon to finish my other ornaments.   STEP 9 Use the 10 inches of thin red ribbon or gold cord as a hanger by running it through the eye hook and tying a knot at the top.   Hang on your Christmans tree or give as holiday gifts!