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#21 ~ TODAY'S Tutorial By TheWoodenBee
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I love to make wine cork garland. It’s a quick and classy way to decorate for a special occasion. At home I use it for anniversaries and adult birthdays. In our shop, I use it to decorate our vendor space and for our DIY craft parties. I think it would look fabulous on our Christmas tree this year…if I can get around to making enough!
Below, I used some wine cork garland on a window doorway at one of our DIY craft parties. I hung five double sided square chalkboards from the garland, that read CRAFT on one side and PARTY on the the other.
I thought I’d share some how-to tips for making wine cork garland.
What you need:
- oak wine corks
- ribbon, yard, or twine
- drill, optional
- beads, optional
For the garland twine I normally use natural jute or hemp. I find the cost is much less than ribbon or yarn. I also like the width & stiffness of the twine to allow for easy threading. However, I have used yarn, tied up scraps of ribbons, and recycled fishing line to make pretty wine cork garlands.
First determine how long you would like your wine cork garland to be, and then add four feet to your measurement. If I wanted an 8 foot garland, I would cut a 12 foot piece of twine. I would leave two feet on each side to allow extra twine for tying it up, for knots, etc.
You can drill holes in your wine corks either vertically and horizontally. Find a drill bit a size or two larger than the width of your twine. It will make it easier to thread the twine through the corks. Moving the drill bit in & out while drilling will help clear the holes of extra cork as well.
Decide your garland pattern based on your materials. For an 8 foot garland I would recommend having 35-40 wine corks. You can scale up or down from there. I think my eight foot garland has been a great length for several different uses. Anything under 6 ft seems too short, unless you want a mini garland for the archway of an inside doorway, or some other specific space. The garland below has a cork, three wooden beads, cork pattern. The colors of the beads varied. Remember to start your pattern in two feet from the end of your twine.
Wine cork garland is always fun to hang things from as well. Mistletoe at the holidays, letters and signs at special occasions. We hung Christmas cards on them one year. If you would like to hang heavier objects like wooden letters, or mini chalkboards like we did, then small ornaments hooks work the best!!! I have tried several methods and good ole ornament hooks work great! They hook and stay in place without sliding between corks, etc. We use these hooks, purchased for a great price, fromCathy's Unique Creations.
No Drill Option
So, if you don’t have a drill, or want to make a cork garland while sitting and watching TV, just tie the corks to the garland!
I would cut TWICE as much twine as what you want the length of the garland to be doing it this way. If there is extra is it better to cut it off than to run short at the end. Again, design your pattern and when you get to the cork, wrap the twine around the cork a few times, tie a knot, and continue. In the beginning, tying the knots with the long piece of twine will take extra time and care. As you get to the end it will get shorter and easier. Just think you didn’t have to sit there and drill hole after hole though.
Storing your Garland Tangle Free
You can use discarded paper towel or gift wrapping rolls to store your garlands in between uses. Cut two small slits in each end of the cardboard roll. Insert one end of the twine in a slit, and then wrap the garland around the roll and secure the other end of the twine in the second slit.
Happy Crafting!
I thought I’d share some how-to tips for making wine cork garland.
What you need:
- oak wine corks
- ribbon, yard, or twine
- drill, optional
- beads, optional
For the garland twine I normally use natural jute or hemp. I find the cost is much less than ribbon or yarn. I also like the width & stiffness of the twine to allow for easy threading. However, I have used yarn, tied up scraps of ribbons, and recycled fishing line to make pretty wine cork garlands.
First determine how long you would like your wine cork garland to be, and then add four feet to your measurement. If I wanted an 8 foot garland, I would cut a 12 foot piece of twine. I would leave two feet on each side to allow extra twine for tying it up, for knots, etc.
You can drill holes in your wine corks either vertically and horizontally. Find a drill bit a size or two larger than the width of your twine. It will make it easier to thread the twine through the corks. Moving the drill bit in & out while drilling will help clear the holes of extra cork as well.
Decide your garland pattern based on your materials. For an 8 foot garland I would recommend having 35-40 wine corks. You can scale up or down from there. I think my eight foot garland has been a great length for several different uses. Anything under 6 ft seems too short, unless you want a mini garland for the archway of an inside doorway, or some other specific space. The garland below has a cork, three wooden beads, cork pattern. The colors of the beads varied. Remember to start your pattern in two feet from the end of your twine.
Wine cork garland is always fun to hang things from as well. Mistletoe at the holidays, letters and signs at special occasions. We hung Christmas cards on them one year. If you would like to hang heavier objects like wooden letters, or mini chalkboards like we did, then small ornaments hooks work the best!!! I have tried several methods and good ole ornament hooks work great! They hook and stay in place without sliding between corks, etc. We use these hooks, purchased for a great price, fromCathy's Unique Creations.
No Drill Option
So, if you don’t have a drill, or want to make a cork garland while sitting and watching TV, just tie the corks to the garland!
I would cut TWICE as much twine as what you want the length of the garland to be doing it this way. If there is extra is it better to cut it off than to run short at the end. Again, design your pattern and when you get to the cork, wrap the twine around the cork a few times, tie a knot, and continue. In the beginning, tying the knots with the long piece of twine will take extra time and care. As you get to the end it will get shorter and easier. Just think you didn’t have to sit there and drill hole after hole though.
Storing your Garland Tangle Free
You can use discarded paper towel or gift wrapping rolls to store your garlands in between uses. Cut two small slits in each end of the cardboard roll. Insert one end of the twine in a slit, and then wrap the garland around the roll and secure the other end of the twine in the second slit.
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