The sharp metal point pierces into
the soft material in the neck of the bottle.
The “squeak, squeak, squeak” echoes as the cork screw is imbedded into
the cork. After pressure to remove the
stopper, a familiar “pop” sounds, followed by a waft of aromas entering the
air. The dark, chokecherry-colored
liquid slowly fills a clear piece of crystal stemware. Pouring a glass of wine remains a beautiful
routine that many love to repeat. Nevertheless,
this common practice also has some universal drawbacks, number one being the
garbage left after enjoying a wonderful bottle of wine: glass and cork. However, there are some truly fun ways to
reuse wine waste, especially corks.
Hello, my name is Kara, and I am a cork craft-aholic!
Cork craft one: Corks themselves can be fun décor,
especially when put in a cork cage, which there are currently multiple
designs. If something more distinctive
than a cork cage is desired, find a unique antique bowl or glass
vessel. Stores also carry many glass
containers that can serve double duty as cork holder and candle holder or
other function. This is the easiest
craft of all; just put the corks in after each bottle is empty, and a simple
cork craft is born!
Cork cage easily purchased at a wine or kitchen store.
Antique glass bowl used to hold corks--art in itself.
Large, antique pickle jar that holds hundreds of corks.
Candle holder that can hold corks in the bottom, found at home decor stores.
Cork craft two: Tables can be set with many different objects
made from corks. Corks with a slit cut
in the top make great placecard holders.
With just an easy jewelry-making kit, corks can also be used to make
wine glass charms. I have seen center
pieces and napkin rings fashioned from corks.
Of course, used wine bottles also make great crafts for the table, but
that is another blog entirely!
Placecard easily made with slitting the top and flattening the bottom of the cork.
Corks with string as wine glass charms, placecards, or table decorations.
Cork craft three: Corks used as bulletin boards, trivets, and
coasters are fairly easy to make and are very popular. The larger the board, the more corks needed;
however, the hardest part of hot gluing all of the corks in place is making
sure that the corks are the right size to fit in the necessary spot on the
board. Corks can be split in half horizontally
or vertically to use half as many corks to finish the project, but this takes a very sharp
blade to complete. I usually use
whole corks for my bulletin boards.
Heart-shaped cork trivet; kit can be purchased from home and wine shops.
Large bulletin board from whole corks.
Cork craft four: Though this project takes many corks, cork
wreaths of varying sizes make wonderful decorations during any season of the
year. There are multiple patterns that
can be found for different style wreaths; one internet search can show these
varieties. I did a random pattern and
then tied a bow that matched the kitchen of the individual to whom I was gifting
the craft. This was a really fun project
and one I am going to make to keep for myself at some point!
All-season cork wreath--took almost 200 corks.
One search for “cork crafts” online
shows very unique cork projects for completion, anything from vests, to
bathmats, to table tops, to wall coverings.
I haven’t decided what my newest venture with corks is going to be, but
I do know I will continue to hear the squeak of the corkscrew in the bottle
before the pop of that cork. After the
routine of pouring the final drops of what I like to think of as “the nectar of
the Gods” from its bottle, I will save my cork to continue my crafting. Don’t throw those corks away! Use them to counteract the only drawback I
see to responsible wine drinking—the waste involved.
