To turn empty bottles into décor – it’s a wrap!

Autumn is the time of year when we love for our décor to reflect the change of season. The natural textures of twine, dried leaves and burlap are all the rage. It’s also time for lots of entertaining. One side effect of entertaining can be lots of empty glass bottles.

This year, don’t toss them, up-cycle them! Let’s call this the corner where wine meets twine! You can turn those empty bottles into beautiful twine wrapped décor items. I’ll tell you how.

All you need is a selection of glass bottles. You decide if you’d like a series of matching shapes or a collection of different shapes. I find the more unusually shaped the bottles are, the better. But truly, any shape or kind will do.

You also need twine, sisal, bakers twine or yarn. I used twisted jute twine available at hardware shops for about $2 a roll. However, it comes in very few colors. If you use yarn, you can find any color of the rainbow. You’ll also need hot glue and scissors.

First you’ll want to remove the label from your bottle. The best way is to soak the bottle in hot soapy water until most of the label slips right off. The remainder will come off quickly with steel wool or Goo Gone.

As soon as your bottle is clean and dry you can start to wrap. If you plan to use a very light color, like white or pale yellow, you may wish to spray paint the bottle the color of your yarn. No matter how hard you try, a little bit of bottle peeks through.

I found no difference when I started from the neck or the bottom of the bottle. It’s easy either way. For the first few layers of twine around the bottle shoot a thin line of glue, working an inch at a time and carefully place the twine around the bottle.

The first few rounds are the trickiest. Keep the twine tightly wound and as close together as possible to prevent gaps. After that, use small dabs of hot glue to secure the twine as you go along. To finish use hot glue all the way around the circumference to make sure the twine stays securely wrapped.

What can you do with your very own rustic twine wrapped bottle? I’m glad you asked. Use them alone or in groupings. You can use it as a vase with dried flowers, twigs or even feathers. They make beautiful wedding décor when paired with burlap and lace for the popular country wedding chic look. Remember they’re still bottles.

If you have some with a screw top or have a stopper, you can fill them with lovely liquids like flavored vinegar or oil or infused spirits to give as a one-of-a-kind gift. That’s all folks! Easy, right? Enjoy!

Join us on Facebook at DivasOnADimeDotCom. Décor on a Dime contributed by Patti Diamond, author of Divas On A Dime – Where Frugal, Meets Fabulous!, www.divasonadime.com.