Cara Smusiak
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Whether you regularly have friends over for a little wine, or you are hosting a holiday party, keeping track of which wineglass belongs to which guest is always simple with wine charms -- but they can be pricey. If you're looking for an inexpensive and beautiful way to make wineglass charms, look no further than the cork from your bottle of wine.
Upcycling wine corks into wineglass charms can be chic or rustic to suit any party.
Not a DIY Diva? Don't worry! This project is unbelievably easy; it takes about 5 minutes, and most people have the materials on hand, so it's a last-minute life-saver.
Materials:
Corks (one cork makes six charms)
String* or wire
Needle or safety pin
*The sky's the limit with "string" -- you could use hemp, a thin ribbon, or any other slim cord you have left over from crafting.
Difficulty level: Easy
Start by pre-cutting your string or wire and the cork. Wire lengths should be about 5 inches, while string should be about 7 inches. Slice six rounds from each cork, trying to keep them even in size (about 1/4 inch).
Cork and String Charms
Using a needle, thread the string through the center of the cork; if there's a hole already from the corkscrew, work with it otherwise the cork could end up crumbling.
Center the cork piece on the string by lining up the ends of the string and adjusting the cork piece; the two ends of the string should sit parallel when pulled taut. Knot the string at the the cork to keep the piece from moving around.
Tie the string ends around the stem of the wineglass, making a simple bow.
Cork and Wire Charms
Create a hole or widen the existing hole in the cork slice with a needle or a pin.
Thread the wire through the hole, stopping when you have equal amounts of wire on either side of the cork disc. Fold both ends of the wire toward the other, twisting them together to keep the cork from sliding.
Wrap the ends of the wire around the stem of a wine glass to connect it.
To distinguish one charm from another, you can use different colored wires or strings, or you can write your guest's initials on the cork.
For an extra special touch, you can also add beads to the wire or string before attaching the charms to the wineglasses.
Cara Smusiak writes on behalf of Naturally Savvy.com about how to live a more natural, organic and green lifestyle.
More on reusing corks:
Make Awesome Cork Wine Jewelry
Turn Wine Corks into a Trivet, Message Board
Recycle Your Corks with ReCork America
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