Give your used wine cork a fun second life
DCL
Eat, drink and be merry! It's a common sentiment during the holidays, but one that could help you decorate. If you and your friends have shared a few bottles of wine lately, you've got some great wine cork ornaments all but ready for your Christmas tree.
Twist a corkscrew through the full length of the cork to create a core for threading wire through the cork. Thread a piece of jewelry wire (24 or 26 gauge wire) through the center core, folding over on the underside. If you have some beads in your craft supplies, you could add them for extra sparkle. Slide the beads onto the wire so they sit above the cork, create a loop with the extra wire, and hang the cork on the tree! It's that simple.
If you want even more impact, you can make a stunning cork garland. It's going to take a lot of corks--up to a few hundred, depending on the size of your tree--so you may have to start saving those corks for next year. But if you want to try a cork garland now, ask a few local restaurants or wine bars to save the corks for you, and pick them up at the end of the week.
Using an upholstery needle and dark upholstery thread (or invisible thread), string the corks together, end-to-end. To add color, sparkle, or just to stretch your garland further, you can also string beads between the corks. Just be careful to leave a little slack in the garland so it doesn't get too tight as you wind it around your tree.
