Wine Bottle Picture Holder

I love wine bottles and am always looking for another way to repurpose them. Here's a great way to use an empty one along with its cork.

Materials:

Wine bottle with cork
Needle nose pliers
Wire strong enough to twist and poke into the cork
Paint is optional. I use FolkArt Enamel
20 ct string of Christmas lights is optional

After you've washed, dried and painted your bottle then have allowed the paint to dry (if you decide to paint it), cut a length of wire about 12 inches long. You can always cut it down if it's too long.

I use copper wire I have stripped out of unused cable for the television.

Starting at one end of the wire with the needle nose pliers bend and crimp. This is optional but I do it as a safe guard against scratching my pictures. Wrap the crimped end around the neck of the wine bottle two times. This will give you a nice round shape after you remove it from the neck of the wine bottle.

You may have to adjust the wire circle by pushing and bending it inward so that it will hold the picture. If there is too much of a gap between the two wire circles, then your picture won't stay in place.

Insert the cork into the wine bottle. Use your needle nose pliers to shove the straight end of the wire into the cork. If it's too long, remove and cut to size.

I made two copper wire picture holders to shove into the cork and staggered the lengths so both of my 4x6 pictures show.

Remove the cork and insert the Christmas lights (if you're using them) then tie ribbon or taffeta around the bottle neck to dress it up a bit.

Removing Sticky Residual

This is so simple you'll wonder why you hadn't thought of it before.

Sticky residual left by labels can be easily removed with charcoal lighter fluid. Alcohol just won't cut it...

Remove the label by peeling off with your fingers or soaking in water, dampen a paper napkin or paper towel with the lighter fluid then rub on the gummy residual. KEEP AWAY FROM FLAME, for gosh sakes!

I sometimes find that I have to dampen another paper napkin or find a clean spot on the one I'm using and rub some more if the residual is excessive. But you usually find that it won't take much fluid or rubbing to get the sticky, gummy residual off the piece.

I do this with the wine bottles I up-cycle or re-pupose and paint.

My better half re-uses jars that once contained something he bought from the grocery store. He hates the paper labels.

I've purchased glasses and cups, peeled off the label from the bottoms and was left with annoying sticky stuff.

Record a Greeting Card

Technology. You have to love it. It has advanced to the point where we can sit in our offices (at home or at work), record our voices through our computers and have our voice-recorded messages added to a greeting card that will be conveniently sent for us.

Voice Your Feelings, based in the United Kingdom, is a company who has taken technology and is using it to make recording and sending greeting cards super easy for the consumer. Not e-cards but real, honest-to-goodness paper cards. Whether you're a busy stay-at-home mom or corporate professional; whether you're looking for something unique to say thank you to clients or send a Mother's Day card, I can't think of anything easier or more unique than Voice Your Feelings.

The process is very simple:
1) Record your greeting through their website
2) Pick out the greeting card you want to send
3) Add sound effects if you wish. When you're finished click the Preview and Play buttons
4) Pay the required low fee then sit back and relax because Voice Your Feelings will address, post and send out the voice-recorded card within 24 hours of receiving the order

The only drawback that I see is they are set up to receive payments through only Paypal. However, setting up a Paypal account is simple and - more importantly - free.

I will confess that I am an affiliate and - yes - this blog resembles a marketing piece. But my confession doesn't mean that I am not impressed with Voice Your Feelings' endeavor. Quite the opposite. It is because of their technology that I wanted to be involved so I immediately became an affiliate. In fact, I have been exchanging emails with their Account Manager who - because of my intense interest - has implemented an affiliate two-tier program for people like me who want to market their Affiliate Program.

I would have preferred much more involvement by selling their service within my small home town and the surrounding small towns but Voice Your Feelings isn't set up for this. All of their marketing is through the Internet and their affiliates. Understandably, this keeps pricing low ($7.95 plus $2.20 for shipping for the United States) which is important for outside countries.

So whether you're interested in recording and sending cards to loved ones or clients, or interested in becoming an affiliate, head to my web site, https://sites.google.com/site/millerswrappedexpression, and click on the Voice Your Feelings banner ad at the top of the page.

Of course you can go directly to their web site, voiceyourfeelings.com, to check them out. I won't hold it against you...

Create a Paint Can Out of a Coffee Can

Or How to Recycle a Large Coffee Can

I don't buy empty paint cans to decorate for my clients but I was in need of a container to deliver a wrapped candy bar order.

I wandered the house looking for items to recycle that would fulfill my need and remembered my stack of empty coffee cans. I knew I had a dimension template saved on my computer but I needed to also make a handle for my "paint can" created out of a coffee can.

Of course I had a reserve of cable wire. The center of cable wire is copper so I had to strip the outer layers down to reveal the copper wire I needed.

I assembled the following:

*81/2 x 11 Card stock

*Coffee can template(s) consisting of a front and back both measuring 10w x 6 1/6h. This height reveals the silver/aluminum rims around the top and bottom. If you don't want those to show then make the height 6 3/16.

*Hot glue gun and glue sticks

*Dremel with a bit to drill holes for the handle in the coffee can

*Copper wire

*Tissue paper

*Ribbon to match

Using my measuring tape, I measured around the outside of the can then divided that measurement in half. The can was 19 inches so I knew I would have to drill a hole at the halfway point of 9 1/2 inches on opposite sides. Using a Sharpie, I marked the two points then measured down 1/2 inch from the top rim at each 1/2 mark and marked that point.With my Dremel, I drilled small holes at the two points.

I all ready had a design to print on the card stock which meant I only had to size it to fit the 8 1/2 x 11 sheet. Once I had printed the front and back, I cut them out and glued them onto the can with hot glue. The paper covered the holes but no problem. I grabbed my Dremel again and drilled holes - using my previously drilled holes as guides - through the paper from the inside of the can.

I inserted one end of the wire through a drilled hole then curled it so it wouldn't slip back through. Then I did the same to the other side. With my handle now finished, the paper glued into place, all that was left was inserting tissue paper inside the can and stuffing curled ribbon around the inside edge of the coffee can.

Who needs to buy empty paint cans when coffee cans are just as nice? Actually, in my opinion the copper wire dresses it up nicely.

Diaper Cake for New Moms or Moms-to-Be

Diaper cakes are so fun and easy to do. I found plenty of instructions on the Internet. Some very detailed, most were not.

This two tiered diaper cake took 50 newborn diapers rolled then tied with ribbons.

Directions for the wash cloth and sock roses were also found on the Internet but I chose instructions with pictures to help me shape the items into a roses. The roses were slipped onto stems I cut from a silk flower bouquet and I included the leaves from the bouquet.

The pink satin flowers I cut, shaped and sewed then simply placed among the components of the cake. I didn't bother pinning or taping them to hold them into place.

Know someone having a baby shower or giving birth soon? Give this cake a try, or you can order one from me.

Recycle Old Socks into Sock Monkeys!

I have to tell you how fun it was to make this little gal.

I'm not posting instructions on how to make the sock monkey because there are so many patterns to be found on the Internet.

I have bunches of scrap material; remnants purchased here and there because I love working with fabric. To make Missy Monkey's clothes, I whipped out my measuring tape, measured and cut material.

The little jackets was the hardest. I made the body of the jacket first then measured, cut out the sleeves and sewed them on. I left plenty of room for Missy's arms to fit and I left ragged seams at the shoulders.

The hat, skirt, and leggings were simple tubes measured to fit then sewn closed. The fabric flower pattern was found on the Internet.

She can be purchased for $5.00.

Free 14.5 Can Wrapper

Here's a fun little project for the kids or even for yourself. A wrapper to wrap around a can to make a pencil and scissor holder.

First you need a 14.5 oz can; washed and dried.

I file down any inside sharp edges with a file from hubby's tool box.

Click on the image to enlarge it and either save it to your computer or print it right from the preview. I use card stock but you can use regular paper.

Cut it out.

Grab a glue stick or a bottle of glue and smear the back side of the paper.

Line it up with the edges of the can and hand press around until it sticks.

Hint: I stand my can upright, hold the paper against the flat surface the can sits on and hand-wrap around the can.

Your kids may need some help with that. You too for that matter.