DIY placeholders with corks

A simple idea to brighten up your table. Use scraps of wool and a bicycle inner tube.

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DIY Christmas tree with recycled materials4

Simple cork stoppers, which we normally throw in the trash, are enough to create creative, elegant and fun placeholders.

To make the placeholders, we need a few items salvaged from drawers and garages around our homes. Here's what we need:

Necessary

  • corks
  • a air chamber of a punctured bicycle
  • long toothpicks
  • wool scraps
  • felt, felt or cardboard for the star
  • hot glue, scissors, clothespin

Method

  • Cut a strip of inner tube about 2 cm wide and 120 cm long;
  • Create a “pyramid” with the rubber strip, starting from a base of about 10 cm and continuing to the end of the strip;
  • Secure the “pyramid” thus created with the clothespin and take the toothpick;
  • Divide the rubber “pyramid” into two parts; keep the lower part blocked with the clothespin and starting from the top, stick the toothpick through all the layers, using your fingers to force the gum along the toothpick;
  • Proceed in the same way until the entire inner tube is firmly inserted, then slide it until it is a couple of centimetres from the top of the toothpick;
  • Meanwhile, prepare the base by tying 3 cork stoppers together with a piece of colored wool;
  • At this point finish the tree by inserting it into the space between the corks which act as a base (use a little hot glue to make it more stable) and adding the star on top.

Variants:

Instead of using an inner tube for the central body of the tree, you can opt for a stiff green grosgrain or satin ribbon, you can place pearls between the layers or use dark green felt.

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