Ever wonder what you should do with all those leftover wine corks? Sure, you’ve been collecting them for years, and now they’re just in the jar on top of your wet bar or taking up space in a cabinet somewhere.
Well, I have the perfect craft for you this holiday season. Using three corks, some sewing pins, pipe cleaners and glue, you can make these adorable reindeer!
What I love about them (aside from the fact that they are absolutely adorable) is they’re so easy to make!
Ready to make them yourself? Here are the materials I used and the crafting instructions. Some of the cuts are a little complicated to explain in writing, so be sure to watch our crafting video to help explain.
Materials needed (for three reindeer)
- 9 wine corks (3 per reindeer)
- 6 black sewing pins
- Red ribbon — approx. 12 inches total
- 3 small red pom-poms
- 2 dark brown pipe cleaners
- 1 tan/light brown pipe cleaner
- Glue gun
- Knife
Craft instructions
Step 1: Cut the legs
- Cut wine cork no. 1 equally in half, like you’re sawing a log.
- Flip each piece and cut perpendicular to the original cut. Now the cork should be in four equal pieces. Set aside.
Step 2: Cut the head and neck
- Take cork no. 2 and cut horizontally (like a log), but make one piece 2/3 and the other 1/3 in size. This will make the head and neck.
Step 3: Glue legs, neck and head to the body
- Now go back to the four pieces of cork no. 1. Glue these four pieces to the bottom of cork no. 3 (the whole one), like table legs. This will make the deer’s legs.
- On one end of the body of the deer, glue on the neck and the head.
Step 4: Add the details
- Take two sewing pins (cut to a shorter length so they don’t poke through the cork) and stick them in the head as eyes.
- Cut four dark brown pieces of pipe cleaner. Twist them around each other to make an antler. Do this with the other two pieces to make the second antler. Glue both antlers to the back of the reindeer’s head.
- Cut two small pieces of light brown pipe cleaner. Glue them next to the antlers to make the ears.
- Cut another small piece of light brown pipe cleaner and glue it to the back of the reindeer to make the tail.
- Glue one red pom-pom to its face to make the nose.
- Make a bow out of ribbon and glue it to the front of the reindeer (optional).
Aside from cute, stand-alone decorations, you can also use these during the holidays for food place cards or to mark seating arrangements.
What will you use them for?