Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to me! Help me celebrate one of my favorite days of the year with a SALE!

Enter coupon code BIRTHDAY at checkout to receive 15% off your order! TODAY ONLY!

Everyone knows I love wood, right? Check out the first birthday gift I’ve received this year…

A cool cedar wood soap dish from my favorite soap maker, Aquarian Bath!

I should be doing this today…

BUT I think I’m going to play with my children and have a dinner date with my husband!

Hope you have a great day too!

Thanks, Bee

Corky Wednesdays: Halloween Corks

October is here!  Fall gardening is starting up and Halloween crafts are under way in our house.  So, this week I’m dedicating our Corky Wednesdays post to October’s ghoulish holiday!

Make a statement with your corks!

There are a number of sayings and words to choose from. I used scrapbook sticker letters and some synthetic corks I had on hand.  I chose synthetic corks since they offer a super smooth surface and always stand up straight.  Corks with or without a design work well for this easy project.

Our HALLOWEEN corks ended up on our foo dog (a Chinese guardian statue) this season.

Colored Corks

Colored corks would make a great Halloween wreath or would look good in a spooky vase with some spider webs.  Our orange and black wine cork supplies have been popular on Etsy this month. They have been featured in dozens of treasuries and we have just one all black set left.

And how fancy are these handmade artists on Etsy…

Tiny pumpkins made from a variety of recycled wine corks, acrylic paint, and wire.

Adorable candle holder made from a thrifted glass bowl and sliced recycled wine corks!

Hope you find time to enjoy a little wine cork crafting this season!

~ Bee

Think Outside the Box – DIY Gift Box

Happy Monday! Here’s fun and easy idea to start your week…

I love hot tea and I usually flatten my tea boxes and recycle them in our city’s curbside recycling service.

However, last week while I was waiting for my tea to steep, I was admiring the inside of my favorite tea. How pretty was it with its lotus design?!

So I got all the tea boxes out of the recycling and turned them into gift boxes. It’s funny what is right in front of us sometimes.

First, I cut the box down one side and opened it up.

Then I simply put it back together with the inside out. You could use tape or glue.  I like to tape the inside of the box so nothing shows.

And there you have it a quick and resourceful gift box!

TIP: This concept can be applied to shipping box ideas as well.  You can use cereal boxes and other post consumer paper waste to create shipping boxes.  My favorite cereal box will hold over 50 wine corks for shipping!

Look for our Corky Wednesdays post soon, and until then check out this upcycled giveaway on Love 2 Upcycle. Who knew you could do so many cool things with an old spoon?!

Have a great week!

Bee

Giveaways and Contests

Our Two Year Etsy celebrations have come to an end! I had almost 400 entries in the giveaways, dozens of new blog subscriptions, Twitter followers and Facebook likes. Thank you.  We gave away a $20 gift certificate (Congrats Kathy), a $10 gift certificate (Congrats Mary), and a reusable chalkboard gift tags set (Congrats Kaitlin).  We are blessed for all the great support, and are looking forward to another exciting year.

We have also been entering contests too! Who doesn’t love to win something, right?!

Contest #1

Upcycled Stuff is featuring an Upcycled Challenge this month in honor of National Sewing Month.  Participants signed up to received a package of “trash” in the mail.  Here was mine…

The challenge… I had to upcycle some of all of the different pieces of trash I received.

So I decided to make decorative fabric balls!

How did I make them from trash?!

First I opened up the tie and removed the lining inside. My children were doing their homework while I did this project, and they said the balls had to make noise, so I tore up some of the paper tags and placed them inside the plastic ball containers I had received.

Some of the paper tags had some thread on their edges, so I unraveled it and used it to secure the tie fabric around the balls. This was the hardest part, short pieces of string and a curved surface.

They didn’t turn out perfect, but for a crafter that only knows how to sew buttons on pants I was very pleased.

What can I win? Entries will be voted on and I have a chance to win an awesome shopping spree from Upcycled Stuffed!

Contest #2

The second crafty contest I entered this month is held by Team Upcyclers on Etsy and hosted by Idle Hands Yarn Supply.  It is simple… use part or all of an old t-shirt and upcycle it into something new!

Last winter, I loved to make tshirt scarves so I had a lot of extra hems in my craft bag.  I used them to make a new headband and new bracelet for this contest.

I simply braided the headband and left extra at the ends to tie it behind my neck.

For the bracelet I stretched the tshirt string and wrapped it around an old tarnished bangle and secured it with a dot of glue.

What can I win? All entries are featured on the Love 2 Upcycle Blog and two winners will be selected to have their Etsy shop’s advertised for a month for FREE!

Fingers Crossed!

Thanks, Bee

Two Year Anniversary Giveaway #2

First Prize

Second Prize

Wine Cork Coaster – Sto… TheWoodenBee $7.25	Welcome Reclaimed Wood … TheWoodenBee $9.75	Wine Cork Magnets – Col… TheWoodenBee $2.75	Honey Wine Cork Coaster… TheWoodenBee $7.25
Wine Cork Coaster Craft… TheWoodenBee $9.50	Wood Hanger, Reclaimed … TheWoodenBee $7.00	Reclaimed Hardware – An… TheWoodenBee $8.00	Wine Cork Coaster – Sto… TheWoodenBee $7.25
Craft Wine Corks – Cora… TheWoodenBee $9.00	Wine Cork Coaster – Sto… TheWoodenBee $7.50	Brown Wine Corks – Choc… TheWoodenBee $8.00	Hardware Supply – Antiq… TheWoodenBee $7.00
Wine Corks – synthetic TheWoodenBee $1.75	Faded Blue Craft Corks … TheWoodenBee $6.50	Wood Hanger, Reclaimed … TheWoodenBee $9.00	Wine Cork Magnets – upc… TheWoodenBee $9.50

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Corky Wednesdays: our collection

We’re updating things this week (and getting ready for the giveaway tomorrow), so the Corky Wednesday post this week is just a review.  If you’ve been busy and missed any of our wine corking post over the past few months here they are…

Corky Wednesdays: tabletop corks

Corky Wednesdays: cork crafts

Corky Wednesdays: wine cork jewelry

Corky Wednesdays: wine corks in the garden

Corky Wednesdays: wine cork art

Corky Wednesdays: Mixed Media

With the holiday season approaching, we are changing Corky Wednesdays from every Wednesday to every other Wednesday.  Except in October I get an extra Wedensday this year. Did you know October has 5 Mondays, 5 Tuesdays, and 5 Wednesdays this year?!

Here are the shop’s deadlines and sales for the rest of the year as well (just three months left):

Our current Fall SALE ends September 30th.

One Day Only Birthday SALE October 10th (my favorite one)

Thanksgiving GIVEAWAY November 12th – 15th

Cyber Monday SALE November 26th

December 1st LAST DAY for custom orders.

Shop CLOSED Dec 21st - January 4th

See you tomorrow for our giveaway!  Did you figure out what it might be from yesterday’s sneak peek?

Thanks,

~Bee

beekeeping in September

Hello September!  Where did August go?  Summer was very busy with the children out of school!  I am thankful for time back in the studio this month. We’ve been trying to get ready for the holidays in the shop with fun crafting supplies and new holiday stocking stuffers.

Halloween Wine Cork Craft Supplies

Completed wine cork coasters are great gifts under $10 for co-workers and friends!

We’ve also upcycled some new cabinet doors into more DIY Bulletin Boards!

Other Shop News:

We were featured on The Broken Glass: Wino Wednesday with Wine Cork Tacks.

I was featured on EcoEtsy discussing gardening and children: {Food & Gardening} Gardening Resources for Parents,

and of course I’m over on the gardening blog getting ready for Fall gardening and playing with the kids!

I am still writing Love 2 Upcycle’s Sustainable Sundays post. Here is my latest post: Labor Day Favorites.

Our wine cork magnet tutorial was also featured on Love 2 Upcycle this month!

We’re still celebrating two years on Etsy with our second giveaway this week! I put together a goodie bag to help YOU get ready for the holidays as well!

Here’s a little sneak peek. Details posted Thursday morning!

Thanks, Bee

Remember our Coupon code for September: Fall2012 for 10% off your order.

cork quotes…

A few quotes to start off your Monday… especially for those wine lovers out there.

Our next giveaway starts this Thursday, September 13th! Look for details soon!

Corky Wednesdays: Mixed Media Corks

This week I’d like to talk about how wine corks are a versatile craft supply that mixes well with other elements.  Each week we’ve talked about corks as a singular supply… great for coasters, wreaths and others things. What can we mix craft corks with?

Wine Corks and Grout

wine cork table.

wine cork floor.

Wine Corks and Wood

wine cork frame.

wood cabinet wine cork bulletin board.

Wine Cork and Metal

wine cork key holder.

wine cork necklace.

wine cork key chains.

I bet if the keys weren’t too heavy they would float! Might be a great idea for the boat key?!

Wine corks and a little dirt

wine cork mulch.

wine cork stepping stones.

Wine Cork and Cars… ?!?!

LOL! Look for details to our second giveaway coming soon! Enjoy your Wednesday!

~Bee

A Wine Cork Quote

Here’s a little quote to start off our week…

Look for our Corky Wednesdays post and another giveaway this week. Yes, another giveaway! We’re celebrating two years this month, shouldn’t we have two giveaways?!!