Celebrating Fourth of July at home? Get in the spirit with a wine craft! Wine Guide Ashleigh Campbell is our crafty guest blogger today sharing how to make an American flag from your leftover wine corks! Perfect to hang on the wall or to add a patriotic touch to your porch decor.
If you’re like me, your wine cork collection has rapidly grown over the last three months (working from home while homeschooling one kid and taking care of an infant during lockdown will do that). With the Fourth of July coming up, I thought I’d put those corks to good use and make a patriotic door hanger. Here are the instructions so you can make your own!
Materials to Make an American Flag from Wine Corks
36 corks
Red and blue paint
Glue (I recommend a 25 g bottle of Gorilla Super Glue, or plenty of hot glue)
String
X-Acto or mandolin for cutting cork
Optional: ribbon, small star stencil, stapler, pre-cut wooden stars, white paint
Directions for Creating Your Wine Cork Flag
- Before you get started, place one cork in a bowl of water and let it soak for 30 minutes. This cork will be sliced to create the stars you see in the image, and it’s much easier to cut a softened cork, trust me!
- Paint eight corks blue and 16 corks red. Leave the remaining 12 corks unpainted.
- While the paint is drying, start gluing the unpainted corks together end-to-end. You’ll need two horizontal rows of three unpainted corks and one horizontal row of five unpainted corks to create the “white” stripes. Set aside to attach later.
- Once the paint is dry on your red and blue corks, start gluing those corks together to create the red stripes and the blue square on the flag. For the red stripes, you’ll create two horizontal rows of five and two horizontal rows of three, then set aside. Glue together blue corks in two vertical rows of four each to create the square.
- Now, you’re ready to attach your stripes and your blue section of cork together to create the flag design. Due to different sizes of corks you’ll probably need to push and hold the rows together until the glue sets (about 10 seconds if using super glue, longer with other types of glue). When all is said and done, you will have seven rows of five corks each, creating a nice rectangle shape for your flag.
- You’re ready to add the stars! Take the cork that has been soaking in water and slice it into eight thin discs. I used a mandolin for uniform cuts. Draw a star on each disc or use a star-shaped sticker as a guide, then cut the shape with an X-Acto knife. Glue the stars to the blue corks. (The cork stars can be replaced with pre-cut wood stars or you can paint the stars on yourself with white paint, totally up to you!)
- Once the shape is set and the stars are in place, it’s time to attach the string for hanging. Cut the string to the desired length then glue string to the back of the flag. Spread the string out over four corks width, then staple the string to the cork for reinforcement. Another option is to glue a wide ribbon to the back of the flag to secure the string and staples.
- Now that your string is secure, you’re ready to display your adorable wine cork flag on the front door, porch, or even a bar area to create a festive scene for the Fourth of July!
Snap a photo of your finished product and tag us on Instagram with @travelingvineyard. We’d love to see your work. Cheers to a safe and happy Independence Day!