jute addiction

What started out as an attempt to save money and have a unique coffee table has morphed into a bona fide jute addiction.  Ottomans, vases, and maybe even a lamp or two in the future.  And a mirror.  And maybe some boxes...  I should get a patch.

Anywhoodles, this vase was a craft I put together for our women's group at church.  It was fun to watch different women with different vases approach this craft and have so much fun with it.  We were able to hammer out four vases with two glue guns in about two hours.  Easy peasy, people!

So here's what you need:

that vase in your cupboard that you haven't used in six years but keep saying you will..yeah, that one.

glue gun

glue sticks

jute twine or roping  (roping requires less time, effort, and materials)

and a pizza box to rest your glue gun on, because you're classy like that...

1. Fray and flatten out the end of the rope.  Run a short line of hot glue along the bottom edge of the vessel and attach frayed end to glue.

2. Follow the bottom rim of vessel with glue.  Lay roping on top of glue, follow the rim of vessel.  Pull firmly to make sure it's secure.  Continue adding glue and affixing rope, wrapping the container.

3.  Keep on gluin', placin', and wrappin'. Use generous amounts of glue and remember to tighten the rope as you go to avoid naked spots.

4. At the open end of the vessel, be warned that you probably won't have an even rim at the finish.  The beautiful thing about jute is also what makes it troublesome.  It's uneven.  Rows won't match perfectly and since you're wrapping the vessel, the top just probably won't be flat.  It's okay.  Don't panic.  It's just part of the charm.  Be a little more heavy handed on the last few rows to keep everything locked and loaded.  Cut off extra rope and add a few last dabs of glue.

A couple of tips, try to use a vessel with relatively smooth angles.  Pieces with lots of details will be a lot harder to apply the jute to.  Also, try to avoid thin twine.  It will take a lot more glue and twine to apply to the vessel and won't have the same, chunky, baskety aesthetic.  The hardest part of this whole thing is just getting it started.  After that, it's pretty painless.

I use mine as a vase now but have toyed with the idea of using it for brushes and rulers when I have a studio again.  Miss Holmes made one for Nana that was a square shape.  It now sits on Nana's kitchen counter and holds her mail.  It's darling!  What would you use yours for?