"Rockin' Wine Bottle Gift-tags"

Last Saturday I received this mysterious email message...

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Subject: Request for Pretty in Ink
Message:

Hello there, crafter I am pretending not to be affiliated with.

As a reader of your blog, I would like to make a request for content. I would like a tutorial on how to make some rockin’ wine bottle gift-tags for the holidays. You of course don’t know this because you have never met me in your life, but my husband and I like to indulge in $12.00/bottles of grape juice from a winery in Northern California. We are planning on giving these away as neighbor gifts this year for Christmas, and I would like some ideas on how to make a cute-modern tag to hang from the bottle. I would appreciate your creative expertise in this matter.

Thank you for your time.
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Now, I have not been known to take requests in the past, but I like a good bottle of grape juice, so I decided to oblige.

Here, dear reader, is what I came up with. I hope this helps you to add a little pizazz to your holidays.

Rockin' Wine Bottle Gift-tags Tutorial:



Here's what you'll need:
* Two contrasting heavy-weight papers (for the tutorial, I used a wood veneer paper and a red cardstock)
* Adhesive of some sort (I like to use a glue-gun for precision)
* Various-sized circle punches (any sizes will do, as long as you have a variety)
* Paper cutter
* Embellishments
* Corner-rounder (if desired)

Instructions:

1. Cut one of your papers (the one that you would like to go on top) to 3" x 8 1/2".


2. Score this piece of paper 2 1/2" from the top (measuring from the short side) and fold.


3. You'll have a scored off area that is 3" x 2 1/2". Find a punch that is slightly larger than the neck of your wine bottle, and punch it near the middle/top of this scored area. You can also round all 4 corners of the paper at this time with a corner-rounder punch (I like the effect). You couldn't quite tell where the paper was scored in my pic, so I approximated it with a black line to help you out. Don't draw a black line on yours. :)


4. Now you are ready for your "design" work. Randomly punch holes in your paper. I like to start with my biggest punch first, and then work my way down to the smallest one, filling in empty areas as I go. Punch above and below the score line, but do not punch directly over the score line (i.e. so that half of your circle is above the line and half is below it).




Don't try to copy my pattern! Just punch randomly! There's no way to mess this up!

5. Cut your contrasting paper to 3" x 8". If you rounded your corners of your first piece, go ahead and round the bottom two corners of your contrasting paper, too.


6. Apply glue to the bottom portion (the 3"x 6" portion) on the back of your punched piece of paper, applying glue only where there aren't any holes. I like to use a glue gun, because I can get the glue exactly where I want it. But a thin tape runner would work well, too. Adhere your contrasting paper over the glue, lining up the bottom edges.


Your design should look something like this when you turn it over:


7. Embellish, as desired. I like to use something circular (to mimick the look of the punches). I also like to "pop up" the embellishment with some pop dots, so the tag has some added dimension.


8. Pop your tag on your wine bottle (write a note on the back first, if desired), and you're all set!


I know the first question everyone is going to ask... "where do you get the wood paper?". :) It is real wood veneer and can be purchased online at Cards of Wood. I use the 1-ply cherry with paper back, because it's super easy to punch.

And, hey, mysterious tutorial-requester...you might have a friend who might have used this paper for her wedding invitations and who might have a ton of scraps of it already cut to 3" wide who might be willing to share some with you :)

But, of course, if you don't like the wood you can use other paper (I just thought the wood looked kinda funk-dafied.) :) Here's the prototype I made with white and green cardstock:

The sizing was a bit "off" because I was just messing around, but you get the jist.

Enjoy! I won't be back until at least Sunday. I've got a busy weekend planned!

P.S. If you really like tags and are looking for some cool ones, have you checked out Tim Holtz's site lately? He's doing a 12 Tags of Christmas countdown, and they are way cool!