Bicycle Bottle Holder

Bicycle Bottle Holder

One day my friend asked me, if I have an idea how best to attach his water bottle to his bicycle. I promised him to make him a bottle holder and that’s it: It consists of a cardboard cylinder with bottom and a wrap crocheted from simple package string. I made two cords from the same package string to tie it somewhere to the bicycle.

And that’s how to do it:

  1. Cut a rectangle from cardboard.
    One side must be long enough to go around the bottle plus allowance, the other must be high enough, so that it holds the bottle safely.
  2. If you want the cardboard container to be (quite) waterproof, tape the inside with tape.
    Note: I used clear package tape.
  3. Wrap the cardboard around the bottle and wrap with long strips of tape.
    Hint: If it has to be waterproof, tape the whole cylinder.
    Hint: To make sure, that the cardboard container is not to tight around the bottle, I wrapped the bottle in several layers of old newspapers and wrapped the cardboard around the ‘thickened’ bottle.
  4. Cut a circle from cardboard, optionally tape the to-be inside with tape, too.
  5. Attach the circle with amply applied package tape to the bottom of your cardboard cylinder.
  6. Then you can create the outer container.
    Note: I crocheted it from package string by first crocheting a circle and then simply working straight up. ‘On the way’ I worked some thread eyes for the cords. The cords themselves were made from the same material.
    Hint: It should be easy enough to sew the outer container from a fabric matching your bicycle colours.
  7. The inner cardboard container and the outer crocheted container.
    Bicycle Bottle Holder Bicycle Bottle Holder

     


    Links:
    If a bicycle bottle holder isn’t enough for you, try the Bicycle Handlebar Bag.

    Making Any Sized Crochet Circles (English)
    Häkeln lernen: Runden und Spiralen (German)

    How to make Twisted Cord (English)
    Kordel drehen (German)

Polymer Clay Flower Canes

Polymer Clay Flower Canes

This Thursday started its first challenge which theme is ‘fresh’.
When I heard about I thought immediately about the little polymer clay box I made long ago but am still fond of (not least because of its freshness ;-))
It is a little cardboard box that I covered with polymer clay and embellished with self-made flower and leaf canes (for links to tutorials see links below).

 

Polymer Clay Flower Canes On this picture you see one side of the box. The finger isn’t there by accident, but to show how small the box is ;-))

 

Polymer Clay Flower Canes This is a close-up from the lid. You can see the purple Hydrangea-like flowers with the Jellyroll center and the leaves.
I made the transparent cane with the white dots to simulate those white flower tufts often used by florists.

 

Polymer Clay Flower Canes Just a last close-up.

 


Links:
Hydrangea-like flowers
Jellyroll
Leaves

Beaded Bottle

Beaded Bottle Beaded Bottle

For some time I worked a lot with beads and the peyote stitch. Then I found a tutorial on how to bead a bottle and was thrilled – not only about the tutorial, but about my own results as well ;-))
On the photos you can see two of my beaded bottles. I embellished the bottleneck of the blue one with funky fibers, the beading was made with a kind of bead soup* (I only used beads of the same size). The brown-golden one was made with just two sorts of beads, but I added some peyote ruffles at the bottleneck and a wire to use the little bottle as mini vase.

 

Beaded Bottle The third photo shows the bottom of the blue bottle.
* ‘Bead soup’ is on the whole an assortment of different beads, often with beads of different sizes and shapes. Many beaders use it for Freeform Peyote, but it can be used for many beading purposes. If you want to string the beads, use a bead spinner.


Links:
Tutorial on a Beaded Bottle
Peyote Ruffles

Google search result for ‘bead soup’
Peyote stitch:
About.com: Beadwork: A website with lots of tutorials about beadwork
Basic Beading Stitch Tutorials

Perlenhobby.de: A website with lots of (german) tutorials about beadwork: click on ‘Anleitungen’ in the sidebar left and there select one of the Peyote tutorials

Here at unikatissima:
Freeform Peyote
Making a Bead Spinner

Plaster Bowl

Plaster Bowl

Because I like to make bowls this tutorial on how to make a plaster bowl is high on my what-I-really-want-to-do-list.
I worked with plaster already, but never with those plaster bandages and I hope that I will have the opportunity soon.
Once I have read (but I can’t remember where) that you can cut some old fabric (e.g. old bedsheets) in strips, pull them through the plaster and put them on to emulate the rigid wrap from the tutorial.
Has anybody tried this?


Links:
MakingFriends.com: A website with lots of crafts for children
Plaster Bowl

Bead and Wire Wall Vase

Bead and Wire Window Vase

Inspired by two wonderful items, the Bead & Wire Heart at The Bead Bugle and the Bead Godesses from Ronda Kivett at the Autumn 2003 Issue of ARTitude Zine I did deliberately my vase from the photo.
I feel that I was a little too cautious, but I like it already.
Next time I want to get nearer to those shining examples I had.


Links:
Bead & Wire Heart at The Bead Bugle
Bead Godesses from Ronda Kivett at the Autumn 2003 Issue of ARTitude Zine

 

Light Bulb Window Vase

Light Bulb Window Vase

I really liked the idea of making a little window vase out of a recycled light bulb (for tutorials see Links below).
And I had to try it myself ;-))
On the photo you see my first attempt. I wrapped it with paper maché and have not yet formed a wire to hold it. And as I made the photo, I had no flower either ;-)
So I took one of my crocheted flowers and – voilà ;-)


Links:
Light Bulb Window Vase

instructables: Light Bulb Vase

Clothesline Crochet

Clothesline Crochet

I mentioned the clothesline crochet before when I described the Simple Cro-Tat.
But because I find clothesline crochet a handy technique when I want to work something stiff (for a little bowl e.g.) I wanted to present the tutorial on how to make clothesline crochet in the round with its own entry (tutorial see links below).
Priscilla Hewitt has also other clothesline crochet tutorials and tipps about what yarns and what clothesline to use (see links below).

On the photo you see my attempt on crocheting such a little bowl.
I used quite a thick string and crocheted with crochet cotton, which is rather thin.
Because I’m always working very loosely, I could never have created a bowl with this yarn.
The clothesline crochet technique made it possible.


Links:
Tutorial on how to make clothesline crochet in the round
Other clothesline crochet tutorials and tipps

Addendum of February 2009: The links above don’t work anymore, you can find the instructions for the clothesline crochet now as PDF (about 540 KB) at Priscilla’s Crochet – Free Pattern Index, check there for ‘Clothesline Crochet’.

Here at unikatissima:
Simple Cro-Tat

Double-Sided Paper Mache Bowl

Double-Sided Paper Mache Bowl

I found many a beautiful paper mache bowl in internet and I like those compact bowls, so this tutorial this tutorial was like made for me ;-)
I tried the technique and it worked out well and looked great. Unfortunately I gave them away (I made two bowls in different sizes) and don’t have any photo of them.


Links:
Double-Sided Paper Mache Bowl
The original site doesn’t exist any more and is now available through webarchive:
Double-Sided Paper Mache Bowl