Hey friend!
I’m actually not sure if I should even post this anymore. Thank you Pinterest for killing what I thought was an original idea.
I saw this picture of Ballard Design Jute wrapped apothecary jars. It reminded me of all the beautiful, but pricey, demijohns I have lusted over on Etsy for years.
While my budget couldn’t take the huge bite of buying an original Demijohn, or even beautiful antique large apothecary jars (or these reproductions by Ballard Designs), I knew it was something I am fully capable of replicating myself.
I started with a real wine bottle. This was one that a family member bought us. I’ve scraped the label off with a box cutter. It wasn’t sticky so I skipped the goo-gone. I very much prefer the aqua color of the original Demijohn, but this one is free, so it’s a good starting point. I’ll eventually get around to buying an aqua colored large wine bottle.
I began my jute with a small piece knotted near the top of the neck. It slopes nicely, and I wanted the rope to hug that.
I then seriously under measured how I would need. I would probably double this length to avoid having to tie in more jute half way through. I just eyeballing a little longer than my bottle.
Not sure what this knot is called, but that’s how I started each strand. It also covers that initial knot.
Another mistake I made was making it an odd number around. Make it even, trust me. I’ll explain further along.
Then taking one string from adjacent strands, while pulling taut, tie a knot. Then separate the string and tie to the adjacent strands.
Here’s why you want an even number of strands. You’ll want to tighten it by knitting it tightly with a strand on the opposite side of the bottle. Mine got a little wonky. I’ll do it right with the aqua bottle I’ll be buying soon.
There you go! Imitation French Demijohn. Or spanish? Not sure where the wine was from, haha. Italian?
Tootles!
*Although there are numerous other tutorials on the web, as I was so disappointed and humbled to find, I found them after I completed my own rendition. We are all original and creative, don’t let the internet make you think otherwise. Great minds think alike after all, right?
