Upcycling – crafting with crown corks

Two yellow picture frames full of colourful crown corks are hanging on the wall behind a modern chair and table. — You can use multi-coloured crown corks to create vibrant decorations for your home.

Difficulty

easy
Cost

< 42 £
Duration

1-3 h

When crown corks were invented over 125 years ago, nobody anticipated just how many colours and patterns the metal caps would eventually be available in. Today, you can make the most of this variety and use the tiny caps to craft a huge range of different things. Try making a colourful mural! It’s a fun handicraft idea that is also easy peasy thanks to our step-by-step guide.

Have you heard about our 18-volt system yet? It offers a very wide variety of devices for many uses. The thing that makes the project below so special is that you can use the same rechargeable battery for every part of this project. Simply swap out the battery pack, insert it into a different device that is part of the 18-volt system and continue to the next step.

It should go without saying that your safety is paramount throughout every step of the project, so make sure you take the necessary precautions to protect yourself. You can find everything you need to know about the correct protective clothing you need when using each type of tool in our overview.

You need

Tools

Utilities

pencil
pocket rule
g-clamps
protective sheet
craft knife
adhesive tape

Materials

Scrap wood board
A large number of colourful crown corks
Glue sticks
Paint for the frame
MDF wooden board, black
Squared timbers (25 x 20 mm)

L: Length, W: Width, H: Height, D: Diameter

Step 1 6

Measuring, sawing and sanding the frame ledges

The measurements are being made and marked on a squared timber using a pocket rule.

A squared timber is being sawn at a marked point.

A sawn edge is being sanded with a multi-sander.

You need: Jigsaws, BIM jigsaw blade, T 308 BF, Multi-sander, 80 to 120-grain sanding sheet, g-clamps, pencil, pocket rule, MDF wooden board, black, Squared timbers (25 x 20 mm)

In the first step, you’ll work on the frame for the mural. For this, you’ll need to sawn four squared timbers to the length of your MDF board. It’s important here to make sure that the measurements can be divided by 29. This is because the crown corks that you’re going to attach to the board later have a diameter of around 29 mm.

Firmly clamp the squared timber to your workbench before you start sawing. Mark out the cut edge (image 1) and saw there (image 2). Then, sand the cut edge (image 3).

Step 2 6

Spray painting the frame

The squared timbers are being sprayed with an even coat of paint. — A sunny yellow will make your frame for your crown-cork wall brighten up any room.

You need: Paint spray system, protective sheet, Wood paint

Now it’s time to add a splash of colour: Spray paint the timbers for the frame on all sides in the colour of your choice.

Then, leave it and allow the paint to dry. The fastest way to do this is to use a paint spray system. Check out our Guide to spraying to find everything you need to know.

Step 3 6

Sticking strips of painter’s tape to the board

Adhesive tape is being stuck to the short edges of a dark MDF board.

A pocket rule and pencil are being used to mark out intervals of 29 cm on a strip of tape.

Adhesive tape is being stuck to the long edge of an MDF board.

The end of the board has multiple strips of adhesive tape stuck to it.

The strips of adhesive tape are stuck down one after the after in equidistant intervals.

You need: pocket rule, pencil, adhesive tape, MDF board

You now need the board that will act as the base to which you’ll glue the crown corks later. You should prepare your board to make sure that everything is perfect and above all straight.

To do this, first stick a strip of adhesive tape on both of the left and right-hand edges (image 1). Starting at the top, use a pencil and pocket rule to mark out intervals of 29 mm on the tape (image 2).

Now, use the markings to stick more strips of adhesive tape horizontally across the entire board (images 3 and 4).

You now have a grid marked out on the board in front of you (image 5) that you can use as a guide when you glue on the crown corks.

Step 4 6

Gluing the frame

Hot glue is being applied to a squared timber.

A squared timber is being glued to an MDF board.

You need: Cordless glue gun, adhesive tape, Squared timbers from step 2, MDF board, Crown corks, Glue sticks

The squared timbers you spray painted should now be dry. Place them around your base to form a frame and glue them to each side using hot glue.

Step 5 6

Gluing a row of crown corks

Hot glue is being applied to the underside of a crown cork.

A row of crown corks are being glued onto an MDF board at equidistant intervals.

You need: Cordless glue gun, Glue sticks, Crown corks

Once the glue has dried and the frame holds in place, it’s time to get the crown corks involved.

Glue the first row: it should be flush with the frame and the bottom edge of the first strip of adhesive tape. Make sure you apply enough hot glue to the crown corks to ensure they stick firmly to the board.

Step 6 6