If you are a wine drinker then wine cork crafts are some of the cheapest DIY’s you can make and include in your wedding. Once you finish off a bottle of wine the corks simply go to waste, so why not reuse them in wine cork crafts! There are many different wine cork crafts out there including bulletin boards, vases, and mini planters. But today I am going to show you how to create super simple DIY champagne cork place card holders for your wedding. Since New Years Eve just ended I chose to use champagne corks but these DIY place card holders could easily be made with wine corks as well. Read on to learn how to create these DIY champagne cork place cards!
How To Paint Cork
Cork is an absorbent material that quickly soaks up paint but don’t let this deter you from painting it! I used spray paint but you can easily use acrylic or latex. To get a solid cover of paint on cork you will need about 3-4 layers. Because of this spray paint is the faster method and the one I recommend.
Once you’ve painted your cork use a sawzall blade and saw a thin line in the top of your champagne cork. While you can use a razor knife, I recommend using a sawzall blade for this project as the cork is small and you will be cutting close to your fingers. A sawzall blade is easier to handle and is much safer than a razor knife.
Champagne corks naturally have a smooth bottom so they should stand on their own. If any of your champagne corks are wonky, use a bit of sandpaper to even out the bottom. Print out place cards onto card stock and insert into your DIY champagne cork place cards to finish.
No one can drink 100+ bottles of champagne or wine on their own. So if you are looking to make a lot of these DIY champagne place cards for your wedding there are a few creative ways you can collect cork. I recommend asking restaurants or bars if they could save their corks or you could ask a wedding venue or bartending service for their corks. By collecting used cork, these DIY champagne place card holders become an eco-friendly and budget-friendly wedding DIY!
Photography + Styling: Gillian Ellis
How did you meet? Chris and I grew up 3 miles from each other in Mount Pleasant. We even grew up going to the same schools, but with him being a couple years younger our paths did not frequently pass. We both knew of each other and that is about it. Memorial Day Weekend 2016 was very rainy and both of us ended up meeting up with friends . Because of mutual friends that day Chris and I started talking and the rest is history.
What is your proposal story? Our engagement was very private and special, exactly how I have always imagined. Early Saturday morning on June 3rd we took the boat out for what I thought was a casual fishing trip. We went into a small creek back behind Goat Island. My responsibility was the throw the anchor, which would explain the reason why it took 5 different tosses before getting it right. When I finished tying the anchor to the boat I turned around to find Chris on one knee! I never saw it coming. Afterward we spent the next hour and a half soaking it all in before we started calling family and friends. We drove the boat back to breach inlet where we keep it at my parent’s office. When we got closer to the dock Chris had planned a surprise gathering with our closest family and friends. That day could not have been more perfect!
Tell us a little a bit about your wedding: I wanted a classic and elegant wedding. I used a variety of colors to achieve that. I used blush pink and ivory table cloths and I used gold candelabras and a lot of greenery for decoration. My vision was to have all of our family and friends in one large room to help celebrate, which is one of the reasons I chose the Cedar Room.
How did you meet? We met in flight school in Pensacola, Florida. We were both students there.
Tell us a little a bit about your wedding: We wanted to bring together the bright colors of Florida and a tribute to our Navy lifestyle. We met while stationed in Florida and have been all over the world since, but Florida is always home for us. We are both Naval Flight Officers and proud of our gold wings, so gold accents with our bright Florida colors was a must. We also wanted it to just be a big party, so an open bar was another important aspect! We picked Boca Grande because we have always loved that area since Daniel’s family moved there several years ago.
What were your favorite parts of the day? Favorite pars of the day had to be the great views. The island is so beautiful and our photographer made sure to take us to spots she had found before for pictures. Everyone loved getting to visit such a beautiful island and it just made for such an amazing backdrop for the day.
Do you have any advice for couples planning their weddings now? Forget the traditions of a wedding. Do whatever you’d want for a big party with family and friends. We got so wrapped up in “this is what is supposed to be done at a wedding” and it got out of hand sometimes. Do what you want!
What is your proposal story? Fran proposed at our home, which at the time was an apartment in Connecticut. It was around my birthday so I didn’t think much of it when he presented me with a gift….even though it was a small box and obviously ring-sized in retrospect. I did think it was a little weird that he asked me to stand up to open my gift. I was totally clueless and didn’t catch on until I opened the box and looked at Fran, realizing he was down on one knee. It was the easiest decision I’ve ever made, to agree to share the rest of my life with my favorite person.
Tell us a little a bit about your wedding: Fran and I love the outdoors so we wanted to bring that fresh, garden-party vibe to our day. A spring wedding was a must for us. We wanted to incorporate a lot of vibrant greens and cooler gray/blue tones which was the inspiration for the bridesmaid dress color. I was blown away with how well Julie from Bushel & Peck was able to interpret our vision and bring it to life with the most amazing ceremony backdrop and the bouquet of my dreams.
What were your favorite parts of the day? I am so glad that our photographer, AJ gave us the option of doing a first look. I was excited to see Fran and when the moment finally came, I was so overwhelmed with relief, love, and happiness that we were finally getting married after 10 years together that I cried big time. I’m talking fiancé-wiping-snot-off-my-nose big (that’s true love, right?). Tears quickly turned into huge grins but it was special to have that moment together and have time to regain composure before we were in front of all of our family and friends. Most of your big day you spend surrounded by people and to have this moment with just the two of us was something I’ll never forget.
Follow the steps in Design Space to print out the design, making sure to choose “mirror image.” Roll your chosen 
Place your 
Carefully remove the clear backing from your design while it is hot. Your DIY fall wedding koozie is now finished and ready to enjoy!
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