Lavender Bottles - Gifts from Yesteryear

I found the instructions for these lovely lavender bottles many years ago in a magazine.

Whenever I went through my craft folders, I always thought that I should really make them one day. That day finally arrived yesterday when I had a little time to spare. Read more...

Unfortunately I could not make more than two of the lavender bottles as I only have one lavender bush growing in the garden. I already picked some stalks a few weeks ago, but did not have time to make the bottles then, so they dried out completely and I could not use them. (I will use them to fill some sachets now.)

Tips before you start:

I did not wait for the stalks to dry out overnight and become limp as mentioned in the instructions, but I think it is not really so important to do it if you are careful when folding them back.

You can bind the flower heads with a piece of yarn before you start the weaving process. The flowers tend to "pop" through the stalks. I also tried to space the stalks evenly around the flower heads, it makes the weaving a little easier. However, you can always move them into place once you start to weave the ribbon.

(Click on the photos to open in a new window for a better view)

This is what you will need to make these lovely lavender gifts:

Long stalks of lavender (spring and summer are the best time for picking)

1,25m x 10mm wide ribbon in colours of choice; bodkin or safety pin for threading, scissors and elastic band, project glue, (lavender oil, small cotton-wool balls, tweezers, - (optional)

1. Cut about 13 lavender stalks, as long as possible, tie together underneath the flowers. Leave overnight to let the stalks dry and become limp.

2. Fold stalks back over flowers and secure with elastic band.

3. Thread the bodkin/safety pin with ribbon, insert through centre of bundle from bottom to top. Weave ribbon over and under stalks, from top to bottom for a basketwork effect.

Tie ends into a neat bow, secure with one or two dabs of glue if desire. Trim the stalks, so that they are all the same length.

Idea: Roll two tiny balls of cotton wool. Using tweezers, dip cotton wool into lavender oil and insert into centre of the lavender bottle. When the fragrance fades, you can just replace the oil-soaked cotton wool.