DIY Tutorial-ish : Sweater Bottles

I'm sure this technique has a much more sophisticated  name than the one that popped in my head {sweater bottles} but to me, it fits. Because when I look at them I think of a bottle in a warm, fuzzy sweater :)  {oh golly that was cheeeeeezy}

Moving on. These are very simple to make but hot glue + yarn = messy if you aren't particular. So take your time, don't use much glue and have fun!!

{soooorrrry for the awful pictures! for being a photographer, I always have the worst tutorial pictures!! and that would be because I'm too impatient and don't take the time to wait for good light or set up a nice backdrop!} 

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Materials:

any bottle | yarn, varying shades | glue gun & glue sticks | regular glue stick

There isn't really a tutorial for this per se -- a picture is worth a thousand words right?! But I'll throw in a few tips I've learned by doing this project.

You want to start off with a very thin layer of glue at the base of your bottle for your first yarn wrap. BUT you have to do small strips of glue at a time {don't put glue around the whole bottle circumference at once} because the glue dries SUPER fast!! So glue. apply yarn. glue. apply yarn. glue. apply yarn,etc.  After gluing that first layer, you shouldn't need to use your glue gun until you're ready to  switch yarn colors. Simply continue to wrap the yarn around tightly, pushing each layer closely together. To finish a section, use a dot of glue to secure the yarn where you want to switch colors. Then snip off the excess yarn with your scissors and use a dot of glue to secure your new color/yarn.

After you've finished your first section, take your glue gun and run some glue around the bottom of the bottle to completely secure the bottom layer of yarn. {Later if you wish you can add a circle of felt to the bottom}

 Try to keep all of your color switches/yarn switches at roughly the same place on one side of the bottle... this creates the "back" of the bottle and gives the "front" a more finished look.

 The trickiest part is the tapered neck portion of the bottle. Even if it's a very slight taper it will make your yarn slip and not stay in place! Try rubbing a kid's glue stick over this area to make it less slippery before wrapping the yarn. If this doesn't help, you'll simply have to use dots of glue as you go around the jar to secure each layer of yarn {much like you did on the very first layer but less glue}. 

This tends to make for a messy appearance and it's tricky to get the layers very close together SO once you have an initial section of yarn wrapped around, clean up all your glue strings and then go back and wrap more yarn on top until you're satisfied with the look. Secure as usual and move back to your regular method of wrapping.