Bart went to a fair and bought me this unique recycled hummingbird feeder. I have a passion for regional/off-brand sodas and any type of breweriana, so I love the fact that they used a Cheerwine bottle for the hummingbird syrup reservoir AND its recycled. The construction of it is simple, they used a cork attached to a spout for the bird to drink out of, and then wrapped it with heavy gauge copper wire. The unique part of it are the extra details that went into the design, and I like how they punched out red metal leaves and then wrapped them around the copper wire with fine gauge gold wire. I think it adds a nice touch.

This one came with a card that says:
Bird Feeders
U.S.A.
PO Box 128
Calhoun, TN 37309
423-336-5867

I tried to Google the company, but I couldn’t find them. I did find another woman who makes soda bottle hummingbird feeders and is selling them for $6. Her design is less refined but I do really like how she used worn bottles.

Necklace Made from Bullet Casings

I have been wanting to make a necklace out of bullets and/or bullet casings for a long time. However, I don’t hunt or shoot and neither does anyone I know, so it has been rather difficult to even get the materials. Recently, I went to a really fun party at a farm in Lovettsville, VA. I got to play with farm animals, eat yummy food, and shoot a gun.

Anyway, I managed to get a bunch of casings that way. Previously I had thought about using actual bullets, but that seemed unsafe (and maybe too controversial?). The casings posed their own problems. I tried drilling holes in them with a dremel tool, but their rounded smooth surface made it nearly impossible to do this quickly and without scratching the casings when the dremel slipped. My solution was to wrap each one with masking tape/painter’s tape to provide resistance. However, at that point I was tired of hearing the drill and decided not to drill holes in them since attaching them together wouldn’t look very nice (in my opinion) and I didn’t have enough to make a truly experimental necklace.

Ultimately, I decided to try out my skills at wire wrapping. I don’t typically do wire wrapping but I’ve been learning the basics. I ended up wire wrapping all the bullets and forming a necklace and a pair of earrings. I wore the set to the Gem and Jewelry show in Dulles and I got a lot of positive comments/interest.

My experimentation has been delayed by lack of supplies. I even went to the NRA to ask them for their casings from their shooting range, but apparently they recycle them.