Potion Bottles (Version One)

$10 - $15 (based on 2016 prices) 

Makes four bottles

No witch’s apothecary is complete without an assortment of well-used potion bottles. For this version, I utilized colored bottles and bright beads to give the collection a touch of vibrancy. The bottles are rectangular Roma, which are cheap and can be easily found in most craft stores.

• Four Roma colored-glass rectangle bottles with corks (4 oz. or larger)
• Eight small, multicolored stone beads
• Two yards of light-brown twine
• One piece of 8”x 11.5” copy paper with potion labels printed on it
• One 4 oz. bottle of all-purpose tacky glue*
• At least four tablespoons of black tea (e.g. Darjeeling, Earl Gary, English Breakfast, etc.)
• One pan large enough to soak the copy paper

1. Wrap the necks of the bottles with twine and knot the ends, trimming one and leaving the other with a two- or three-inch excess. To reinforce it, glue the knot.

2. Thread the beads onto the twine. It may help to use a needle and pliers during this process, utilizing the needle to guide the twine through the beads’ holes and the pliers to pull the twine through.

3. Separate the beads and knot the twine below each one to keep them in place. Following this, trim the excess twine from the final knot and glue it for reinforcement. 

4. Boil enough water to completely submerge the copy paper and pour it into the pan. Add the tea. The longer you allow the tea to brew, the darker the stain will become. Likewise, greater amounts of tea will produce a richer stain. I found that a combination of English and Irish Breakfast brewed for over ten minutes produces a nice, deep brown. Submerge the paper into the tea mixture and soak it until it reaches the color you desire. I soaked mine for eight hours and scattered the loose-leaf tea over the top of the paper to add spots. Remove the paper from the water and allow it to dry. It may help to perform this step a day or two before the others so the labels are dry once you enter the assembly process.

5. After the paper has dried, cut out the labels, leaving a small boarder around their edges. To roughen the labels’ appearance, use sandpaper to fray their sides and create holes. You can also crumple the paper to produce creases. Once you have achieved your desired level of distress, glue the labels to the sides of the bottles. You can use olive or vegetable oil to add further stains. I discovered that applying a small amount of oil to your index finger and patting it on the paper works well.

6. Return the corks to the bottles and use a pair of scissors to trim the twine’s frayed strands. If you want to add additional detail, fill the bottles with colored sand, dried herbs, or plastic critters. 

*You will not use the entire bottle’s content for this project.