By Carol Duvall
Today's shoe box contribution was truly a surprise. The item itself, a bottle with a note in it, was intriguing in itself, but to discover that it was put in there by our script supervisor Doug Eakin was a bonus surprise. Eakin has personally used this method for sending love letters, job applications, invitations, etc. It seemed only logical to invite Eakin to appear on the show to explain and demonstrate, and he graciously obliged.
Materials:
small oil and vinegar bottle or similar container with cork
fine sand
tiny shells
parchment paper
pencil
strand of raffia
two rubber bands
mailing tube with plastic end closures
Steps: - Pour a small amount of sand into the bottle. Add several small shells.
- Cut parchment paper so that it is a couple of inches narrower than the height of the bottle. When rolled up, the paper should slip easily in and out of the bottle.
- Write note, invitation, announcement, or any other information on parchment paper, then roll the paper around a pencil, secure top and bottom with rubber bands and allow to curve this way for several hours.
- Tie a length of raffia around the middle of the rolled parchment. Leave two long tails. Remove rubber bands and pencil.
- Insert note in the bottle with at least one of the raffia ends sticking out the neck of the bottle. Replace cork. Note: When the cork is removed, the note can be taken out by pulling on the strand of raffia.
- Insert bottle in mailing tube and send through the mail.
Here's another idea from one of our editors:
If you're sending a baby announcement, your "bottle" can be a plastic baby bottle filled with the message and birthday confetti.
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