I have always wanted to buy a Bee Skep for decorating the inside of my home and
my garden but if you are like me and have searched for them too you
would see just how expensive they are, how hard they are to find, and how quickly they sell out when found.
Luckily, I saw a creative way to make
a Bee Hive while saving a ton of money. After trying it for myself I
just had to share the "How To" of this project for other DIY Crafters.
Here is what you need to get started:
Supplies for the Bee Skep ( Hive ) :
- A flower pot. Measures 6.25" Diameter x 5.625 "tall. This one came from The Dollar Tree Store and just by looking at it, upside down, it looks like a bee hive. I am not sure how long the store will carry this pot, it took me looking in three different stores to actually find it so I suggest even if you don't have time now to make it, but want to in the future...get your supplies now.
- 4 packages of Jute Rope. A thicker size is required and this also came from The Dollar Tree. It was in both the Craft section and the Garden section of the various stores I visited. Each package measures 9.5 ft.
- Hot Glue Sticks. I used 11 sticks while making this project. I used Gorilla Brand Hot Glue Sticks because the packaging states it holds 5 times longer. Gluing onto a plastic flower pot to help keep its form made me think I may need extra hold. I purchased a package of 30 sticks from Walmart for $5.97 ( plus tax ). There were larger packages ( 45 sticks ) priced at $7.97 ( plus tax).
- Black Acrylic Craft Paint. Used to make the faux "hole" in the bee hive.
- Brush to add the paint. Don't choose too large a brush for this smaller area as you don't want the paint on the outside ring jute.
- Scissors. To cut the jute.
- Hot Glue Gun. I have mine for a very long time now as you can see but any hot glue gun will do. It holds standard size glue sticks, not the mini's.
My Bee Hive will be used inside starting out on my Coffee Bar
along side of my Rae Dunn dishes so for this particular hive I am not
concerned with the weather. Because of that, I am not concerned with
making a base for the hive as it won't be seen anyway.
I started
out with the Hot Glue Gun really hot and added a bead of glue along the
lower edge as close to the bottom as possible. I don't want the pot to
show, but this color flower pot does help mask any areas that are not too
perfect.
You want to glue "slowly" and carefully not to burn your fingers...but
it does sometimes happen as you add the jute. Take your time. You
don't want to glue too thickly a bead that it shows up on the jute
front. Carefully add the jute going around the pot.
Your next rows will be glued closely to the previous row. As you
make your way around the pot take your time to press the glue bead on
the top of the previous row and the flower pot. You will get a feel for
it doing small areas at a time. Hot glue can sometimes set up and
harden quickly so keep the area that you are gluing as a small section.
At this point I had used up the first package of jute and added
the second package right up against the first piece. You will notice
that the jute edges has a teeny piece of tape on it to keep the jute
from fraying.
You have two choices. Carefully remove the tape
before you butt it against the first edge, or leave it on and but it
against. I left it on for one pack and then carefully removed it and
tacked down the tip before it unraveled. Again, the glue is HOT so if
you put a dab of glue on it to stop it from fraying...expect it to be
hot before you pinch it.
Be sure to carefully butt each new pack
of jute to the edge of the previous. This is a fun craft project but
you don't want it to look sloppy. Bees, are perfectionists with the
real thing.
Time to add another package of jute.
Now we are at the end of the third package of jute and ready to
get the top added. As you can see there is no "top" of the pot so I
will be making it by adding the jute at a bit of an angle onto the
previous row as I work my way up. Yes, it can be scary not knowing
where to put that dab of glue and just how to angle it...but trust
me...you will see and get the feel of it as you begin.
Take your time and add the glue carefully.
The couple of glue spots you see below
are the spiders you get from hot glue guns putting glue on and then
putting down the gun. Let them dry and they are easy to remove
afterward.
Okay, before I started my fourth package of jute I cut an 12"
piece of jute off, made a loop and glued it down to the center of the
flower pot top.
Put a dab of glue in the center and make a "foot" with the bottom of the loop staying in the center.
I kept adding the jute around the top making the open area smaller.
Work your fourth package of jute up around the loop carefully gluing
it along the way and cut and poke your end into the hole next to the
loop. These next photos are the front and back side of the bee hive top.
I cut a 5" piece of the leftover jute and made a circle by joining the ends. I then glued the circle to the side of the bee hive I thought was better looking. Not too low and not too high up from the bottom.
I added the black paint inside of the circle and set it aside to dry.
When
I get my coffee bar set up I will add the photo of the bee hive in
place. And I will be looking for smaller flower pots to make tiny bee
hives...along with making a few more of this size. This was my first
try at this without having instructions so my next bee hive should be
much easier.
This project took me a bit over an hour to complete.
