Sunday, Sept 22 2024

Spun Cotton Boats: Handmade Cotton Batting Ornaments

By A Mystery Man Writer

These darling little boats were inspired by the sparkly Sebnitz ships of the late 19th century. The small German town of Sebnitz was known for its marvelous handcrafted Christmas ornaments which were typically an assemblage of scrap materials: cotton, tinsel, crinkle wire, Dresden trims, and foil bits. Located near the glass bead centers of Czechoslovakia, they also sometimes included silvered glass beads in their designs. In addition to boats and ships they produced cradles, umbrellas, hot air balloons, zeppelins, baskets, and other fanciful shapes. For this variation, the boats are made of thin chipboard, or a reused cereal/food box, assembled with masking tape. Two layers of cotton quilt batting are torn to fit the shape, and are applied with glue and a cornstarch binding medium. The exact batting used can be found here. Then, the mast is made from wire, and the
These darling little boats were inspired by the sparkly Sebnitz ships of the late 19th century. The small German town of Sebnitz was known for