Put together a set of new trivets made from an unexpected material, basket weave winding core, and customize it to use with your dining table this holiday season. Trivets are one thing we always seem to fall short on during our Thanksgiving feast, but these handmade (and custom-dyed) trivet coils come to the rescue, protecting the table from hot dishes while time they look great..
From:Emily Fazio Emily Fazio
The winding core is a material that you should know about. Intended by all accounts as a paper core used in basket making, it is durable, inexpensive (only 60 cents a yard for a 1/2" winding core at my local craft store), and absorbent yet well tied. and able to dry without losing shape. Will last well past the holiday season, unless clumsy Uncle Lou spills gravy on top. I used three yards to create a 10" trivet. Its natural color itself is lovely, but it also stains beautifully, as shown below, making it an easy product to personalize for a holiday or event, or to coordinate with your dinnerware.
From:Emily Fazio Emily Fazio
There are a few approaches you may want to take if you are going to dye your winding core. The first is to do a modified dip dye technique, where instead of submerging one end of the product completely into the liquid dye, a shallow pool is created and the product is allowed to absorb it into its inner core. I allowed the dye to soak into the outer edge of the spool along the threads and fibers so that it left undyed areas on the inner spool.
From:Emily Fazio Emily Fazio
You can also use a mist sprayer to lightly apply tint without over-saturating, and as you'll see at the end of this tutorial, you can also use an eyedropper to create tint effects.
Once the dye has dried (when it's easiest to handle), you're ready to roll up your trivet. Plug in your hot glue gun and start tying a piece of string tightly around one end of the coiled core wire to prevent fraying, and then trim the end even with sharp scissors.
From:Emily Fazio Emily Fazio
Apply hot glue to the blunt end of the wire, and immediately wrap it around to set the center of the bracket.
Emily Fazio 
From:Emily Fazio From:Emily Fazio Work in three to four inch sections and continue to apply hot glue to the contact points and wrap the wire tightly. It's going to go really fast, and the coiled core fibers hold hot glue really well.
Emily Fazio 
From:Emily Fazio From:Emily Fazio When you've reached the end of the core wrap, use scissors to trim the end at a sharp angle, so it's angled to wrap flush with the trivet you made. Apply glue to the cut end.
From:Emily Fazio Emily Fazio
Once the trivet was assembled, I used the dropper to apply beads of purple dye. Adding more colors at this point is optional, but the dye is well brought into the winding core at this stage using a tool for precise application.
From:Emily Fazio Emily Fazio
Let the trivet dry and admire the tie-dye/tie-dye effect it created. Use the trivet to protect a table from hot surfaces or as a decorative accessory on your tablescape.
From:Emily Fazio Emily Fazio
