Sunday, January 30, 2011

Wine Bottles and Lots of Deer

The other day I remembered all those old green wine bottles I pulled out of the woods a long, long time ago.   Someone threw them in a trash collection on our property.  We cleaned up the trash, but saved the bottles.  Someone liked their wine!  And there was lots more that we didn't pull out of the woods.  There seems to be alot of old trash dumps around in various locations on the property.


Wine bottle collection, April 2010

That was back in April, 2010.  Wow!  I have been busy since then.  I had meant to sell them online, but never did.  They've just been sitting out in the woods where I left them. 

So I decided now is the time for action.
Better late than never!
I put on my boots, heavy coat, gloves, scarf, and started the trek out to find where I left the old green wine bottles. 
I passed by the chicken coop, had to stop for a visit.  As always.  When I left the chickens I stopped and talked with the guineas and gave them some cracked corn.  They get so excited over the simple things like extra corn. 
Then off into the field I went.

I was thoughtful as I walked.  I am always amazed by the number of deer we seem to have on the property.  I don't see the deer up close, they aren't friendly.  I have a hard time telling them all apart, and so I do not get to know the deer individually.  I am amazed and impressed how Kritter Keeper over at Farm Tails blog knows her deer so well.  Maybe this summer I'll work with the deer more and maybe they'll get more friendly...  I notice lots and lots of deer footprints in the snow as I walk.

Lots of deer hoof prints

Deer hoof prints in snow up close
We find ALOT of deer antlers on this property.  When we lived in previous houses we always looked but never found any antlers.  Here we find so many we don't know what to do with them.  Here's our latest finds from the past couple weeks.  The left antler is huge and heavy.  And yes, that's a turtle shell.  The turtle was gone. 
Latest finds
We've found quite a few deer skulls recently, too.


One day I'll figure out what to do with all the antlers we have collected.  Today's mission was green wine bottles...  Stay focused...

I finally made it out to the wine bottle location.  There they were, in all their glory.  Of course, they are now covered in snow, so they don't look so neat as before.


























And so I listed the bottles on Craigslist.  I'm thinking of listing them on Etsy, also, but I'll have to figure out how to ship them.  Hopefully I'll get some takers!
Cheers!


16 comments:

Chai Chai said...

You must have some very large bucks running around your property to be leaving antlers that size.

Hauling the green bottles out in deep snow is really hard work, do you have snow shoes?

I agree with you about the Guineas, once you get used to the noise they are very precious and fun to have around.

Lisa said...

Pretty bottles! Wow, you must have lots of deer around. We live right in the woods and I have yet to see a deer in the almost 20 years we've been living here.

Lilla said...

Antlers make wonderful dog chews. They are all natural and dogs love them. If you were to buy them in a pet specialty store, you would be amazed at how much they cost. Good luck with selling the wine bottles!

Country Girl said...

I didn't know antlers were good for dog chews! Save me a couple! Yes- you could make a fortune on those wine bottles! Stick to Craig's list if you can- it will be easier. Wonder how much they go for?? Tom asked where his eggs were when we got back to his house after visiting yours! ~ Sounds like it was a good walk. Are you expecting snow this week? We are!

Karen Anne said...

Try ebay if you can stand it. I buy old bottles from my great-grandfather's bottling company there, and there seem to be a lot of buyers and sellers of old bottles.

Karen Anne said...

p.s. As to shipping, the ones I buy just come in cardboard boxes, wrapped up to their gills in a lot of newspaper.

John Going Gently said...

there is something quite beautiful about those green bottles against the snow!

Robin said...

I forgot about those. Maybe you can sell every one of them. :)

Knatolee said...

Your antler and skull collection is awesome!! I wish I could find even one antler. We are over-run by deer, so it amazes me that I never find anything in the woodlot.

Good luck selling those very cool bottles.

Leigh said...

Actually, that photo of the wine bottles in the show, is pretty neat. Surely someone will have a use for them. Interesting about the deer. They've left you quite a collection.

Between Nicknames said...

Apparently I'm a weird vegetarian, I'd love to find a deer skull and antlers and display them. Only if the death was natural, of course. And bugs had been there to clean up previously(completely). Where I live I've never found moose horns by themselves, only attached.

Kritter Keeper at Farm Tails said...

you are so kind to mention me...thank you so much my friend! i hope you keep the antlers. you can find someone to make silverware from the handles. horchow catalogue sells them and they are very pricey. that left one looks like it is from a nice older buck. it is wider than mine. i am wondering about all those skulls. that doesn't sound right. coyotes and foxes do not leave them and keep them in their dens. wondering if some died from starvation or some ohter disease. very disturbing to me. i only found one on my farm in 8 years. i look for antlers all the time and was lucky to find my firt set which were my deer bossy boy's last year. he dropped them in the feed yard. i looked for him and his antlers yesterday and was outside for three hours. i am so worried about him. he hasn't returned in over two weeks and my heart is broken...thank you for blogging about your deer and your bottles are amazing. ebay is your best bet. people make lamps out of those. a cool burlap shade would be awesome! make some money girl you can do it!

Kritter Keeper at Farm Tails said...

you are so kind to mention me...thank you so much my friend! i hope you keep the antlers. you can find someone to make silverware from the handles. horchow catalogue sells them and they are very pricey. that left one looks like it is from a nice older buck. it is wider than mine. i am wondering about all those skulls. that doesn't sound right. coyotes and foxes do not leave them and keep them in their dens. wondering if some died from starvation or some ohter disease. very disturbing to me. i only found one on my farm in 8 years. i look for antlers all the time and was lucky to find my firt set which were my deer bossy boy's last year. he dropped them in the feed yard. i looked for him and his antlers yesterday and was outside for three hours. i am so worried about him. he hasn't returned in over two weeks and my heart is broken...thank you for blogging about your deer and your bottles are amazing. ebay is your best bet. people make lamps out of those. a cool burlap shade would be awesome! make some money girl you can do it!

Verde Farm said...

What a great idea. I was going to suggest Craig’s List. I’ve never used it but so many do well with it. These are great bottle. Wonder if someone who used to live there made their own wine? I think they look pretty popping out of the snow like little flowers. You have lots of treasures and the antlers are very cool.
I am amazed at how Farm Tails knows her deer too. They are beautiful creatures for sure.
Happy Saturday,
Amy

Razzberry Corner said...

Chai Chai - No, I don't have snow shoes! But I have had NO takers on the bottles from Craigslist, so I haven't had to move any bottles!

Lisa - Wow - no deer? I guess I'm lucky to be sharing the woods with lots of deer.

Lilla - dog chews, huh? What a great idea!!! I'll have to look into that!

Barb - Who knew? No one has answered our Craigslist ad. :(

Karen Anne - Ok, thanks for the info. I used to sell alot on ebay, so I have an account. I haven't used it in a few years, but it's worth a shot! I'll let you know how it goes!

John Gray - the green bottles are pretty with the white background. Snow makes good pictures.

Robin - I wish I could sell them! It'd be nice to make some money on the trash around here!

Knatolee - In previous houses we had LOTS of deer too, but never an antler. Here, lots of antlers. Maybe it's got something to do with the amount of deer in the area during the time of the year when they lose antlers.

Leigh - I just have to find the right market for those bottles! Someone will love them!

BN - Moose horns? Oh, I love moose! They are so huge, they take my breath away! I saw a wild moose once in Colorado - I was so very excited. I wish there were moose here! Where do you live? I will have to check out your blog! :)

Kritter Keeper - I hope Bossy's Boy is ok!!! It would break my heart, too, if I were you! I know I was so very upset when my pet deer, Sally, from a previous house, showed up with a broken leg, limping badly. Her adult fawns, Stomper & Sadie, were still with her. Eventually only Stomper & Sadie showed up, no Sally. She never returned. I cried. many months later we found a doe carcass way out in the woods. It's so upsetting to lose an animal, even if it's a wild deer. I'm sorry about BB.

Amy - I think people have used parts of this property as a trash dump in previous years. We have lots of cleanup to do still!

~Lynn

Rob Feckler said...

Whoa, those are a LOT of bottles! I think it’s great that you did your part in helping the environment by pulling these out of the garbage. Selling them on eBay was a clever idea. They could also be transformed into great vases. How’s your progress with these? Were you able to sell them all or do you still have some of them?