Stamped Clay & Jute-Wrapped Wire Plant Markers

I’ve been trying to come up with a cute idea for marking the plants in my elevated gardens, and last night, a bit of creativity struck.  I came up with this idea for stamped clay and jute-wrapped wire plant markers.

I started by rolling out some oven-bake clay, and then stamping it with the name of the plant.  These clay stamp kits can be found at craft stores for about $10.

Next I used a knife to cut out a rectangle around the stamped name, and then used the handle of the knife to create a “pie crust” edge for a little decorative touch.  Of course, you could also leave the edge plain.

Then I used a straight pin to make a hole in the top big enough for my wire (see below) to go through.  With the label finished, I put it in the oven to bake according to the instructions on the package.

While the label was baking, I prepared the wire hanger.  For this part, I used 16 gauge floral stem wire.

Using needle nose pliers, I curled one end.

Next I used a small amount of hot glue, and wrapped the jute around the inner part of the loop, stopping at the area where the clay label would hang.

After the label was baked and cooled, I threaded the wire through the hole, and positioned it at the bottom part of the loop.  Then I continued wrapping the jute around the rest of the wire.

I think it’s pretty cute!  And of course, there are a thousand variations you could do.  You could use cookie cutters to make fun shapes, or paint the clay labels, or even make plain unstamped labels and paint them with chalkboard paint.