I have been working on a few projects, I have, I promise! And in the middle of crafting with a few leftover wine corks this week I came across a little snag. I was having the hardest time cutting those darn things in half! Have you ever tried it? Those suckers just don’t budge! Well, I found the best way to cut wine corks in half, and I’m sharing!
I was getting cuts on my fingers pretty frustrated until I remembered this tip, and it turned out to be a pretty awesome “aha” moment! In fact, it saved the day!
So, What’s The Best Way To Cut Wine Corks In Half?
Initially I was sawing into them with a kitchen knife and chopping at the corks causing them to crumble and fall apart. I was seriously contemplating on blogging about a big “project fail”. Thank goodness I regrouped and decided to give it a try.
Here’s the tip…
“Steam your wine corks in a vegetable steamer”
Yep, that’s right, steam those babies right on the stove for a few minutes and I promise you they will slice like butter!
Just put a pot of water on the stove and allow it to briefly boil.
Gather a few corks at a time and place them in the top portion of the steamer. Allow them to steam with the top on for only a few minutes.
You will see that they will puff up a bit (that’s the pores opening up making them less dense and easier to cut). No worries, because they will contract back to their original state after cooling off.
So, pull some corks out with your tongs and start cutting a smooth seam with a kitchen knife, of course using your best culinary kitchen safety! Other than that no additional skills required!
SO Easy and saves WAY MORE time for crafting! I hope this helps! I invite you to please stop by in a few days and see what I have been working on and as always, thanks for reading Curb Alert!
Wine corks for sale on Amazon
Don’t have enough corks? You can always purchase some extras online. These are real recycled wine corks, not replicas, and work great for so many crafty projects!
Premium Recycled Corks, Natural Wine Corks From Around the US – 50 Count
You’ll also want to see my Framed Wine Cork Display post. You won’t want to miss it!
I'm going to remember this for whenever I finally get around to my cork projects. Thanks for the tip!
Who knew. That is so much easier.
Brilliant tip! Thanks for sharing 🙂
I have a bunch of corks & had no idea how to cut them in half. I am going to try this for sure. Great tip!
I'm going to start saving corks now. What a great EASY tip!
What if you don't have a steamer?
Catherine Piccolo
If you don’t have a steamer then use a colander (I’m sure you have one of those)
Hope this helps you!
From a reader of this posting
Good Luck!
This worked perfectly! Thanks for the tip!
My kitchen has been at a stand still since 2012. I need a backsplash and flooring. I have been waiting on the hubby to finally break down and purchase the subway tile or stone I keep hinting at. Today I stumbled upon this post… hmm more wine might be in order. But in another 8 years or less I could achieve some backsplash on my ow. Thank you for sharing!
I do a lot of 1/2 wine cork projects. Fortunately I have a bandsaw for which I made a jig to split the corks in half lengthwise. I split 2 at a time.
Jim could you tell me more about your jig I wanting to build one to cut them for my wife. Scott
I come from a family of Bartenders so corks are easy for me to get. If you know of someone that owns/works or just spends time in a bar ask them to save corks for you. You’ll have stop in once a week to pick them up but you’d be surprised how fast you get enough corks for your projects. They just throw them away, nice way to recycle.
This makes them easier to cut but doesn’t ensure that they are really accurate halves,
I I have houndreds of corks. We make our own wine. This is the best way to cut corks in half