I reamed the pith out of a well-dried cane of elder and then used a drill bit to widen the bore to 3/8". I took some 3/8" poplar dowel and cut a small disc off of it, which I glued into the bottom of the tube. I then cut the top off the tube and inserted a longer piece of dowel that stood proud of the tube itself, to make a stopper. I drilled a small hole through the stopper, which I carefully widened to make a lanyard. The stopper is a very good friction fit.
![Image](https://i.imgur.com/WEjTxPM.jpg?1)
I intended this as a sewing kit, but while fine for needle storage there's not much of a good way to store thread in such a narrow vessel. In retrospect, though, shorter versions of this could make excellent spice bottles--lighter and less delicate than glass, while still being reasonably waterproof once waxed.
![Image](https://i.imgur.com/VJwz3ln.jpg?1)
Here it is all finished!